Category: Performances

Cabaret, Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK

An impressive experiment with palpable discomfort

by Rachel Holkner

This new adaptation of Joan Lindsay’s classic Australian novel, written by Tom Wright and directed by Matthew Lutton, is a stylish exploration of the themes of time, space, alternate dimensions, past, present and future. And hanging over it all, an ancient volcanic rock and the intolerable heat of an Australian summer.

picnicahr

The play requires some familiarity with the story whether from the novel or the 1975 film by Peter Weir. With a small cast it is necessary to recognise quickly the various characters and their place in the story, as the performers often leap from one to another without overt costume changes. Surtitles present chapter headings throughout, granting the original 1967 text an unnecessary supernatural presence. It remains unclear whether the production intends to seat the audience inside the novel as it suffers a sort of intrusion of the present, or develop an entirely new interpretation of the ‘disappearing girls’ story.

An extended opening in the style of a school reading, grounds the work. Re-admittance to the theatre is not permitted after this sequence as the entire room is plunged frequently and suddenly into complete darkness. It is this darkness that carries the emotional burden, as the audience slowly learn to fear what it may bring. This is not a performance suitable for children or those of nervous disposition!

Just five actors take on over a dozen roles in a commanding fashion. While each has a part they default to, they switch with ease into alternate characters, sharing the burden of story-telling evenly. Of note are Amber McMahon as the visiting English gentleman Michael, and Arielle Gray as the unloved outsider Sara. The character of Sara was particularly well conceived, her body distortions and hurried whispers reflecting her state of mind and lack of autonomy. Harriet Gordon-Anderson, Elizabeth Nabben and Nikki Shields round out the cast with assuredness.

The sound design by J. David Franzke and composer Ash Gibson Greig ranges as wildly as the natural environment it is attempting to evoke. As tensions rise sound effects evolve from precise recreations of the bush to a barrage of noise. Discomfort became palpable as the audience grasped at any moment in the dialogue which might relieve the tension.

The play’s weakness is that it tries to encompass too many themes at the same time. The final act is muddled, the costume choices and staging do not carry enough conviction as all the ideas of nature, time, legacy and even gender are attempted to be resolved in the final few minutes. The successful use of light, shadow, sound and minimalist staging earlier on have been forgotten in a flat-lit confusion of props.

Picnic at Hanging Rock is an impressive experiment in bringing the colonial inferiority and fear of the environment of the late 19thC into the beginning of the 21st under the heavy volcanic overhang of millions of years.

 

Venue: Malthouse Theatre

Season: 26 Feb – 20 March

Tickets: $35-$65

Bookings: http://malthousetheatre.com.au/whats-on/picnic-at-hanging-rock

Opera, Performances, Review, Theatre

Victorian Opera presents BANQUET OF SECRETS

Melodramatic Moments

By Margaret Wieringa

We all have them – those friends from our past that we see rarely, perhaps catch up with once in a while for a drunken dinner and then go our separate ways. Now, there’s an opera about them! This group of four uni friends meet yearly for a meal at one of their old uni haunts, but this year there is a challenge – each must tell a secret from their past, something no-one else knows.

Victorian Opera 2016 - Banquet of Secrets © Jeff Busby (6)

This show took me across the spectrum of enjoyment – parts of it I severely disliked and others I thoroughly enjoyed. What a challenge! I liked the concept; a group of friends forced to really reach deep and reveal their darkness. But I struggled to really buy it. Whether it was that they went very deep very quickly, or perhaps it was that after the big reveals, there was only a tiny acknowledgement that the other characters had a response before they seemed to be acting like everything was just dandy. It didn’t feel… honest. I know opera is over the top and the concept of huge revelations allowed for some melodrama, but the whole concept begged honest responses, not fleeting moments of truth.

The music was beautiful – Paul Grabowski and the Banquet of Secrets band were onstage and their subtle presence was a contrast to the ever-changing images that played on a huge screen above the dinner table. The screen was another thing I both enjoyed and disliked – it worked well for images of the mouth-watering food (don’t miss the magnificently absurd menu in the program) – yet some of the other images that crossed it were twee and annoying.

Despite my criticism of the character responses earlier, I felt that the cast generally worked very well. I felt that the characters were quite insufferable with their self-aware mocking and clichéd comments, but I felt they were quite relatable. For me, while it was a strong ensemble performance, Antoinette Halloran outshone as Mia. Her powerful voice captured the strength and confidence of the character, yet was easily able to bring the audience on the emotional journey of Mia as she relieved the past, and reflected on the consequence of her actions. And the comic turn of Michael Carman as the waiter cannot be ignored – thanks to librettist Steve Vizard for throwing a wink to the great clowning characters of the past.

