Month: April 2015

Cabaret, Circus, Review

REVIEW: Spiegelworld Presents ABSINTHE

High energy, high drama and high expectations

By Myron My

In 2013, I had the good fortune to be working front-of-house when Spiegelworld brought its show Empire to Melbourne’s Crown Casino. I was able to watch repeatedly a troupe of world-class artists performing in highly skillful and often death-defying acts, which also proved to be an exhilarating experience for audience members. Fast-forward two years, and Spiegelworld have returned their Spiegeltent to the Crown Casino rooftop with their new show Absinthe.

Absinthe

Inspired by cabarets of late 19th-century Europe, Absinthe is a spectacular and intimate performance of burlesque, circus, song and dance with enough variety to appeal to everyone. However, given the theme of the show and the physique and strengths of the performers, there is also quite a bit of flesh on display and plenty of sexual innuendo and some not-so-subtle sexual humour by the hosts, The Gazillionaire and his sidekick Penny Pibbets.

Now I understand that, given the nature of the show, there is a need to be cheeky and funny and even controversial but for me these hosts lacked the warmth and the familiarity that was accomplished so well by the hosts in Empire. This led to some highly awkward moments, such as the performers pulling two males out of the audience and having them give a lap dance to a female audience member. It was extremely uncomfortable to watch as these men took off their clothes, touched her, and shook their ass in the woman’s face. Fortunately for everyone involved, it went relatively smoothly the night I attended, but looking around the audience there were clearly a number of people who did not find this funny in the slightest.

The acts themselves however were both mesmerising and frightening at the same time. Los Dos Tacos (Belarus duo Aliasandra Yurkavets and Andrei Sizonenka) and their dramatic parallel bars act was by far the highlight of the evening, with the artists performing extraordinary tricks where landing even a centimeter off would have proved disastrous for them and quite possibly for the audience. Another personal favourite was the Duo Strap dance routine by Americans Jacob Oberman and Maika Isogawa, which may have allowed our hearts to stop racing, but then displayed some beautiful moments on stage with aerial ballet.

Sadly, for me the high-wire finale by The Frat Pack lacked the suspense and ‘wow’ factor required to end the night on a high. There were stronger, more thrilling acts that were performed earlier in the evening that I feel would have been more suited for the finale spot.

Although it’s no Empire, Absinthe still manages to amaze, excite, and leave you with your mouth hanging open in astonishment. These are performers who are at the top of their game and it is probably one of the few chances you’ll ever get to see them perform. Despite its flaws, Absinthe is still a theatrical highlight of my year so far.

Venue: Rooftop at Crown Casino, Southbank, 3006.

Season: Until 17 May

Tickets: From $56.07 to $157

Bookings: Spiegelworld

Image by Mark Turner

Comedy, Performances, Review

REVIEW: Simon Taylor’s PERSONAL BEST

A personal favourite

By Christine Moffat

Upon introducing himself, Simon Taylor establishes he is a charming comedian. He is prone to serenading audience members, learning their names and chatting amiably with them from the stage. He lulls you into chuckles, and a more comfortable position in your seat. You smile, sip your drink and begin to relax. Once you are better acquainted, the content is riskier, but delivered suavely and with an infectious sense of fun.

Personal Best

Tayor is a writer as well as a performer, and has written for some big-ticket shows, including The Late Show with Jay Leno. His skill with words is crucial for his darker material to work when mixed in with his lighter banter. His fluid syntax is like good piano playing: unlike his piano playing, which is better that your uncle’s but not as good as your high school singing teacher’s. He tinkers with words to make sure they fit, to make sure you are surprised with them (a key ingredient to laughter) and to make sure you remember and think about them later.

However, Taylor’s smooth style does not mean his show is good for ‘all ages’. Your under-15s should probably do something else for the evening, unless you enjoy discussing curses and ‘adult’ concepts on the tram ride home. Taylor swears liberally when the story requires it, and writes a killer dick joke. Not despite this, but because of it, he is all the more urbane and funny.

In a storybook, Taylor would be Prince Charming’s wingman: the guy that shakes his head at his mate’s girlfriends, and goes to the State Library to pick up the geekyicious babe knitting a tea cosy. In an intimate comedy room like downstairs at The Butterfly Club, and at his Personal Best, Taylor is Prince Charming… if the prince was (a lot) shorter, had that Melbourne combination of romance and cynicism, and knew how to use hair product.

