Category: Performances

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

REVIEW: Katerina Vrana presents About Sex

Lets talk about sex

By Myron My

Let’s talk about sex baby. If you like my body and you think I’m sexy. Let me play with your body make you real hot. Despite these three sentences being lyrics to three very well known songs about sex, they also encapsulate Katerina Vrana’s show, aptly titled About Sex.

Katerina Vrana

Born in Greece but having lived almost two decades in England, Vrana has a wealth of stories and anecdotes to share of these two cultures and their dealings with sex. Her impersonations of her family members, including her mother and father, are brilliant but it is when she talks about her 17-year-old brother asking her for sex advice that things really get cracking. One simple question from him is all it takes for the audience to be simultaneously shocked and howling in laughter.

Vrana covers a range of topics, from her first one-night stand to the differences between single sex, married sex, and gay and lesbian sex, however her focus is pretty much on sex pre-1994 and sex post-1994. Why 1994? Generally speaking, that’s when Internet porn took over the world and changed everyone’s ideas about what sex is and should be.

Vrana has great comedic timing on stage and her delivery and facial expressions of punch lines is impeccable. She knows exactly how far to push the envelope and then step back to let us take it all in before she gets straight back into it.

As an added bonus, Thursday night shows are performed in Greek, so it’s a perfect opportunity for those Greek grandchildren out there to take your grandparents out on the town for a laugh and some fun.

Vrana’s insights in About Sex are more than just cheap dick jokes and ‘wham-bang thank you ma’am’ type of comedy. Vrana is opening up discussion about sex so we are not ashamed or embarrassed by it or our bodies; after all, we all do it, so why shouldn’t we enjoy doing it and talking about it?

Venue: Elephant & Wheelbarrow, Cnr. Bourke and Exhibition St. Melbourne.

Season: Until 18 April | Thurs-Tue 8:30pm

Tickets: $20 Full | $15 Conc

Bookings: TixNoFee

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.

Characters-12

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, Performances, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Quiet Achievers

A quietly improvised comedy

By Myron My

Performing an improvised comedy show can be more terrifying than performing stand up. You have no idea what’s going to happen next from both your fellow cast and the audience. In essence, you have no safety net. You’d think that’s risky enough but the Quiet Achievers have taken it a step further with their Melbourne International Comedy Festival show and taken away a comedian’s most powerful tool; their voice.

Quiet Achievers

With nothing but a musical soundtrack of 500 songs played at random, the Quiet Achievers (Andrew Strano and Charlie Sturgeon) set out to captivate us with a mixed bag of silent impro sketches. As with any impro show, there is always a chance scenes will not hit the mark and with this show there are moments when stories fizzle out with an awkward ending or the story gets convoluted and confusing.

However, the two are charming and affable enough to get the audience on side early on so even when things go haywire, we don’t mind and can still appreciate the performance. There are some brilliant moments from this talented duo though, including the kite flying love story and their story about the little bird that learnt how to stand up for itself.

Strano and Sturgeon are a great pair to watch on stage. Strano’s comedy man to Sturgeon’s straight man is highly complimentary and the two have a great connection on stage. They are constantly aware of each other and what they are doing; they work hard (but seemingly easily) at giving each other a good time and making their partner look good. They happily accept every offer in advancing the story with confidence and a sense of fun.

 

There are a number of improvised comedy shows on during the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, but if you’re looking for something a little different, a little riskier but very rewarding, then the Quiet Achievers is the show for you.

 

Venue: Tuxedo Cat, 17-23 Wills St, Melbourne

Season: Until 4 April | Mon – Sat 6pm, Sun 5pm (no Wednesday show)

Tickets: $15 Full | $12 Conc

Bookings: Try Booking

Events, Performances, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Global Creatures presents WALKING WITH DINOSAURS

A Spectacular Journey

By Narelle Wood

I’m not sure who was more excited to see Walking with Dinosaurs; my two-year-old nephew or myself. Before the show even started it was clear from the set that the staging and effects were going to be something spectacular and the show did not disappoint.

 Unknown

Walking with Dinosaurs is a trip back in time when dinosaurs dominated and the world was known as Pangaea. The journey is narrated by Palaeontologist, Dr. Huxley (Andrew Blackman). Huxley introduces the dinosaurs and also explains the changes in the Earth’s landscape and how it affected the dinosaurs. I really appreciated the scientific explanations and walked out having learnt lots of new things about the evolution of the world.

The stars of the show are most certainly the dinosaurs, which are awe inspiring. Puppeteers inside the dinosaur control the smaller dinosaurs such as the Utah Raptors. At first glance these dinosaurs look adorable, but the movement is eerily lifelike and their behaviour is clearly menacing. We also met some ‘good’ dinosaurs, herbivores like the gigantic Brachiosaurus, whose sheer size seemed to consume Hisense Arena.