If you like opera, and you want to see something a bit different, go. But make sure you’ve eaten first – you don’t want your stomach rumbling heard over the music!

Where: Arts Centre Playhouse

When: March 1-5, 7:30pm (1pm matinee on Saturday)

Tickets: $40 – $120, depending on seating.

Bookings: https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/whats-on/opera/banquet-of-secrets or call 1300 822 849

Cabaret, Performances, Review

REVIEW: Carly Milroy’s PEE STICK

Charming take on a familiar tale

By Myron My

Annie has just pee’d on a stick – and now, locked in her bathroom, has 45-53 minutes to ponder if her life is about to completely change or not. Written and performed by Carly Milroy, Pee Stick is a humorous and playful cabaret at how we deal when things in life don’t go according to plan.

Pee Stick.jpg

Despite a story of a woman waiting to discover if she is pregnant or not having already been told in many ways, shapes and forms, what sets this show apart is Milroy’s decision to situate it in 1987. We are in a cute nostalgic world where there are no iPhones and the Internet, but floppy disks and CD-ROMS! It also helps in raising the stakes on the outcome of Annie’s pregnancy test, as the social stigma of a single mother in her 20s in that era is arguably far more significant than it is now.

Another great story device of Milroy’s is that we never know the identity of the person with whom she has had sex, nor the circumstances leading up to the encounter. He is barely even mentioned; it’s irrelevant. Instead, Annie contemplates how her life will change with a baby and how to ensure she is able to provide the best possible life for her child (which may include moving in with her mother).

While the thoughts and fears she has are justified and more grounded, it’s when we enter Annie’s imagination and meet a number of people in her life, that things get really interesting. Milroy does a great job in bringing to life the supporting characters in Pee Stick, but none of them are more enjoyable to watch than Annie’s mother. From the few times the character appears appears, Milroy is able to convey to the audience the exasperation that Annie feels towards her mother but also the struggles that the older woman has had to face. Despite the humour and over-the-top personality of the mother, Milroy ensures she feels real to us, as do the other minor roles.

The musical numbers are a great touch in the show, and simultaneously display the emotions of the characters that are singing the song and bring to light Annie’s own fears and insecurities. The simple choreography that accompanies some of these is big on laughs and reinforcing the fact that we are in the 80s, the decade of cheesy dance moves.

The set consists simply of a toilet right in the middle of the stage, and despite this minimal design, the small touches such as the floral toilet seat and the tilling around it led to a nicely authentic 80s feel. The subtle touches with the costuming, such as the glasses strap, further establish this environment. There was one occasion though, when Annie sits on a chair to the side of the stage and speaks to the audience. Had this taken place inside her head with one of the characters, I would have let it go, but during that dialogue, I found myself thinking: why is there a chair in her bathroom? While admittedly a small thing, it was a detail that pulls you out of the world that is otherwise so carefully being created on stage.

Because ultimately and admirably, Pee Stick works in emphasising the little things: not only in Annie’s story but also in its production values. By crafting her cabaret show in this way, it permits the big overall result to be quite solidly successful for Milroy and guarantees an enjoyable hour of laughs from the audience.

Pee Stick was performed at The Butterfly Club between 17 – 21 February.

Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: Ben Noble in MEMBER

Powerful and lingering

By Myron My

Presented as part of the 2016 Midsumma Festival by Fairly Lucid Productions and directed by Casey Gould, Ben Noble‘s play Member was incited by the death of gay man Scott Johnson in 1988 when his body was found at the bottom of a cliff at Manly. Deemed a suicide, there has always been speculation that he was a victim of a gay hate-crime. However, this narrative focuses on Corey, your typical Aussie living in Manly with his wife and child. We follow Corey through various moments in his life that have led to where he is now: in a hospital room with his son lying unconscious, seemingly fighting for his life.

Member.jpg

 

Ben Noble is exemplary in his performance as Corey (and all the other characters he plays). From the very beginning, our eyes are glued on him and even as he begins to unravel and the truth becomes clearer, we still cannot look away. Corey is a complex character but Noble is able to bring some insight into his actions and thoughts while still holding him accountable for them.

There are some very difficult moments to watch in the show: not because of what’s happening on stage, but because of what’s happening in our head. Noble is so convincing with his delivery of the dialogue and the characters he creates that it is impossible to not begin visualising what is being described. You see the fear in the eyes of the victims with every insult slurred, you hear the moment when foot connects with rib, and you can almost feel the blood splatter from every strike to the face.