So, when you have the chance to see Taylor perform, take it. You will travel the world: discuss love, life, lust and death. You will discover just how diverse a comedy crowd can be (Antarctic honeymoon anyone?), have a bloody good time, and if you’re lucky, maybe even meet his Nonna.

Simon Taylor’s Personal Best was performed at The Butterfly Club as part of the 2015 Melbourne Comedy Festival. His next performance will be the FREE special-event, live-taping of his best stand-up comedy material on May 5: see http://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/simon-taylors-stand-up-comedy-special-live-taping-tickets-16745795124 for more information and to register for attendance.

Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Four Letter Word Theatre Presents THE LIEUTENANT OF INISHMORE

A difficult play deftly and wittily presented

By Caitlin McGrane

Accents are tricky; in order to nail it, you have to really go for it. Similarly, playwright Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy can be tricky to pull off. The cast of Four Letter Word Theatre’s production of The Lieutenant on Inishmore hit nearly every mark. With the cast often rattling through the tight script so fast it’s barely comprehensible, it was like sitting in my grandmother’s living room when the whole family was round. The play is situated in the early 90s on Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands. Times are troubled, and the gloomy stage was set well against the lightness of humour.

The Lieutenant of Inishmore

We begin with a dead cat. The cat belongs to a man considered too mad for the IRA, Padraic (Conor Mission), who has set up a splinter group of the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), the other members of which are increasingly concerned with his behaviour. His father, Donny (Brendan Macdonald) and Davey (Leila Enright) hatch a clownish plan to protect Padraic from the truth about Wee Thomas. Their scheming is interrupted by Davey’s sister, the peculiar vegetarian Mairead (Gabrielle Sing), and the other splinter INLA members Christy (Kristen Cunningham), Joey (Harriet Wallace-Mead) and Brendan (Clancy Moore). All the cast were excellent, but particular mention must go to Macdonald and Enright who provided the bulk of the humour, and really got to the heart of their characters.

There’s a brilliantly twisted darkness to this play that the cast really bring to life on stage. I really enjoyed the inventive use of ‘The Patriot Game’, an old IRA ballad that was sung between scene changes. Director Kevin Turner has done a fantastic job of bringing this difficult text to the stage. Stage manager Jeannette Tong, set designer Francesca David and lighting designer James O’Donoghue have united in designing a smooth, innovative set.

This wonderful production is playing at The University of Melbourne Guild Theatre until Saturday 25 April. For tickets go to: http://umsu.unimelb.edu.au/events/the-lieutenant-of-inishmore/

Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: Riot Stage Presents FOREVER CITY

Sharp wit from young creatives

By Amy Planner

What does the end of the world look like? What will it feel like and what happens after? These are the hot topics that Forever City ferociously explores in this youthful post-dramatic production.

Forever City

Directed by Katrina Cornwall, Forever City follows a group of school leavers who begin to consider life after graduation when yet another plane goes missing and hints of end of the world start to form. The teens start question themselves, their world and life, as they know it, and of course, there’s a dinosaur.

Filled with inner monologues and fraught with cultural angst, this story studies apocalyptic ideas and doesn’t disguise teenage anguish as anything other than what we’re all thinking. There is no doubt this show is funny: there were spurts of laughter, rolling chuckles and an audible snort or two. It is witty, current and unique.

The performers (Ellen Campion, Mieke Dodd, Kes Daniel Doney, Kate Dunn, Yash Jagtani, Daisy Kocher, Alanna Marshall, Marie Mokbel, Amelia Newman and Jack Zapsalisare) a group of ten teenagers from the Moreland area with fresh faces, creative energy and novel story-telling abilities. There were a few stumbles along the way, stirred undoubtedly by nerves and excitement. Some second-guessing of their instincts was evident, but overall these spritely teens have real promise. The refreshing sense comes from the youthfulness of the performers and the fact that they don’t feel the need to be quirky or cunning. Their ingeniousness comes from an innocent place and even surprised the performers themselves at times with an unexpected smirk or two after glorious audience response.

The minimal set by Casey Scott Corless complimented the complexity of the story, as did the great use of lighting (designed by Suze Smith) both on stage and off. A little unbalance between audio levels and vocal projection at times, but the sound design of the show was interesting, pleasantly unusual and darn creative.

