The latter is not De Groen's most typical work, as it was commissioned by the Melbourne Theatre Company. All three plays have artists as central characters and seem to be based on the premise that like art, life is a struggle in which we must seek creative solutions to the problems we are faced with. The struggle of the Vocations women is grounded in their varying degrees of oppression, their being dependent upon their male companions. Ross is systematically undermining Vicki's selfworth. As the play unfolds, both couples, the writers Joy and Godfrey and actress Vicky with her zoologist Ross are finding some creative solutions to their gendered problems.
Art is the key to their solutions.
We see similar explorations in The Girl Who Saw Everything. Liz, a feminist writer who decides to leave Sydney in favour of the Blue Mountains, needs to clear the slate. Daily changes go unnoticed. She wants to be able to see a significant change in her physical appearance. Just as Liz has not entirely owned her life, Saul's style of painting is not entirely his own.