Category: Festivals

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

REVIEW: Darebin Arts Speakeasy presents Backwards

A terrific hoot

by Rachel Holkner

Backwards is the result of a collaboration with students at Brunswick East Primary School and my burning question is, when they come to see the show, which parts do they recognise as their own? Is it the characters? Are there anecdotes they told Emily Taylor that have made their way into the script? Perhaps it is the huge variety of physicalities and tics of the people she portrays. It is simply impossible to tell as Taylor owns it all and is fully committed to her every moment on stage.

emily taylor

Written and performed by Emily Taylor, Backwards is an exploration of childhood and the relationships between adults and children. But it’s not your traditional standup, it’s a one woman minimalist play. With a set made up of only the world’s ugliest kitchen chair, and with the ingenious sound design of Gus MacMillan, Taylor is able to convey half a dozen unique interior and exterior locations.

Her ten characters are people you have met. Possibly you will relate to one or two of them! (I may have…) Across a wide range of ages and backgrounds these are ordinary people turned up to maximum, stepping occasionally over into caricature. Taylor loves these characters, she shows no favouritism and as she scuttles, turns and twists between each one you quickly forget there is only one person on stage. Her performance is, as always, tight and consistent. She has a mastery of switching characters, and in keeping them clearly delineated without props, masks or costume changes.

My favourite moments were those when characters revealed their true nature to other characters leading to unexpected moments of connection. There are plenty of uproarious and outrageous moments interspersed with thoughtful pokes at the trappings and trials of modern life.

Backwards is clever and hilarious and although not really written for children, the one upper primary school aged child in the audience definitely expressed that he thought the whole thing was a terrific hoot.

 

Venue: Northcote Town Hall (Studio Two), 189 High St, Northcote

Season: Until April 18, Tues – Sat 7pm, Sun 6pm

Tickets: $23/$18/$15

Bookings: http://www.darebinarts.com.au/speakeasy

 

 

Comedy, Festivals, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Bare Elements Productions presents A Dinner to Die For

A killer comedic dinner

By Myron My

I do love a good murder mystery. I’ve spent countless hours playing Cluedo (and watching the film religiously) and even hosted a few of my own murder mystery dinner parties. So when I saw one was being produced by Bare Elements Productions during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, I knew I had to get involved.

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A Dinner to Die For is set in 1928, and we are invited to Lord Quinten Daventry’s (Craig Thompson) birthday dinner at his grand home. Invited are many of his good friends (and perhaps some of his not so good friends), including Fanny Farquar (Charlotte Strantzen), Great Uncle Bernie (Simon J Robinson), Captain Montague Smedley-Downes (Ben Loxham) and Gwendella Garavinah (Teagan Robertson). Over the course of the evening, secrets are revealed, love is declared and murder is committed, and this all before the main course is even served!

All the actors remained committed to their characters, improvising both with the guests and as the story progressed. Sure the story has a few holes and not everything runs smoothly but that’s also its charm. It’s over the top, high-camp fun and filled with lots of sexual innuendo and puns – it’s no accident that one of the characters is called Fanny.

The beauty of such an event is that you are free to engage in as much of the events as you like. If like me, you are a bit performance-inclined you can mingle with the actors and others guests as much as you like, but if you would prefer to sit back and watch the story unfold, you can. The only problem is, with only five actors and roughly twenty guests, there is only so much time you can engage with the characters and to give them a quick interrogation, but that’s probably me wanting more than my 15 minutes of fame.

An evening of séances, severed limbs and darkly held secrets are all part of the festivities at A Dinner to Die For. Personally speaking, the more you choose to involve yourself in the antics the more fun you are likely to have. There are only three shows left for its comedy festival run so book now. After all, your next meal could be your last.