Writer Morgan Rose deserves props for her use of current events and cultural phenomenon combined with deep-seeded concerns and comedic elements. The messages the story was trying to send were stimulating but perhaps a little clouded; an unusual and unexpected twist left us unsure of the story’s aim.

Forever City is part of a new wave of contemporary theatre exploration taking current events and local news as the inspiration for a powerful story.

Venue: La Mama Courthouse, 349 Drummond St, Carlton

Season: 16-19 April 2015, Friday 1pm & 7.30pm, Saturday 7.30pm, Sunday 4pm

Tickets: $25 Full, $15 Concession, $15 Group Bookings (10+), $15 School Group

Bookings: http://lamama.com.au/ticketing/buy-tickets

More information: www.riotstage.com

Cabaret

REVIEW: Alex and Luke’s Make Your Parents Disappear

A world of illusions and trickery

By Beth Cregan

 I head off to The Melbourne Comedy Festival’s Alex and Luke’s Make Your Parents Disappear with my own trick on either arm – my ‘magic minded’ nephew (aged 8) and his worldly older sister, aged 11 (11.75 to be exact!). It might be hard to impress this techno ‘review panel’ with a few simple magic tricks. But soon enough, it’s clear to all three of us, that this show is far from simple magic. More than once, I jabbed my niece’s side and whispered, ‘Hey how did they do that? to which she just shook her head. Welcome to Spiegeltent and the world of illusions and trickery.

 Magic

When we meet the brothers, Alex and Luke, they are up in their bedroom, completing their magic school homework, when Mum reminds them it’s nearly bedtime. They want to stay up. (We want them to stay up too!) With a little prompting, the audience soon suggests that perhaps if mum and dad disappeared, bedtime would be a thing of the past. And so begins a fast paced, interactive narrative, where Alex and Luke race to eradicate one of the worse words in the world – bedtime!

Along the way they entertain us with an impressive list of magic tricks. Both of the boys attend magic school but Alex is not as skilled a magician as his brother, which adds some wonderful slapstick humour and funny antics to the show. Think folded, squashed bananas and tricks that go terribly wrong, amidst much laughter from the audience. You’ll find all of your children’s favourite illusions in this mix – card tricks, disappearing dice, coins that come out of nowhere, balloon animals and tables that dance metres off the floor. But some more complex tricks may take you completely by surprise. In the early part of the show, a mother from the audience gave up her phone for a trick (brave, I know). The woman is reunited with her phone in last few minutes of the show. It is snug inside a can of beans! Yes baked beans! (Thankfully the phone was in a zip lock bag.)

The characters of mum and dad are also plucked from the audience and made to disappear, only to turn up minutes later in the audience. The narrative is engaging and the tricks are seamlessly performed but what really impressed me was the high level of audience participation and the rapport the magicians developed with their volunteers across a wide age range. They say, don’t work with animals or children, but these two guys make it look like tremendous fun, despite the lights, the constant action, unpredictable audience members on stage and the endless line of tricks to perform.

So on the tram after the show, I ask my young reviewers, would they recommend the show to their buddies? Yes, is the unanimous reply; ‘Everyone should go and see it!’

Comedy, Events, Festivals, Review, Stand-Up Comedy, Whats On

REVIEW: Chris Taylor and Andrew Hansen: In Conversation With Lionel Corn

The Chaser do-over Q and A

By Caitlin McGrane

The Chaser stars Chris Taylor and Andrew Hansen are here to ruin audience Q and As forever. Fictional author Lionel Corn is somewhere between Groundskeeper Willie, Malcolm Tucker and George R.R. Martin. However, I’m not sure there’s enough under-shirt padding in the world that could make Andrew Hansen even vaguely resemble Martin in this almost totally transparent reference to the author in their debut MICF show. Corn’s pairing with Taylor’s totally inept interviewer/MC was wonderful; that I cannot remember his name has only enhanced the effective awfulness of his character and his love of his own voice.

Chaser

In this show Taylor and Hansen do what they’ve always done best – lampooned popular culture and social conventions in order to score satirical points. Their fantastic send-up of The Festival of Dangerous Ideas, in which Lionel Corn was interviewed by the worst moderator in the world, had me laughing and cringing throughout. They opened well, with an extended gag about walk-on music that effectively called out the ridiculous music that always accompanies speakers onstage, to which literally no one else pays attention.