The dinosaurs are exceptionally impressive but so are the other elements that are subtle in comparison to the dinosaurs yet work together to make the show. The musical soundtrack is reminiscent of Jurassic Park and provides a perfect background to all the sounds and roars that you would expect to hear in the Crustaceous and Jurassic periods. The soundtrack is loud and the dinosaur’s roars are even louder and some of the little people sitting around me were a little scared. The backdrops and lighting are used to reflect the changes in the world’s atmosphere and provide really interesting transitions to new scenes.

Walking with Dinosaurs was an arena spectacular; this is one of the most incredible things I have seen. Despite some scary moments, my nephew was still roaring after we left and hands down the mummy dinosaur, the terrifying T-Rex was his favourite dinosaur of the night. For any dinosaur lover, young or old, this is not to be missed.

 

Venue: Hisense Arena

Season: 27th March 7pm, 28th March 11am, 3pm, 7pm, 29th March 11am, 3pm

Tickets: From $45

Bookings: premier.ticketek.com.au

Events, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Red Stitch presents WET HOUSE

An emotional and essential experience

By Myron My

A wet house is a hostel for alcoholic homeless men and women, where they can drink and sleep as much as they want with no expectations for them to be rehabilitated. They are more or less, the people that society has given up on. In Red Stitch’s production of Paddy Campbell’s Wet House, we get an insight into the lives of three residents and three workers of a wet house, each one struggling with their own redemption and reason for being.

REDSTITCH

Wet House is based on Campbell’s first-hand experience of working in a wet house and you can see how effective a story can be when the writer well and truly knows what he is writing about. Not a single scene is wasted, no dialogue is filler, no movement is pointless. Everything that happens in Wet House has a purpose, and with six different stories being told, the pacing is controlled well and is never difficult to follow.

The performance opens with colleagues Helen (Caroline Lee) and Mike (David Whiteley) going through the handover of their shift. The dark humour used throughout is disturbingly funny and highlights even more the issues that the script is raising. The arrival of new recruit Andy (Paul Ashcroft), with his idealistic and simplistic views on helping these people comes into great conflict with the realities of the job as well as his relationship with Helen and Mike.

Wet house residents, Dinger, Spencer and Kerry (Nicholas Bell, Dion Mills and Anna Sampson), each have their own unique story to tell, but at the same time, their story is universal. Mills in particular is exceptional as Spencer, bringing a vulnerability and sympathy to a character we should revile against and disgusted by. The scenes between him and Whiteley are extremely intense to watch which is due to the strong performances and fearless directing by Brett Cousins.

Sophie Woodward’s set design captures the bleak environment of despair that these people face day in day out. There is a creative use of the space in the theatre that I have not seen before which draws you further into this world and story. Costumes have been used to give more life to the characters and build on their personalities.

Red Stitch’s production of Wet House opens discussion on alcoholism and how we support those who are seen as beyond help and how the intention to do good is ultimately never going to be better than action. It is an emotionally draining show but it is a show that needs to be seen.

Venue: Red Stitch Actors Theatre, 2 Chapel St, St. Kilda.

Season: Until 18 April | Wed- Sat 8:00pm, Sat 3:00pm, Sun 6:30pm

Tickets: $37 Full | $20-27 Conc

Dance, Performances, Whats On

REVIEW: Force Majeure Presents NOTHING TO LOSE

Unabashed and cheerful celebration of human bodies

By Margaret Wieringa

It’s rare to see an overweight body in underwear anywhere. The media is mostly about the traditional construct of ‘the body beautiful’, and even plus-sized models are posed to reveal only that which is deemed attractive – the curve of a large breast or the roundness of some junk in the trunk. But normal large men and women?

Nothing-to-Lose

Created by Force Majeure under the artistic direction of Kate Champion in collaboration with artist and activist Kelli Jean Drinkwater, Nothing to Lose is a performance art piece powerfully choreographed by Ghenoa Gela that uses personal experiences to embrace the fat body. It is at times confronting, challenging the audience to consider words and phrases they may have used or heard used toward large people: “What a pretty face”, “Haven’t you had enough?”, “Does your back hurt?”, and many more. At one stage, a group of audience volunteers were invited onstage to physically explore the bodies of the dancers – an exercise that mostly provoked awkward laughter.

The cast started onstage in near darkness as the audience moved into their seats, and when the house lights came down, they writhed about each other on the stage in very dim light. This continued for some time and had the feel of an exploratory exercise that the group may have completed in development of the work rather than a final piece. Unfortunately, it was not the only piece that felt under-prepared. At times some of the sequences felt longer than necessary, and I found the initial confrontation had lost its impact by the time the cast had moved onto the next scene.

Luckily, after a few scenes, the cast pushed pedestals into the space and arranged themselves on them to dance a beautifully synchronised piece. It was in this that I saw exactly how good the show could be. Each body was highlighted by the harsh lighting, frankly revealing the flaws and dimples that in daily life we mostly strive to hide. It was beautiful.