The lighting design by Lisa Mibus hones in on the intensity of the events and despite the empty space bar for a single chair, builds well on creating a claustrophobic environment. Jacob Battista‘s stage design that covering the entire floor in one sheet of silver gloss works perfectly in bringing more depth to the work. The watery mirrored surface not only captures Noble reflecting on his own behaviour and past, but also ensures the audience reflect on the community we live in and acknowledge that these things have happened and continue to happen.

Despite its set time period, Member could easily be describing topical events from current times with homophobic attacks on people of the GLBTIQ community still occurring when you consider that only last week a gay man was bashed in St Kilda Royal Botanical Gardens, and stickers were placed along Chapel St stating “Cure AIDS, Kick a Poofter to Death”.

Member is an important story that needs to be told. It’s important because it reminds us that no matter how far we have come as a community and as a society, we still have so much further to go before people such as Scott Johnson can feel safe in their community and in their homes. With a completely sold-out run, here’s hoping this show gets a second season some time soon.

Member was performed between 19 – 30 January at La Mama Theatre

Image by Derek McAlpin

Circus, Performances, Whats On

REVIEW: Daniele Finzi Pasca’s LA VERITA

Circus spectacle celebrates surrealism

By Jessica Cornish

La Verità – directed, choreographed and written by internationally renowned creator Daniele Finzi Pasca, and inspired by Salvador Dali’s surrealist depiction of the fraught love story between Tristan and Isolde – was a visually stunning production, with breath-taking acts executed by well-seasoned performers.

La Verita.jpg

Travelling with an incredibly strong cast of 13 acrobats, musicians, clowns and dancers, La Verità morphed the State Theatre into a beautiful melancholic circus, with sumptuously rich scenery often silhouetted by the beaming golden cyc cloth hanging upstage. The performance work also incorporated trance-like shadow theatre, stark imagery, contrasting bold lighting states, shapes and the morphing of colours powerfully and continuously throughout the two acts.

La Verità’s aerial acts were particularly stunning, featuring double-helix ladders spiralling through the air, ultraviolet-lit hula hoops dancing across the stage, and the incredible acrobats illustrating human form at its peak of perfection. The performance also included one of the best choreographed and most intricate and quirky juggling scenes I have ever seen, and a wonderfully cringe-worthy contortionist, to name only a few memorable moments. My only criticism of the performances was that Act One heavily relied on comedic relief to transition between items: I didn’t really find the shiny silvery characters very funny, and felt the slapstick humour a little lame and unnecessary at times; however, my companion clearly enjoyed the glittery clowns, so maybe I just need to adopt a better sense of humour!

Meanwhile, the comedic narrators provided some background information on Salvador Dali through a mix of English, French and Spanish ramblings, retelling remarkable snippets of his life such as the time he tried to present a lecture in a diving suit and nearly suffocated in the process. To further accentuate Dali’s work and influence, some of his other famous iconic images were also smattered throughout the items, such as the melting away of time and the recurring rhinoceros, (he believed the latter’s patterned horn possessed the same logarithm as both cauliflowers and sunflowers…!)

A captivating and stunning night of entertainment, overall – if you are a lover of all things circus and beautiful, go see this show!

VENUE
State Theatre
DATES
Friday 22 January, 7:30pm
Saturday 23 January, 2pm
Saturday 23 January, 7:30pm
PRICE RANGE*
Premium: $85
A Reserve: $65
B Reserve: $45
Under 30: $30 (strictly limited)
Concession and family tickets available
BOOKINGS
Phone: 1300 182 183

https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/whats-on/circus-physical-theatre/la-verita

Events, Performances, Review

REVIEW: THE ULTIMATE VEGAS SHOW

Plenty of glitz

By Myron My

The Ultimate Vegas Show is a night of magic, illusion, circus, songs, dancing and music. It’s got all the ingredients for a brilliant and captivating show, yet, sadly this experience left me feeling underwhelmed and wanting to head back to ‘Melbourne’.

The Ultimate Vegas Show.jpg

Host/MC David Cotter did pleasantly well with his Dean Martin impersonation, but that’s all there was to it. Cotter’s Martin did not possess enough dynamic stage presence or charisma to keep the audience strongly entertained and generate excitement about the upcoming acts, although perhaps in a more intimate setting as opposed to the expansive space of The Palms, he might have had more of an effect.

Among the performances themselves however, producer Michael Boyd‘s magic and illusion act was definitely a showstopper, with some of his tricks defying logic and eliciting a lot of delighted “How did that just happen?” from the audience, especially the charming one involving his loyal sidekick, Thurston the Duck. Similarly Spain’s Duponte Nicole with his clowning and mime act was perfectly timed and his finale had everyone gasping with amazement and laughter at the same time.

