Cirrus@Austlit

'Vanishing Point explores the interior and exterior life of Diana, a nineteen year old girl living in South Australia. She struggles with the question tormenting many young people today: How do you learn to be comfortable in your own body? Diana suffers from anorexia and bulimia. Living with a demanding father, a mother who dabbles in charismatic religion, and a brother with Down syndrome, Diana feels pressured to be the family savior, to be “perfect.” In her need to control something in her life, she retreats into the self-destructive world of anorexia and bulimia. The play takes us on Diana’s journey into a place of healing and hope. Theatre is a medium of metaphor – nothing and no one are exactly what they seem to be: brick walls are really painted flats; actors assume new identities as aristocrats, peasants – even animals or plants. So, poetry – another medium grounded in metaphor – seems perfectly suited to the stage. Jeri Kroll’s rich, evocative language enables us to examine sometimes painful situations without looking away.' (Production summary)