Venue: The Retreat Hotel, 226 Nicholson St, Abbotsford

Season: Until 18 April | Sat 7.15pm

Tickets: $75 Full |

Bookings: Bare Elements Productions

Comedy, Events, Festivals, Musical Theatre, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Trifle Theatre company presents AVENUE Q

An unplifting transition into adulthood

By Myron My

Having seen the West End production six years ago (and remembering it strongly), I had high expectations for Trifle Theatre Company’s production of Avenue Q. Furthermore, I had some reservations as to whether it could match the magic of my original viewing, but within the first few minutes that doubt disappeared. We may only be in March but I can confidently say that this will be one of the best shows I see this year.

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The story follows a recent college graduate, Princeton (played by Jordan Pollard), who is a little wet behind the ears and entering the “real world”. Moving to Avenue Q (the best he can afford) he gets acquainted with the locals, including Kate Monster (played by Sarah Golding), Trekkie Monster (played by the wonderful Andy McDougall), married human couple Christmas Eve and Brian (Leah Lim and Michael Linder) and Gary Coleman (in a interesting casting choice, played by Zuleika Khan).

What follows is two hours of sharp and witty comedy and laughs as each character works towards finding their way in life. Despite the sexually charged innuendo and racy songs such as “Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist” and “The Internet Is For Porn”, there is much heart in these stories and that often-confusing transition into adulthood. The whole cast, including the ensemble, work seamlessly with the puppets and manage to create some human emotion through their movements, actions and speech.

Lighting work by Jason Bovaird captures the mood of the characters and the environment brilliantly and the stage design by Jacob Battista authentically replicates a shabby, down-town New York city block. The six piece band however, led by Musical Director David Wisken, are truly amazing in their unseen performance in a separate room to the small stage.

Avenue Q pushes boundaries between clever and lewd and the only way it succeeds is because puppets can get away with a lot more on stage than any actor could. With a big dose of disbelief, it perfectly blends the innocence of a childhood with the scary realisations of adulthood and creates an uplifting and affirming story about change and transition. Director Stephen Wheat should be congratulated on not only creating a show that is on par with its predecessors but also allowing it to form its own individuality and uniqueness.

I am strongly encouraging people to go and see this production, but the whole season has already completely sold out. Guess it really does suck to be you.

 

Venue: Chapel Off Chapel, 12 Little Chapel St, Prahran

Season: Until 11 April | Tue-Sun 8:00pm, Sat 2:00pm

Tickets: $43.50 Full | $38.50 Conc

Bookings: www.chapeloffchapel.com.au or 8290 7000

Cabaret, Comedy, Events, Festivals, Musical Theatre, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Is it Flirting, Or is it Not?

Lots of flirtatious fun

By Narelle Wood

Kelly Rose Ryan deals with the hard topics and questions that affect us all through her musical investigation, seeking answers to Is it Flirting, or is it Not? From scenarios dealing with the timing of a text message, a pat on the arm, or a ‘hey’ from your local barrister, no stone is left unturned in examining whether a simple interaction is the blossoming of life-long-love.

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Ryan is sassy in her portrayal of flirtatious women at all different stages of their lives. Beginning with the innocent schoolyard crushes to the more sophisticated negotiating of adult relationships, Ryan attempts to discover exactly what each potential romantic interaction means. The stories range from heart-breaking break-ups to Saturdays night in as a cat lady.

The musical numbers include R. Kelly and some suave Gershwin, each song adding another opportunity for some flirting analysis. In a fairly unobtrusive manner, Ryan asks for audience participation, requesting their opinions and advice on some of the more ambiguous flirting moments. On this particular night, there was no definitive answer and Ryan makes a very valid argument for us all to be much more like Prince Charming.

Is it Flirting, or is it Not? may not deliver the answers about what constitutes a flirtatious encounter but does deliver lots of laughs. A cute show that hits all the right notes resulting in a really fun and flirty show.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne

Season: 2nd and 3rd April, 7pm

Tickets: Full $32| Conc $28

Bookings: http://www.thebutterflyclub.com/show/is-it-flirting-or-is-it-not

Comedy, Events, Festivals, Whats On

REVIEW: Aunty Donna

Sketches of comedic truth

By Narelle Wood

It was clear while lining up for this show that I didn’t really fit into the normal demographic of Aunty Donna’s target audience. So it was with a little trepidation that I went to what this show.

