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Published: 12 January, 2012
by JULIA RANK

A crisis of faith is the common denominator in this double bill written and directed by Murray Watts and starring Andrew Harrison.

First Light is set in a boarding school and raises questions about appropriate and “right” behaviour, particularly that of authority figures who are constantly under pressure to maintain a spotless reputation.

Unlikely schoolgirl crush Tom – the school chaplain and widower of the late, much-loved housemother – is about to move out of the houseparents’ flat in the girls’ boarding house when 15-year-old Merry (Natalie Burt) knocks on the door in the middle of the night clad only in her dressing gown.

They share whisky and confidences which leads to them being caught in a compromising position even though “nothing happened”.

This well-meaning but ponderous piece is performed with sincerity by the cast of four.

More memorable is Mr Darwin’s Tree, a fast-paced one-man journey through the life and legacy of Charles Darwin.

Over the years, Darwin’s theories have been claimed by the far left and right, while the man himself was tormented by his chronically indecisive agnosticism and was intensely private with a “sacred duty to hoard his disbelief”.

Andrew Harrison gives a high-energy and engaging performance, communicating Darwin’s fascination with the natural world and the strain of every member of Victorian society having an opinion on him and his work.  

As is often the case with good biographical shows, it’s the little personal details that linger in the mind. Darwin’s methodical approach stretched to a most amusing list of the pros and cons of whether to get married, and his beloved wife Emma didn’t need to go to his state funeral because she knew him better than any of the celebrity mourners.

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