And then there was the jiggly dance – a delightful number with each body moving in a uniquely wobbly way and with exaggerated facial expressions that sent giggles rippling through the theatre. The performance ended on a high, with a hip-hop dance number performed by an extended cast that drew cheers from the audience. Nothing to Lose is at times awkward and a little uneven, but ultimately both triumphant and entertaining.

Nothing to Lose is playing at the Malthouse Theatre until March 21. Tickets can be booked at http://malthousetheatre.com.au/whats-on/nothing-to-lose

Comedy, Performances, Whats On

REVIEW: Impro Melbourne’s SUPERSCENE and SMELLS LIKE A SONG

Let the competition begin

By Narelle Wood

Impro Melbourne presents two unique improvisation experiences in their double feature SuperScene and Smells Like a Song.

SuperScene and Smells Like a Song

SuperScene is competitive improvisation where five directors each construct a unique story and the audience holds the power to vote off a director at a time, until there is only one left standing for the Super Scene. It didn’t appear as thought the stories always went in the direction that the director had originally intended, with a few of the performers throwing in their own interpretative responses to where the scenes were headed. Needless to say, we were treated to five very unique stories.

Among the storylines that didn’t make the cut were the Victorian Era succubus/Inspector Doris mystery and the 60’s artistic beatnik drama. I really wanted to see what happened to the 60’s artist played by Sarah, partly because the storyline was great but also because Sarah’s performance was incredible. I struggled with not knowing how all the stories ended, but in the world of competitive improvisation only one director gets the prize. The Super Scene was the conclusion to the epic World War II German Blimp catastrophe in Utah. This story had everything from storms, to accents, to an accidental bombing of small town America.

The second half of the show was dedicated to Smells Like a Song, an improvised musical where the audience again had the power to decide not only when the songs would happen, but what the songs would be about, by throwing a rose onto the stage and shouting “smells like a song”. The performers pulled together a storyline that combined an actor’s dream, an evil plastic surgeon and William Shakespeare to fulfil the original audience suggestion of ‘Hot Lips’. It boarded on the bizarre at times due to the audience’s selections of songs, but the undeniably talented performers made it all work and delivered lots of laughable moments.

Musical director Boris Connelly, along with the lighting and stage crew, provided all the atmospheric and actual props the performers desired. Connelly’s music was the perfect backdrop to the antics on stage.

SuperScene and Smells Like a Song is a joyous way to wrap up a weekend and exceptionally good value given the talent and the price of tickets. A show that you could see over and over again.

Venue: The Space Dance Hall, 5a Carlton St Prahran
Season: 7.30pm Sundays until March 21st
Tickets: $10 online | $12 at the door
Bookings: www.impromelbourne.com.au/shows

Cabaret, Performances, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Paul Capsis in LITTLE BIRD

Fascinating fable enchants all

By Bradley Storer

Australian cabaret and musical theatre star Paul Capsis comes to Melbourne with Little Bird, a dark modern fairytale by playwright Nicki Bloom, with music and songs by Cameron Goodall and Quentin Grant.

Little Bird

Little Bird tells the story of a young boy named Wren, magically conceived by the fall of feather on a winter’s day, and his journey to find a missing parent as well as discover his own identity. Bloom’s writing thrillingly mines a vein of moral and sexual ambiguity to create a bewitching narrative that draws questions of gender, love and the essential idea of the self.

The show works best when it stays within the realm of the fantastical and fey – the first section of the show, interwoven with the voice of a mysterious and bird-like narrator, is intensely engaging in its sparse poetical prose that draws on all the tropes of fairy tales while twisting and subverting them in thrilling new ways. When the tale reaches a metropolitan city and touches on the story of a cross-dressing woodcutter, the narrative takes a turn into punk rock territory, reminiscent of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, which although entertaining jars against the overall tone of the show in a way that makes it far less compelling.

Capsis himself is never less than completely spell-binding, his use of body and voice a masterclass in story-telling, summoning up all the characters with a simple shift in posture and voice while always maintaining the clarity of Wren’s own central development and journey reacting against these other characters. His androgynous rock-star charisma is used to great effect at various points, roaring glam-rock ballads that recall the work of Queen and David Bowie along with scintillating gypsy rhythms, but always finding the deep vulnerability and sadness of Wren to tear-inducing effect. The simple but surprisingly versatile set and incredibly nuanced lighting provided by Geoff Cobham must also be praised, responding to the mood and rhythm of the story in ways that heighten the drama and atmosphere invaluably.

This rich, luscious fable starring one of our best country’s best performers is truly an event not to be missed, drawing us into a dream-like, magical (but on some level, still achingly real) landscape that leaves the audience with the visceral and satisfying joy of a story well told.

Venue: Playhouse, The Arts Centre, 100 St Kilda Rd
Time: 8pm, 5pm Tuesday February 1st
Dates: 29th January – 4th February
Price: $49 Premium, $39 A-Reserve, $30 Under 30’s, Concession also available.
Bookings: www.artscentremelbourne.com.au, 1300 182 183, at the box office.