Penned by playwright Samuel D. Hunter and named one of the best plays of 2022, A Case for the Existence of God makes its Australian Premiere at Seymour Centre this week. Produced by Outhouse Theatre Co, the play is a two-hander that follows the meeting of two men — Ryan (Anthony Gooley) a straight, white single parent who is undereducated, recently divorced, and Keith (Elijah Williams), a gay, black single foster carer, who works as a mortgage broker. Ryan seeks out Keith’s help to apply for a loan and buy back land that his family had previously lost, and in the process the two men discover a shared point of connection as they navigate the complexities of parenthood and financial insecurity.
I sat down with Elijah Williams ahead of A Case’s opening night to speak on the play, his experiences, and the beauty of independent theatre.
Sandra Kallarakkal: Let’s start off with getting to know a little bit about you and your career. What led you to acting and how did you start out?
Elijah Williams: I did quite a bit of dance, African dancing, when I was younger. And I think that that was probably my first pathway into [acting], and you know, just the feeling and the love for the craft.
It [acting] was something that I just sort of gravitated towards. I did start when I was pretty young and then as I got into high school. I did a play for the first time — To Kill a Mockingbird — when I was like seven, so that and working with the people that I was fortunate enough to work with, I think that probably, well not probably, that definitely helped to have a bit more of a firm grasp as to where I wanted to head, what I wanted to do and how I could obtain it.
I just have been super fortunate in every single performance that I’ve been involved in, to have had amazing people to work with and that speaks volumes of the casting and at the company and the art sector in Australia, so that’s really amazing. And I haven’t had one bad experience that has made me want to turn away from it.
SK: It’s great to hear that you’ve had such good experiences and support! Looking further into your acting career, I saw that you’ve also got some screen and TV experience as well. What have these experiences been like? Do you have a preferred medium?
EW: Look, as with all art, it’s very subjective, and one can’t shun or favour one or the other. You sort of have to be immersed in it, you know?
I think over time I’ve definitely found myself in a lot more stage productions which has been tremendous in terms of growth and in terms of learning how to really work. I think stage for me, because I didn’t go to acting school or anything, set that bar and that expectation to do the work, do the research, do the character development, do all that emotional building.
Screen has only started happening for me in the last, I’d say, five years. So it’s a bit new to me. It’s quite, quite new, but I’m loving learning as I go along. I love the underside of it as well. You know, they’re two different mediums. Screen you’re having to jump on the set and have a conversation without worrying about all the people around you and the fact that the camera is your lover. And then stage you’re feeding into your scene. But then there’s this beautiful exchange that happens with the audience.
But I love theatre. And I love screen as well, so I can’t really discern between the two.
SK: Speaking more on your theatre experience, you’ve done quite a mix of different types of theatre — Shakespeare and several independent productions for example. Is there a particular type of theatre you’d like to get into, something like musical theatre or the like?
EW: Yeah, I think, again, musical theatre falls in that bracket, it’s just its own sector. I think because I’ve just only started really working or I’m on the cusp of starting to work, I love it all. I love the screen. I love theatre. I love musicals. So I think whatever comes, you know.
If the project is right and the stars aligned in the universe then absolutely. Right now I’m at the beautiful spot where I just want to do everything. I’m open to everything and I’m open to learning. And every project is going to be different. Every show that proceeds is going to be different. And I know that that’s how we start. I’m excited about that.
SK: Let’s move now to talk about your upcoming production A Case for the Existence of God. I’m sure people would recognise the playwright Samuel D. Hunter as having written the play-turned-Oscar nominated-and-winning-movie The Whale.
What are your thoughts on The Whale and do you see any similarities between it and A Case for the Existence of God?
EW: I think it’s one of those things where the simple answer is that they’re both brilliant.
They are both exceptional pieces of writing, and I don’t want to go into comparisons too much, but I think there are some hard truths that both of those pieces possess and whose writing makes one really question and reflect on life, the importance of life, the importance of family and identity. Especially for this play, I think a lot of it is identity- based and we live in a society where you have to have a pretty firm grasp on your identity to be able to do and be present. So yeah, they’re both amazing.