The whole show was a send-up of the endless festivals that we all love to attend – writers’, emerging writers’, film, dangerous ideas etc, etc. It also very satirically lambasted shows like Q&A, with their refusal to engage in a conversation about the lack of women and trans people on screen.

The only part that let the show down slightly was a bizarre sequence involving a disease invented by Corn/Hansen called ‘Parkinsons of the arse’; it felt cheap and poorly thought out. I also missed out on seeing the promised guest comedian, but enjoyed the explanation of the empty chair on stage as symbolising the journalists and broadcasters who were locked up for political dissidence, or who couldn’t be there due to a schedule mix-up.

While the show isn’t exactly as groundbreaking or biting as some of their Chaser sketches, it was engaging, entertaining and kept me laughing.

Venue: The Forum

Season: Until Sunday 19 April (excl. Mon) Tue-Sat 7pm, Sun 6pm

Tickets: Full $34| Conc $30

Bookings: http://www.comedyfestival.com.au

Cabaret, Comedy, Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: Meme Girls

Exploring the black hole of Youtube

By Myron My

Every day, people watch hundreds of millions of hours on YouTube and generate billions of views on videos. In Meme Girls, Ash Flanders has delved into the bottomless pit of YouTube vloggers and their videos, performing a selection of monologues in the dramatic camp fashion that Flanders does so well.

meme girls

There are a variety of videos that Flanders has chosen, from the serious to the absurd, such as the woman who tells you that one of the hardest things in life is learning how to fold a fitted sheet. Flanders nails each “character” he performs. The way he speaks, sounds, acts and moves; each person is unique.

Accompanying Flanders is the wonderful Art Simone. Simone has a presence to her that is instantly captivating and draws all our attention when she is on stage. I would have loved to have seen her more and do more, but the little time she has she effectively  blurs gender lines and identity; the same transformation that Flanders goes through during Meme Girls.

However, I’m not completely sold on the idea that the show has, as director Stephen Nicolazzo puts it, “genuine love of the genders, races and class (Flanders) represents on stage”. Some, most definitely, but others feel like they are being parodied and played for laughs and therefore lack the honesty or sincerity that I expected to see. Perhaps this is Flanders’ intention though and is commenting on the type of culture and lifestyle that we, as a society, seem to be obsessed with.

From a stagecraft perspective, this show cannot be faulted. How I would love to get inside Eugyeene Teh’s thought process and see how he consistently creates these brilliant sets and costume designs. His pink cylindrical tunnel, as if we are falling into the black hole that is YouTube, is absolutely stunning, especially when paired with Katie Sfetkidis’ lighting design. Along with THE SWEATS’ sound design; I have not been, in a very long time, so in awe, of the opening moments of a show as much as I have for Meme Girls.

Meme Girls is a wonderful showcase of talent from Nicolazzo, Flanders and the creative team behind it. Whilst the message it tries to make is not always clear or consistent, it is, as Simone mimes at one point during the show, “an unusual and exciting theatrical event“.

Venue: Malthouse Theatre, 113 Sturt St, Southbank

Season: Until 2 May | Wed – Sat 8pm, Tuesday 7pm, Saturday 2pm, Sunday 5pm

Tickets: $60 Full | $50 Conc | $30 Under 30

Bookings: Malthouse Theatre

Comedy, Events, Festivals, Music, Review, Stand-Up Comedy

REVIEW: Jude Perl presents Is it just me?

Musical comedy with a conscience

By Narelle Wood

 Jude Perl knows how to make an entrance, an entrance in a dress that would make Lady Gaga green with envy. Perl’s musical comedy is full of musical and pop clichés in a satirical look at everything from being a pop star to asking the very poignant question Is it just me?

 Jude_Web2

The songs cover a whole gamut of topics, but all seem to have some feminist undertones, or other social commentary hidden amongst the extremely witty and downright hilarious lyrics. Her songs drip with well-written innuendo and a smattering of over shares, which, she acknowledges from the start, are things the audience may not want to know.

Between the musical numbers, Perl performs some non-musical comedy that is just as funny. While I really enjoyed these parts of the show, the highlights for me were the musical numbers; I couldn’t pick a favourite song if I tried. My absolute favourite part of the show was Perl’s voice; it sounded like an incredible cross between Alicia Keys and Suzie Quatro resulting in a sound that I found both familiar and completely unique.