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The comedy trio of Mark Samual Bonanno, Broden Kelly and Zachary Ruane that is Aunty Donna provide a series of comedy sketches, which while all separate sketches do strangely come together in the end with the help of their nemesis comedy group the Bubble Bath Boys. Many of the funniest sketches are based on comedic truths, such as standing in queues, misreading situations and playing ball in the quadrangle.

The combination of music, dialogue and dance makes for a very energetic show that smoothly transitions from one sketch to the next. The comedic timing is perfect and while the show heads towards some ‘smutty’ comedy, it approaches the line but for me it never crossed it. This means the show is funny without being cringe worthy, and that I was happy to forgive being hit in the face with water.

Aunty Donna clearly has a following and I now understand why; there is something reminiscent of DAAS in their sketch comedy performance. While there are plenty of shows to select from in the Comedy Festival, but if sketch comedy is what makes you laugh most, make sure you catch Aunty Donna.

Venue: The Cube, ACMI, Federation Square

Season: 9.45pm until 19th April (Sundays 8.45pm), no show Mondays

Tickets: $27 Full | $22 Conc

Bookings: http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2015/season/shows/aunty-donna

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

REVIEW: Dirty. Sexy. Politics

Vote Albert and Valentine

By Caitlin McGrane

Come for the satire, stay for the music.

There is little fanfare as Tom Albert and Sam Valentine stumble through the velvet curtain to take the stage in The Butterfly Club; and initially they seem to have been kicked on stage by their manager. Do not be fooled however, for behind their boyish exteriors beat two bitingly cynical political hearts. These two vagabonds begin with an emphatic plea to the room to have them as their elected representatives. Representatives of what, exactly, is slightly unclear but it’s definitely something to do with sex. All the innuendo and double entendres is a useful way to get the audience fired up initially, it’s just a shame this energy couldn’t have continued throughout.

dirty sexy politics

No doubt creative, intelligent and energetic performers, Dirty. Sexy. Politics has the makings of a great show, I’m just not sure that we haven’t heard some of what they’re saying before. Surely I can’t be the only person who’s heard the one about the party whip? However, two things captured and held my attention in this show: the music, which was entertaining, irreverent, and poignant in places; and the quick asides from the performers when they appeared to slip from the ‘script’.

Albert and Valentine (a double act name that rolls easily off the tongue) shine on stage as vaudevillian counterparts, and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next. I particularly enjoyed the unions song, and when Valentine singled out my companion as a likely candidate for sexual dysfunction. I laughed most of the way through the hour, and had a thoroughly good time. This election, I’m voting for Albert and Valentine.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne

Season: Saturday 28th March 7pm and Sunday 29th March 6pm.

Price: Full $28 |Conc $25

Tickets: http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2015/season/shows/dirty-sexy-politics

Cabaret, Festivals, Review

REVIEW: Midsumma Festival’s FROM WHORE TO ETERNITY

But the tigers come at night

By Myron My

Sex worker. Call girl. Prostitute. Hooker. Lady of the night. In From Whore to Eternity, tribute is paid to these women and the cultural effect they’ve had, through various films, songs and stories.

 From Whore to Eternity

Ruth Katerelos and Heidi Weatherald play two sex workers who inform us and sing about “historical” women such as (Sweet) Charity, Mary Magdalene and Fantine, and how sex played a role in their lives.

The inherent problem with From Whore To Eternity is the writing. It would seem Cerise de Gelder is unable to find a balance between informing the audience and entertaining the audience. As such, we were bombarded with a number of scenes that were disjointed and clunky and struggled to retain our interest.