SK: You’ve worked with Outhouse Theatre Co, who are behind this production, before. What is it like working with them again?
EW: This time around I was coming back for a different reason. It was to work with a new director, a new actor, and that’s the daunting part, the fact that it’s a two-hander. But coming back and working with Jeremy [Waters] and Outhouse has been absolutely amazing.
They have a really special place in my heart. I look forward to coming back and doing more projects with them. Craig [Baldwin] I’ve never worked with and have always been fascinated by. I’ve always been in awe of his work, so working with him was a bit of a no brainer. And now that I’ve had the opportunity to, I’m like, fuck, you are just amazing. What we need in the industry are exceptional directors that make you really do those hard pieces of work, that push you in safe spaces. He’s been exceptional in creating such a safe space that we can just collaborate and talk. He’s amazing.
The whole company in general is just phenomenal.
SK: Local Australian theatre, there’s nothing better. Rounding out the questions now, why should people come out to watch A Case for the Existence of God? What’s special about this play and your character, Keith? Is there something about playing this character that is particularly important for you personally?
EW: Hopefully I can answer all of those questions. Firstly, to answer what’s special about playing Keith — I think that the industry is just developing into accepting multicultural[ism] and diversity. I think it’s a no brainer, again; he is a black man living in Twin Falls, automatically a minority, and on top of that he’s a gay man living in Twin Falls, so automatically you go, okay, this is someone that has had a lot of experiences and hardship.
So that was particularly interesting for me to look at just in terms of scope and what kind of work that is required. I love the fact that I can just try to immerse myself into him and that was something that was scary, so that definitely intrigued me to him. Again, it’s the writing. Hunter has written this awesome character with so much depth and so much nuance but also so much realism.
To answer why should people come out to watch the play — it’s such a [relevant] piece. You look at the Sydney housing crisis right now and how difficult it is to get houses. And I feel like a lot of people can understand that aspect of it and pretty much every single aspect that is within the play or every scene that we do.
One can relate to every single one of them. One knows the hardships of family dynamics; one knows the hardships of a mortgage loan; one knows the difficulties of losing someone; one knows depression or at least someone that is in their life that is affected by it. But there is also the joy and the love and the good things like friendship and camaraderie and that ever wanting expansion of love and connection.
I’m very, very, grateful to be doing the show, that’s for sure.
SK: And I’m quite excited to come along and see it. Well, that wraps up my questions, do you have anything else that you’d like to add?
EW: If anything, I just want to add that I’m super, super, super grateful for the opportunity to embody and to put on this piece. I owe every single bit of that thanks to Outhouse and in particular to Craig because it’s hard to put theatre on, and I feel like independent theatre isn’t seen enough and isn’t done enough.
I don’t think there is enough appreciation for, for the work that those creatives put in. Particularly the people that are putting on the show, the directors and the production company. I just want to pay my homage to those people, and to say thank you and keep doing it.
I mean, at the end of the day we’re, we’re just actors. We’re just laying the lines and embodying the characters. The other people that are not the actors are doing a lot more.
A Case for the Existence of God plays at Seymour Centre from April 11 — May 4. Tickets can be found here.
Acting credits: Elijah Williams
Sydney Theatre Company: Triple X (with Queensland Theatre)
Other Theatre: Court Theatre (NZ): Rent.
GBW Entertainment: Girl From the North Country.
Hayes Theatre Company: Caroline, or Change.
Green Door Theatre Company: Cocaine.
Outhouse Theatre Co.: The Rolling Stone.
bAKEHOUSE: Black Jesus.
Sport for Jove: The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth.
NIDA/TRS. Bondi: A Land Beyond The River.
TV: Upcoming feature We Bury Our Dead, Between Two Worlds, The Unlisted, Wolf Creek, Home & Away, Kiki and Kitty