I thoroughly enjoyed Is it just me? from beginning to end. There is something very endearing about Perl that made even the audience participation moments (which I usually dread) completely okay. Jude Perl’s Is it just me? is extremely entertaining and honest comedy at it’s musical best. If good comedy and good music is your recipe for a good night out then this show is a must.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne

Season: 6pm Wed 13 May – Sun 17 May, 7pm Sat 16

Tickets: Full $25| Conc $23

Bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com

Comedy, Festivals, Review

REVIEW: Backward Anorak presents The Hip Hikers’ Guide to the Galaxy

An Intergalactic Comedy

By Narelle Wood

Backward Anorak’s show The Hip Hikers’ Guide to the Galaxy was promoted as an ‘intergalactic master class on assimilating one’s alien self into a hipster world’. It was not so much a master class as it was a brief aside to many of the other chaotic and mostly funny antics on stage.

HH_web

The show began with lots of promise; awkward dancing with impressive flair (Laura Frew); a DJ dropping some very hip beats (Leo Milesi); and the stylish entrance of the show’s two main characters Prince Harian (Vincent Milesi) and his slave Minge (Michelle Braiser). The story is that Prince Harian must find a wife and the audience are employed to help find him one.

The show is a musical comedy and the music selection is great, as is the reworking of the lyrics; it also helps that Milesi and Braiser have fantastic voices. I loved the costumes; it was like the 80’s had thrown up on stage but in a fabulously atrocious kind of way. And full credit to the cast who wore the spandex leggings, sparkly hot pants and oversized knit cardigan seemingly with pride.

While there were some laugh-out-loud moments, especially in the opening minutes, there always seemed to be too much going on. It felt like very little of the show was spent on the storyline. Instead the plot degenerates into seemingly unnecessary cheap jokes about sex, swearing, and some ill-placed and offensive references to ISIS and sex offenders. In fact a lot of the comedy relies on the bullying of one of the characters; I couldn’t quite see how this was humorous. These moments were in direct contrast to the really witty and well-written musical numbers, so I left feeling confused rather than entertained.

I found it to be a combination of things I really enjoyed and things I really didn’t. A Hip Hikers’ Guide to the Galaxy is worth a look if you are familiar with Backwards Anorak’s work or if you like comedy that crosses the line more than once.

 

Venue: The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne

Season: Until 19th April (excl. Mon): Tue, Wed & Sun 8pm, Fri & Sat 9pm

Tickets: Full $32| Conc $25

Bookings: thebutterflyclub.com

Comedy, Events, Festivals, Stand-Up Comedy

REVIEW: Claire Sullivan presents Space Cadet

A comedic space adventure

By Caitlin McGrane

Claire Sullivan’s madcap space adventure started well; her voice appeared from behind the audience over a $2 megaphone to hurry people in from the bar at Hugs & Kisses. The show began with an unusual level of audience participation – Sullivan invited everyone in the intimate theatre-cum-dance floor onto the stage where we were told we were going into space and had to participate in the take-off. This level of participation was about all I was ready to handle, and am very glad I was not called upon when Sullivan instructed the audience to ask questions about space. I enjoyed this mini Q & A but couldn’t help feeling like this was stalling for time.

Claire Sullivan

The performance was often enjoyably frenetic, disjointed and ludicrous – the moments where Sullivan shone were where she was ad-libbing and interacting with the audience (which appeared to be mostly made up of her friends and former singing teachers). The weakest parts for me were when the seemingly vague script forced Sullivan to flail on stage and reach for props from plastic bags; it didn’t seem so much hilariously zany as it appeared disorganised.

Sullivan is certainly talented and I enjoyed her raw comedic energy, but I found myself distracted by her attempts to wrestle with technology and direct the show towards a coherent conclusion. It was the first night of the show, and these things often take time to fine tune, but I am aware that this show has been performed in Perth so I was surprised by how scattered it seemed. I look forward to seeing what Sullivan does next, and I hope her next show is tighter and sharper because I do thoroughly believe she has it in her to produce something brilliantly bonkers that tells a great story.

Venue: Hugs and Kisses, 22 Sutherland Street, Melbourne

Season: Until 18th April, 8pm (no show Sundays)

Tickets: Full $17 | Conc $12

Bookings: http://www.trybooking.com/GPYC