There were a good variety of songs chosen, ranging from rock to ballads and musical theatre classics. Unfortunately, it was the delivery of these songs that failed to hit the right notes. Neither performer had the vocal skill to do justice to many of these songs, especially when it comes to classics like “I Dreamed A Dream” that should therefore not have been touched. Their lack of vocal range and strength was apparent throughout and there was a strong need to project their voices.

The beacon of light in this show though was Weatherald’s performance of “I Don’t Know How To Love Him”. She managed to find some emotional connection with this song and found a good rhythm to carry the tune.

Special guest star for the evening Dolly Diamond, while entertaining, seemed out of place during the ‘break’ in From Whore To Eternity. She began chatting to audience members and cracking jokes, which left me wondering what exactly this had to do with the tribute to “the ladies of the night”. It’s almost as if de Gelder ran out of ideas and included a special guest to fill in the hour block.

There are so many great things From Whore to Eternity could have been, but sadly the only thing it will be in its current state is minimally entertaining, with many improvements needed on writing, direction and performance.

From Whore to Eternity was performed at The Butterfly Club as part of the 2015 Midsumma Festival.

Festivals, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Midsumma Festival Presents BAD ADAM and PONY

Religion and evolution collide

By Myron My

On the surface, the double bill of Bad Adam and Pony during this year’s Midsumma Festival appears to be constrasting highly different pieces of work with distinct moods and tones. However both these shows leave us questioning what it means to be a gay man and how gay male sexuality is perceived both by society – but more importantly – by us.

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In Bad Adam, the title character (creator and performer Dosh Luckwell) spends his time in “Club Eden”, a sex on-premises venue, where we follow his various experiences and are privy to his thoughts during these moments. The overt religious imagery and themes throughout Bad Adam, such as the apples, the lit-up cross on the floor and our protagonist’s name for example, worked well in subtly exploring the idea of sexual repression and suppression and the conflict the two forms of pressure often present with each other.

Given Luckwell is the creator of the live art project Sex Poetry Booth, it is not surprising he has a way with words and the language used and the way it is presented in Bad Adam is indeed quite poetic and intriguing at times. Yet while we see a vulnerable, lonely and conflicted side to Adam, a number of scenes were too similar in execution. This lessened the impact of the overall work and impeded us in retaining an interest in Adam which, in a one-man show, is pivotal to its success.

The second part of this double bill, Jay Robinson’s Pony, looks at similar ideas of sex and sexuality but with fewer dark overtones than Bad Adam. Here, we see the evolution of man and then more specifically the evolution of a person exploring and experimenting and with his own sexuality.

Robinson has a strong presence on stage and this helps with his demanding physical performance. He uses his body to its full extent and fully commits to the moment, however there are a number highly obscure scenes that left me confused as to their purpose and significance, such as the moment when Robinson transforms into a dog.

The final moments of Pony though are quite positive and playful and the idea that once you are at ease with yourself and can be what you want to be, then there’s no reason to not feel complete and free.

Both Bad Adam and Pony offer some interesting thoughts and ideas on gay male sexuality but I felt they need to focus more on how they share these thoughts and ideas. With further development, these two pieces have the potential to be a profound commentary on the society and an important voice for the community in which gay men live.

Venue: Theatreworks, 14 Acland St, St Kilda.
Season: Until 7 February | Fri 9pm, Sat 3pm and 7pm
Tickets: $23 Full | $18 Concession
Bookings: www.midsumma.org.au, http://www.theatreworks.org.au, or 9534 3388

Comedy, Festivals, Performances, Whats On

REVIEW: Midsumma Festival’s THE SPARROW MEN

Impro duo take fantastic flight

By Narelle Wood

Marcus Willis and Andy Balloch are The Sparrow Men whom each night promise to take their audience on a completely unique, completely improvised adventure. Combining the audience suggestions of ‘tennis’ and ‘hostage situation’, we were treated to what can only be described as a bizarre, funny and at times surprisingly poignant hour of improvised entertainment.

