Month: April 2017

Cabaret, Opera, Performances, Review

Victorian Opera Presents THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA

Clever, charming and tons of fun

By Leeor Adar

Squeals and giggles erupted from the audience of Victorian Opera’s The Princess and the Pea on Saturday afternoon. The audience is very young – the youngest I’ve seen for the Victorian Opera, and it fills me with gladness. The lingering question for opera remains as to how to attract future generations, and the Fables for Season 2017 is an operatic call to arms for Victoria’s smallest residents.

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Hans Christian Andersen’s tale is reimagined under the clever guardianship of Victorian Opera’s developing artists Candice MacAllister (Design) and Alastair Clark (Direction). This colourful and vibrant production is short and sweet at only 40 minutes, and enough to ensure the little attendees don’t go stir crazy. Composed by the late Weimar Germany’s Austrian-born Ernst Toch, the singers clearly take pleasure in performing to their craft to such a young audience.

This production was a clever way to present the tale and the marvels of the opera to its young audience. Set as a show on television station, ‘Mythical Mysteries!’ the story is presented with the humour of forgotten lines, dropped scripts and the hustle and bustle of a television set. It’s slapstick and generally silly, but the appealing performances of the cast ensured that despite the German accents, the audience understood the action. MacAllister’s set and costume design was bright and artful, which consisted of a giant television frame that lifted the veil to behind the scenes.

The story follows as expected, with a desperately in love Prince (James Egglestone), a humbly dressed Princess (Olivia Cranwell), and a Queen (Kathryn Radcliffe) who has high hopes for her princely boy. Looks are deceiving, as the moral of the story drums into the chirpy youngsters, and a plan concocted by the crafty and energetic TV Host (Dimity Shepherd) to plant a pea in the Princess’ mattress reveals the lost girl’s true identity… and they all lived happily after.

You can check out the Victorian Opera’s Fables 2017 season here: https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/discover/seasons/victorian-opera-2017 which will showcase work that will entertain audiences of varying age groups.

Image by Charlie Kinross

Performances, Review, Theatre

New Stage Presents ISLAMOPHILIA

Intense and intriguing

By Narelle Wood

There is no denying that David George’s Islamophilia is a very topical concept for a play; it is also perhaps a very timely and important one as well.

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Set in Melbourne, and based on a true story, Islamophilia deals with many of the misconceived, troublesome and ambiguous interpretations of Islam and what it means in contemporary society. It does so by using the story of Shadahan’s (Laura Lattuada) family to explore the multiple perspectives of both devout believers and those struggling to believe and understand. Shadahan and Fariz (Chris Jackson) – a scholar and Shadahan’s love interest – are both devout believers, while Daanish (Gerard Lane), also a scholar and Shadahn’s husband, is a convert. Freddy (Adam Direen), Daanish’s brother, is a sceptic, although considering the idea of conversion. And Aisha (Indea Quinn) is Shadahan’s daughter and represents the eager voice of those seeking to understand. The family and Fariz are drawn together by a common purpose; the production of a new Islamic Journal that is seeking to find a future for Islam in a world that is not very accepting.

The play is dialogue and content-heavy, and weaves in a great deal detail about Islam, which is to be expected; but it doesn’t come up for breath. The ideas, questions and challenges were all really interesting but at times I struggled to keep up and digest everything that was artfully been tossed around the stage. There was a nice balance between assumed knowledge and new ideas, and the discussion often returned often to addressing concepts of extremism and the multi-understandings of the Quran. These discussions were often intertwined with references to art and beauty, but always lingering in the background is the threat of violence, intolerance and prejudice.

While the dialogue is fast-paced – the cast do an amazing job under director Helen Trenos to move seamlessly through it – the staging is very minimalist. There are a few lighting transitions used to denote the passing of time and allow for the elegant transitions between scenes. The limited use of music is effective punctuating the discussions of traditions and beauty. Everything, other than the characters’ interactions, is understated; there is nothing to compete with the key ideas.

Educational, thought-provoking and at times confronting, this is an important play that gives a strong voice to the intricacies, beauty and nuances of Islam. Intense and intriguing, Islamophilia is one of those plays that will still have you thinking well after it ends.

Website: www.islamophilia.info

Dance, Festivals, Review

Dance Massive Presents DIVERCITY

An experience of joy

By Joana Simmons

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“When you live away from home and reside in the city, on someone else’s land, does it change your relationship to country?”

In Divercity, Bundjalung/Yaegl choreographer Mariaa Randall guides us with dance, colour and conversation to explore this idea. Presented by Arts House and performed Henrietta Baird and Waiata Telfer (who also choreographed) this was one show to catch this season. Set in front of a projection; the movement, dialogue and structure are all impeccably defined. This work is a look at indigenous cultural celebration delivered in a beautifully artistic way.

Individuals self-identifying as women of the audience are invited in first to learn some simple movement and words for ‘woman’ ‘girl’ and ‘feminine’ in the language of their country. It is lighthearted and Randall eases the tension. There was a sense of hesitation initially, but it felt special to be part of the performance, and fostered a sense of community among us. lluminated by an evocative filmic backdrop by video artist Keith Deverell, Baird and Telfer performed traditional and contemporary dance whilst speaking native tongues and English. The choreography is dynamic and looked fantastic with the projection. The use of coloured chalk on their clothes that they swept up and banged in the floor work was stunning. The extension, energy and execution of the movement was breathtaking, and this wonderful intensity was sustained for so long.

The conversational nature of the dialogue draws us in and is at points authentically funny, making the performance enjoyable on so many levels. I was impressed by the stamina of the performers; twisting and rolling into and out of the floor, covered in vibrant colourful chalk, connecting with each other and the audience the whole way through. Randall is a genuine creative star and should be highly commended for bringing this work together. Deverell’s sound design fits well with the projection and movement and allows the spoken word to be heard and the movement to pick up and become complex and thrilling. The space was used well and performers captured from the light from the four follow spots on the corners. The stage is left covered in vibrant colour from the chalk on the performers’ bodies, with the shapes from the tape they pulled up stencilled in the tarquet, and we the audience sit in silence as we soak up and share the clever cultural creation we just experienced.

This show, structured around Aboriginal spiritual and traditional cultures of Women’s Business created and performed by indigenous women, is one that gives us so much inspiration and excitement. Divercity shows us, no matter where we are from, where we are now, what gender we identify with or what our heritage and language is, we all have bodies which can be beautiful vessels for communication and expression.  I loved every part of it- the celebration of community and how movement brings people together: the playful nature and the synchronisity of the projection and language and being made part of the performance. If you got a ticket before it sold out, you too enjoyed a real treat.

Divercity played in March 2017 as part of Dance Massive at North Melbourne Town Hall.

Image by Keith Deverell