STACK October 2016 Issue 144

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Playing one of the most formidable women inWentworth
prison – Joan ‘The Freak’ Ferguson – has given Pamela Rabe the
freedom to develop as an actor. Words Scott Hocking
W entworth is much
more than just a re-
imagination of iconic
Australian drama series Prisoner .
After four successful seasons, it’s
now as volatile and unpredictable
as the female inmates who
populate the titular prison, and
continues to gain momentum and
a legion of loyal fans.
“Each subsequent season has a
huge responsibility to maintain the
drama and excitement and then
build on it,” says Pamela Rabe,
who plays the prison’s fearsome
and manipulative governor Joan
Ferguson, aka The Freak – a
role made famous by Maggie
Kirkpatrick in the original series.
“I wanted her to stand alone,”
says Rabe of her interpretation of
the character. “I’ve worked with
Maggie on the stage, and I know
her well and know the impact
of that character. Joan Ferguson
in Wentworth is closer in her
persona to Maggie’s character
than others who share their
names with Prisoner characters,
but I chose not to study or
incorporate anything Maggie had
created. I happily slipped on the
gloves and went to work.”
A renowned stage performer
with a number of feature films
to her credit, Wentworth offered
Rabe an exciting opportunity to
develop a character over a number
of seasons.
“It’s professionally fun and a
great challenge to play such a
complex and amoral character,”
she says. “Joan’s resourcefulness
and her indefatigable focus
and ingenuity… I feel I have to
approach the work with the same
focus and desire to honour her
unpredictability. I don’t know if I’ve
ever felt as free and playful. It’s
given me the chance to develop
as an actor, and I’m very grateful
for that.”
With both Wentworth and
Orange is the New Black boasting
a huge fan base, the appeal of
watching women in prison shows
no sign of abating, and Rabe
attributes the popularity of the
genre to an audience’s desire
for predominantly female-driven
narratives.
“It’s ironic that good female-
driven stories require them to
be locked up,” she notes, adding
that the contained universe of a
single-gender institution remains
a constant source of fascination.
“It’s a secret world with its own
rules, and a hotbed of high stakes
drama. And there’s nothing more
high stakes than being in prison –
it’s a brutal environment.”
And Wentworth is certainly
brutal! The finale of season three
sent the prison up in flames and
social media into meltdown,
leaving The Freak in custody and
her nemesis Vera Bennett (Kate
Atkinson) as the new governor.
How Joan will adjust to life as
an inmate is just one of the juicy
story arcs awaiting fans in season
four.
“Joan’s got a long memory
and not a lot of sympathy or
consideration for people she feels
have betrayed her in some way,”
teases Rabe. “There’s hardly a
more focused character that exists
anywhere than Joan Ferguson, so
she will do whatever it takes
to get what she wants,
and there will be a
shock around every
corner.
“[Season four
is] extraordinarily
focused. There’s an
inexorable, unexpected yet
inevitable climax to it that’s utterly
intoxicating and gripping,” she
promises, “and I hope that even
though it will be shocking, it will
also be fulfilling for fans and the
audience.”
FREAK
SHOW
Will you be back in
Season 5?
I’m not sure what we’re
supposed to say about that, so
I’ll just say that it’s currently
filming.
How do you feel about
being forever associated
with The Freak?
I love her, and I love that
fans love her. I feel honoured to
be associated with this series,
and by proxy associated with
such a marvellous creation. I’m
very proud.
Are you aware that people
are drawn to your character
in unusual ways?
[Laughs] As long as they
don’t do anything illegal, I think
it’s probably ok. I did some
fan events in the UK recently
and the people coming to
these events felt an affinity
with Joan Ferguson – they’re
an interesting crowd. But
what I find quite moving
about it is they’re not just
highly interested in the show,
they also connect to that
character because they see
her as being marginalised
and misunderstood, and also
somebody who isn’t inhibited
by social rules. Those are
interesting and positive
aspects of the character, as
long as they don’t see her as
a blueprint for how to function
in society.
Rabe
On!
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34 OCTOBER 2016
DVD&BD
FEATURE
We took to Twitter
to find out what
Freak fans really
want to know…
• Wentworth:
The Complete
Season 4
is out on Oct 5