Review: The State of Grace

The State of Grace is equal parts tragic, fun, and socially introspective. This one-woman Australian production led by Michaela Burger details the coming-of-age and adult life of Grace Bellavue, a high profile sex worker and activist.

Burger portrays Bellavue’s life as no less inherently ordinary than any other. She grows via the same things as everyone else: love, sex, employment, family, relationships. The combination of this innocent ordinariness with society’s jarring double standards asks pressing questions around social and institutional failures, and the show leaves no doubt of the importance of these questions.

Multiple aspects of Bellavue’s emotional and public lives are covered alongside educational sections and oft-staid musical segments. While this breadth might serve the play’s mission, and the informative approach is delivered capably, it falls short of reaching theatrical heights. There are flashes of Burger’s ability to command a room with poise, including sequences that synchronise with the technical design. Amidst its overall importance though, and the challenges of squeezing a complex life into a one-hour one-woman show, no one component – even its dramatic conclusion – entirely succeeds in achieving a singular emotional climax.

While the play doesn’t break new ground, the evident love at the heart of the story drives a production with a lot to say that needs to be heard.