The inherent problem with this show was filling all the space between these two mentioned acts. While the vastness and glitz you expect from a Vegas experience was present, I felt it lacked the heart and real sparkle to really draw the spectators in and take them along for the ride (although many of the older women in the audience would disagree with me judging by their enthused and emotional reactions to Elvis impersonator Marcus Jackson‘s vocal numbers). Furthermore, the dance numbers had relatively uninspiring choreography that left me feeling like I was watching a lot of the same routines just with different costumes on.

The Ultimate Vegas Show had potential to be a captivating spectacle on a grand scale. Unfortunately, in its focus to capture the “Vegas vibe”, it seems to have forgotten about capturing all its audience. Maybe it is an iconic example of the showy grandeur of the productions in Vegas – I confess I’ve never seen one so I don’t know – but in this case and for me, I felt what happens in Vegas really should have stayed in Vegas.

The Ultimate Vegas Show was performed at The Palms at Crown Melbourne between 15 – 16 January 2016.

Cabaret, Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: La Mama Presents GOBLINS

Six women reach across time to seek justice

By Myron My

Melbourne-based theatre company Panopticon Collective are dedicated to creating new Australian work that focuses on national identity and social responsibility. Performed at La Mama as part of their Explorations season, their newest production Goblins attempts to do just that, with mixed results.

Goblins

The “goblins” in this work are six women from six historical eras ranging from 2000BC to 2015, who are telling six individual yet thematically similar stories. Each of these women face some sort of persecution for daring to have control of their mind and body, and for speaking up for what they believe in. Written by Jeni Bezuidenhout and Cassandra-Elli Yiannacou, each story is predominantly a ten-minute monologue as we attempt to get inside these women’s heads and see what drives them to be such a courageous force as they confront their fears.

As we enter the venue, there are six bodies lying on the floor covered in white sheets. It is a powerful scene with which to begin, as we think about these “dead” women and reliving the stories they have to tell. It links well with the writers’ idea of showing history repeating itself and that women who dare speak up or act against social norms will be punished. The cast – Eva Justine Torkkola, Isabelle Bertoli, Kellie Tori, Luke Lennox, Bezuidenhout and Yiannacou – are, for the most part, strong and authentic in their portrayals.

However, I felt the stories themselves needed to be far more distinct from one another. Even across the various eras and with the different actors, by the time the final monologue began, I struggled to remember what each story was. While the narratives dealt with different ideas of persecution, the stories only offered a surface level that did not allow for richly drawn characters to present themselves to us. The anecdote that felt the most authentic and sophisticated was the last (“Danielle’s story”), with the closing moments creating some strong visuals that were poignantly reminiscent of the show’s opening.

The stage design by Marcus Verdi and lighting by Jaidan Leeworthy are prime examples of how less can often be more. Both are able to build adroitly on the hostility and loneliness these women faced in their lives. There is however, a distinct lack of sound or music throughout Goblins, and there are times where its presence could have intensified the emotions and experience for both the characters and the audience.

Goblins is still a work in development and changes are likely. If the writers can focus on telling six iconic stories that have heart and emotion rather than a series of more generic narratives, I feel this could well go on to have a life outside of the Explorations seasons at La Mama Theatre.

Goblins was performed between 7 -9 December at La Mama Theatre
Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: La Mama Presents TRUE LOVE’S SIGHT

A taste of a working Shakespearean reworking

By Myron My

The great thing about La Mama’s Explorations season is that it gives artists the opportunity to present works in various stages of development. It might be the first time it is staged to an audience or a scripted reading. In the case of True Love’s Sight, we see a number of segments from their upcoming immersive theatrical experience.

True Loves Sight

Taking place inside the walls of Athens, the work, created by Michaela Bedel and Nikki Brumen, is inspired by Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We meet a number of characters from the play, including Theseus, Hermia, Helena, Lysander and Demetrius. William Ewing, Doug Lyons and  Tamzen Hayes do well with their characters and are confident enough in making their interactions with the audience seem genuine and spontaneous.

At one point, Helena grabs three audience members – including myself on the night in question – and takes us into a shed, where she professes her undying love for Demetrius. Helena dictates a poem for me to write, as Demetrius will not read it if it is in her handwriting. It’s an enjoyable few minutes that allows the three audience members to gain special insight into Helena and subsequently Demetrius. My attempt at passing the poem to Demetrius is quite an enjoyable one.

There is potential for True Love’s Sight to be quite a memorable show, however with only 25 minutes of the production’s current material being performed, it is difficult to get a real idea of what its creators’ intentions are or where it is headed. Even ten more minutes would probably have provided some more basic framework and understanding for the audience, for just as we were becoming more involved with the story, it abruptly comes to end.

