An absurdist comedy performed with youthful exuberance by the young cast.

Fire On Ice features a bold, original and at times very confusing plot covering some big themes such as the environment, sibling rivalry, unrequited love, the importance of milo and so on, without anything really dominating the narrative.

The basic premise is that there is a fire at the Antarctic Station and the action follows the various characters on site as they address the challenges the fire poses.

It is an original play written by Zoe Limpanyalers (who also co-directs with Indiana Rogers) and features lots of silliness which the actors all seem to enjoy.

Ideally for a theatre group such as the University Dramatic Society (based at UWA) there is a very even spread of roles giving all seven performers the opportunity to strut their stuff:

Alessandra Tognini as Kai the domineering elder sister

Stephanie Trevisan as Marcy the younger sibling desperate to emerge into full bloom

William Oxlade as Taylor, hamming it up at every opportunity

Priya Wilson as Gamall, enthusiastically taking on the challenge of playing an older person

Lauren Allen as Sammi, surfer dude with lots of the associated mannerisms

Isobel Millward as Yubecca, dedicated academic, and

Katrina Esdale as Lee, the equivocal reporter.

At times the cast got drawn into delivering their lines a bit too quickly and a bit too shoutily so the subtleties of the words got somewhat lost. Perhaps a bit more focus on timbre would help the exposition?

There was also a minor problem with the very front of the stage being used for some of the action, an area which was unfortunately out of sight for all except those in the front seats.

Overall, the production team have done a very good job and it comes across as a professional production. I’m sure it will provide plenty of laughs and some pause for thought for audiences over its run at the Subiaco Theatre Centre.