Things I Know To Be True is a play by Andrew Bovell that premiered in May 2016 and was performed by the The State Theatre Company South Australia. It has also been performed in Britain by Frantic Assembly, in Sydney at the New Theatre (2022), in the United States in a co-production with the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre and the Arizona Theatre Company (2019), in Canada at the CAA Theatre [Mirvish and Company Theatre co-production (2023)], and in translation in Spain. The play is naturalistic but features great use of non-naturalistic physical movement to emphasise the emotional connection between the characters - following the story of the Price Family and their problems. The play is set in Adelaide, Australia, which is where the play held its World Premiere in May 2016. For the American production, Bovell adapted the action of the drama to take place in the Midwestern United States. ^[1]

Plot

Things I Know To Be True follows the story and the many struggles of the Price Family. The play begins with a monologue from Rosie Price on a European getaway during her gap-year. She reveals that she had met a man called Emanuel while she was in Berlin, but found that he'd stolen most of her valuables and run away when she woke up one night, forcing her to return to Australia.

When Rosie returns home, the rest of the family come to meet her. We learn that Pip, Rosie's elder sister, has decided to leave her husband and two children behind to live in Vancouver; her mother, Fran, disapproves, especially after she found out that Pip had been cheating. Fran is particularly disappointed, as she states that she saw a lot of herself in Pip. Later in the play, Pip has moved to Vancouver and had written a letter to Fran, finally emotionally connecting with her after a rather abusive childhood. It takes hundreds of miles for the two characters to finally be together emotionally.

The Price's second child, Mia (previously referred to as Mark,) comes out as transgender and announces her plans for her transition, which include her plan to move to Sydney to begin transgender hormone therapy. This comes as a shock to the rest of the family, with Fran again being particularly displeased. This scene is the last time in which we see Mia present as male, with her presenting as a woman in her later appearances.

Fran had been saving around $250,000 as a get-out fund for her relationship with Bob, stating that it is "hard to love someone for 30 years straight." She admits to Bob that she once thought of running away - as Pip had just done - but stayed together for the sake of their children. Fran then says that she now saves it for them to treat themselves. She asks Bob where he'd most like to go and he replies Kruger National Park. To his surprise, she agrees to go, yet they never do.

The final sub-plot of this play is centered around the younger son, Ben, and his father, Bob. Bob finds a European car parked outside; it turns out to be Ben's and Bob wants to know how he found the money, with Ben answering that he worked hard for it. This appears to be insignificant, until later in the play Ben returns home, sweating and speaking quickly. Rosie is the only person indoors at the time and she realises quickly that Ben had been taking drugs. Bob and Fran then enter, now even more curious about his money situation. Bob asks Ben what drugs he'd taken, to which Ben replies, "It'd be easier to ask which ones I haven't." Bob then snaps, shouting and swearing at Ben. At this moment Ben reveals that he had been skimming, and that's where he'd received the money for the drugs and flashy car.

As all this is happening, however, tragedy strikes. It is revealed that Fran had been involved in a car crash and was pronounced dead on arrival. She passes away without reconciling with Mia, emotionally connecting with Pip in person, forgiving Ben and taking Bob to South Africa. The children return to Adelaide to meet Bob and Rosie for Fran's funeral.

Cast and characters

Soundtrack

The UK production of Things I Know to Be True featured a soundtrack composed by Nils Frahm. Frahm's pieces, selected from his catalogue by directors Scott Graham and Geordie Brookman in conjunction with sound designer Andrew Howard, have one prominent instrument; the piano. Frahm ensures that the piano's chords reflect the mood of the current scene, using minor keys for sadder scenes and slightly jazzier tones for happier ones.

Aside from Frahm's soundtrack, the work of Leonard Cohen is mentioned many times; coincidentally he died just a few days before the first performance at the Chichester Minerva Theatre. His song 'Famous Blue Raincoat' is featured during Pip's letter to Fran, where she explains that it used to be Fran and Bob's song that they loved. Here are the lyrics from Cohen's hit that were adapted to fit the letter:

Inspirations

The following is a list of mediums that Andrew Bovell has named as inspirations when writing, or rehearsing Things I Know to Be True: ^[4]

Critical reception

Things I Know to Be True has widely received good reviews, with the average rating at around three and a half stars out of five. The US East Coast premiere of the play, directed by Judy Braha at Great Barrington Public Theater in July 2022, received regional acclaim^[5][6] garnering two Berkshire Theatre Critics Awards nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress (Corinna May as Fran) and Outstanding Supporting Actor (Jo Michael Rezes as Mia).^[7]

The Guardian described the Frantic Assembly production as "a pleasure to watch", and the Radio Times stated that "It is a rare thing for a suburban family drama to resonate quite as acutely and uncomfortably as Things I Know to Be True", describing it as an "understated gem".^[8][9] What's On Stage praised Bovell's writing ability as "good on the daily frictions of life".^[10]

References