The Sparrow Men

Taking us on this journey was a sociopathic wannabe-tennis player, his besotted hostage (apparently Stockholm syndrome can work out) and a restaurant with 3 kilos of Parmesan cheese. But it was the honest account of how cookbooks are actually a way for ‘The Man’ to control our lives that provided the rare, and hopefully fictional, glimpse into the inner workings of Jamie Oliver’s brain. This, coupled with a scene where a TV was literally killing a man, was what turned this performance into a social commentary on the pitfalls of consumerism.

I’m fascinated by improvised theatre and the spontaneous development of scene and story. Marcus and Andy are very talented, playing skilfully off each other’s suggestions and mostly keeping a straight face; there were moments of unusual and whacky suggestion that were clearly unexpected and made it all the more entertaining.

The only thing lacking for me was a tying-up of all the vignettes at the end of the show – perhaps it wasn’t necessary but there were some characters that I was really interested to find out how they fitted into the bigger picture and what became of them. Did Corey and Jessica get the woof whistles from the construction workers that their hearts truly desired?

Whatever your expectations of improvised theatre, The Sparrow Men presented by The Butterfly Club and The Improv Conspiracy provide a joyous frolic down whatever path the audience provides and it’s certainly a show that you could see over and over again.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne
Season: Wed 28th January and Sunday 1st February 8pm, Thursday 29th to Saturday 31st January 9pm
Tickets: Full $28 | Conc $24
Bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com/show/the-sparrow-men

Festivals, Musical Theatre, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Midsumma Festival’s THE BIG GAY CRUISE

All aboard this maritime musical

By Myron My

What could be more fun than a gay cruise? Nothing, according to engaged couple Alex and Ben and their best men, Stephen and Anthony, as they board a gay cruise ship for one final hoorah before their nuptials. Being performed as part of the 2015 Midsumma Festival, it’s fun, sexy and camp laughs in David Peake‘s original musical The Big Gay Cruise, directed by Leigh Barker and presented by Adam J. Lowe.

The Big Gay Cruise

With Alex and Ben (Brenton Cosier and Will Atkinson) soon to be married and their wedding day approaching, insecurities and fear are heightened for the characters. I would have loved to see more focus on this storyline in Peake’s script and an exploration of the secret that is revealed in the second act rather than splitting off to various sideline stories for the support cast. These characters may have had some genuinely funny moments, but I was not as emotionally invested in their story as I was about Alex and Ben’s. I felt more focus on the central couple would have kept the narrative more entertaining, with a stronger pay-off at the end.

The impact of the music raises a similar issue, with many songs not progressing the story, and creating the impression they are mostly filler, such as “The Locker Room” and “My Suite”. Despite being saddled with these unnecessary numbers, most of the cast are strong singers and do exceptionally well with their solo songs. Cosier in particular does an exemplary job when singing, and seems to be in his element during these moments.

The funniest part of The Big Gay Cruise would belong to Ben Paine as the sexually adventurous Anthony, and his song “Strength Inside of Me”, which Paine performs with great comedic expression and timing. However, it is Samuel Kitchen as Stephen who steals the show with “That Happy,” his emotional song of love lost and missed opportunities. This is where Peake’s songwriting skills excel, alongside other striking numbers about life and love such as “There’s A Boy” and “Just A Little Bit”.

Overall, there is little clarity on whose story this is, and thus the relationship between the audience and the inferred “hero” of this musical, Alex, needs to be strengthened. The Big Gay Cruise definitely has enough laughs and a committed cast to prevent this ship from sinking but the script and score do require more fine-tuning.

Venue: Theatreworks, 14 Acland St, St Kilda.
Season: Until 1 February | Tues – Sat 7:30pm, Sat 3pm, Sun 6pm
Tickets: $39 Full | $35 Concession
Bookings: www.midsumma.org.au, http://www.theatreworks.org.au, or 9534 3388