Wednesday 26 August 2026
Kim Carpenter’s Theatre of Image
Review by Paul Neeson (Arts Wednesday)
I wasn’t there for the original 2010 production of The Book of Everything, but many of the cast members – Matthew Whittet as Thomas, John Leary as Jesus, Julie Forsyth as Mrs. van Amersfoort and Claire Jones as Mother – were there in all there theatrical glory. The rest of the cast were regular Belvoir alumni (including the inimitable Pamela Rabe as Auntie Pie and John Gaden as Father/Bumbiter) making it a show of seasoned professionals well versed in the idiosyncrasies of this delightful tale. The play doesn’t shy away from dark and confronting topics (everything from domestic violence and religious fundamentalism to misogyny and feminism) but rather challenges them head-on from the perspective of an innocent child.
The 2010 production was a collaboration between Kim Carpenter’s Theatre of Image and Neil Armfield that ran through the years to 2013 and then not surprisingly toured internationally to great acclaim. Now it returns for an encore season in 2026. It is based on a book by Dutch writer, Guus Kuijer and adapted for stage by Richard Tulloc. It was an endearingly very popular book for adults and older children and the seasons at Belvoir have received wide support and acclaim.
16 years ago Matthew Whittet was cast as the nine year old Thomas Klopper, and I have to say when I saw the recent publicity shots where, even though he is holding his 51 years well, I thought this is going to be a stretch. But I was wrong. From the very first scene we were convinced we were watching an innocent, naive child trying to navigate his way through a sometimes difficult and confusing adult world. His vision of this world is full of love and joy, despite the conflict going on around him, and Whittet took us on that journey with a depth of empathy and understanding that reminds us of the magic of theatre at its best.
Rebecca Massey as his older sister, Margot, was equally convincing as a teenage girl. Her journey from annoying sister to courageous warrior in the family struggle was compelling. Other standouts were John Leary as the urbane Jesus and Julie Forsyth as the ‘witch’, Mrs. Van Amersfoort. Her interactions with Thomas were the most moving scenes in the play.
The set design by Kim Carpenter took us immediately into the imaginative world of a child – literally a giant book with pages depicting the location of each scene: each page turned by the cast according to where they were: bedroom, witch’s house, lounge room. There was some clever stage direction (Neil Armfield) where props were passed between characters behind the book to magically appear on the opposite side of the stage. These humorous little moments, along with some witty one-liners (Jesus “swept”) that I doubt were in the original book, added to the childlike magic that permeated the play throughout.
Special mention has to go to Jack Ward, as the onstage (sort of) musician performing the music of Iain Grandage. He played piano, cello, toy xylophone and melodica again embellishing the guileless world we inhabited. For most of the show I forgot there was live music it was so seamlessly embedded in the action, and that is the true craft of theatrical music – it works best when you don’t notice it.
Overall this production of The Book of Everything is one not to be missed, even if you have seen previous incarnations. I can’t use the word magic enough to describe this play. It is other-worldly, a child’s world, where things are colourful, joyous and noisy, a world where conflict is melodramatic (even pantomimic). A world where you laugh and tear up in equal measures, where you hope all things will turn out right and the good people will prevail. And they do. And what a beautiful conclusion when the children in the audience are invited onto the stage for the final scene. A theatrical moment that we will remember for years to come.
This Belvoir Season runs to 20 September.
You can listen to a recent interview with designer an co-producer Kim Carpenter below:
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