The one thing that needs to be ensured for successful immersive theatre however is that no matter in what group the audience members end up or what story they experience, they must still be able to piece a general plot and appreciate its intersecting storylines and the motivations of its characters. From what was witnessed in this performance, True Love’s Sight seems to be going down the right path. 

True Love’s Sight was performed at La Mama Theatre between 4 – 6 December.

Events, Performances, Review

REVIEW: Hunted The Interactive Theatre Experience Presents SIDESHOW

Not for coulrophobics…

By Myron My

The circus has come to town, but in the case of Sideshow, this is not a family-friendly – or even a human-friendly – circus. There are powers of darkness, death, murder and spirits from the other world that are part of this troupe and in this immersive performance, it is down to the audience to stop this traveling carnival of horrors from causing doom.

Hunted Presents Sideshow.jpg

Sideshow is certainly fun, but I must be honest: there are a number of reasons it unfortunately does not work. Firstly, the experience just isn’t as scary as it proclaims to be and this is bound to be a huge disappointment for its audiences. Apart from our creepy clown friend, there aren’t any frights or tension, unless the constant repeat of people jumping out of the “darkness” and growling at you is where your fears stem from.

The story, while straightforward and entertaining enough, also tends to use too much exposition in its narrative and takes away the engagement or emotional investment the audience may otherwise have felt. Meanwhile, there are scenes or instructions given to us that don’t seem to have a clear purpose: at one point for example, we were told to wear some masks only to have them taken from us minutes later without explanation. There are sadly no twists or turns as the advertising states and there are no choices we have to make throughout Sideshow: we are spoon-fed the story and directed on what we must do. While admittedly this type of immersive theatre requires a strong structure, it also needs to be under the guise that we the participants do in fact control the story.

I feel the setting and ambiance of the circus environment also needs to be developed more fully, as dark-lit rooms and streamers hanging from walls a circus does not make. Some creepy carnival music playing throughout, for example, would have made a huge difference in building up the tension and creating some believability.

I am a strong supporter of immersive and interactive theatre: in making the audience be an integral part of the show, rather than just an observer. The pay-off for both performer and audience is amazing when executed well. While Sideshow misses the mark in the horror and scare-factor and in creating a truly immersive experience, it is still an enjoyable show that will certainly create some fun and get a few laughs.

Venue: Revealed upon ticket purchase but close to CBD.

Season: Until 6 December

Tickets: $43 Full | $35 Conc

Bookings: Hunted: The Interactive Theatre Experience

Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: La Mama Presents BEERS AND TREES

Promising new work ponders who needs to save the world

By Myron My

Performed as part of La Mama Theatre’s 2015 Explorations season and developed with the assistance of Theatre 451, Beers and Trees by Allee Richards is a humorous yet thoughtful look at not only what makes a person strive for good, but what makes a ‘good’ activist and just how important this activity is. We all want to change the world and make it better for everyone, but we also want to be happy and fulfilled by our own needs and desires. It’s a fine balancing act to get it just right and the question of where this balance lies is what the five characters presented here attempt to answer.

Beers and Trees

Adrian Del-Re is the standout performer in the cast, with his portrayal of Brad being highly natural, nuanced and convincing. The delivery really highlights the comfort that Del-Re has found with this character, and his scenes with Julia Hanna (Ruby) are the most entertaining of the show. Playwright Richards has succeeded admirably in finding clear voices for these two characters, and really fleshing them out.

Relatively new to the independent theatre scene, Luke Costabile delivers a solid performance as Wes who, despite his activist ways, is just as confused as everyone else. The script falters a little in the development of Violet and Isaac (Caitlin Lavery and A.J Steele) however. While the two performers do well dealing with their characters, I found much of their dialogue didn’t seem to drive the point that was trying to be made, and the conversations ending up being more of a tool for Violet and Isaac to antagonise each other.

The direction by Lisa Inman and Tref Gare is consistent throughout, with meaningful actions and body language opening the possibility for much interpretation. With regards to plot however, Beers and Trees starts out strongly, but towards the final stretch it does become a little confusing and too wordy. The climax is missing a strong build-up and the abrupt ending goes against the mood the rest of the show seems to have so carefully focused on.

I am eager to see how Beer and Trees progresses in its next incarnation. With a few small changes in the storyline and some characters, there is potential for this to be a stronger and even more engaging production all round.

Beers and Trees was performed at La Mama Theatre between 6 – 8 November 2015.

Image by Ed Gorwell