Entertainment
10 October, 2026
Divorce turns to laughs
THERE are plenty of laughs in ‘Straight Outta Marriage’, but beneath the outrageous humour and chaotic girls’ night lies a serious conversation about endometriosis, infertility and the experiences of women whose pain can too easily go unheard.
Written and produced by Cairns playwright Kimberley Greaves and directed by Lillie McNamara, the 70-minute production at The Rondo Theatre follows three sisters celebrating Clare’s divorce when a paint-and-sip instructor with second sight sends the evening in an unexpected direction.
The comedy is strongest when the women are allowed to bounce off each other. The paint-and-sip scenes featuring the “toxic trio” produced some of the night’s biggest laughs, while a well-placed Bob Katter reference showed the production wasn’t afraid to inject some distinctly local humour.
Angela Gould as Clare, Ayla White as Rhea and Rebecca Martin as Lou formed a confident ensemble, delivering the dialogue clearly while maintaining the sense that these were women with a long history together.
That chemistry was deliberate. Ms Greaves said considerable rehearsal time was devoted to helping the actors establish their relationship before introducing much of the physical blocking.
“Often the funniest moment isn’t the line itself, I think, but another character’s reaction to it,” she said.
The production also makes clever use of music, costumes and lighting to create different moods, relying on relatively few props. Rather than leaving the stage feeling sparse, the minimalist approach gives the performers room to carry the story.
Ms McNamara said the approach was partly dictated by budget but also reflected her philosophy about theatre.
“I take the approach that our audience is filled with smart people who will understand without having to have literally everything on the stage. I think this gives the performers the space and freedom to shine.”
Where Straight Outta Marriage succeeds most is in allowing its comedy and serious subject matter to coexist. The laughter doesn’t erase the difficult discussion surrounding women’s health but provides an entry point to it.
Ms Greaves described the humour as giving the audience “somewhere to breathe”, with the production deliberately letting emotional tension linger in its more vulnerable moments before finally offering comic release.
Ms McNamara hopes that audiences who haven’t experienced the issues depicted gain greater empathy, while those who have experienced them leave feeling “validated and seen”.
That is ultimately the production’s greatest strength. Straight Outta Marriage delivers an entertaining night at the theatre, but amid the costumes, music, sharp exchanges and absurdity lies a reminder that laughter can sometimes create the space to talk about subjects that aren’t funny at all.
