Category: Review

Events, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Fernando Arrabal’s THE TWO EXECUTIONERS

Parodoxes of humanity and morality brought to light

By Myron My

Directed by Mammad Aidani, The Two Executioners deals with the repercussions of a woman who reports her husband to the authorities for an unnamed crime. As he is tortured upstairs, the woman and her two sons argue over their guilt and betrayal.

There are many questions raised throughout the play: why has Francoise reported her husband? What crime has Jean committed? How has this woman created such a strong hold over her sons?

The-Two-Executioners

None of these are fully answered and we are left to our own creative devices to ponder and resolve. The lighting also plays a part in creating this intense and ambiguous atmosphere with a lot of shadows being deliberately cast on the actors. The stage is never fully lit with only small pockets given light at a time, thus literally keeping us in the dark as to what is truly happening and who is in control. Another effective direction of Aidani’s was to have the torture of Jean occur off stage – with the audience able to hear his screams of pain our imaginations are forced to create the horror.

Wahibe Moussa is exceptional as Francoise. She initially comes across as a desperate woman and a victim, but slowly crosses the line to manipulator and betrayer. It’s not always clear which way she will go and as Moussa plays the role full of subtleties, you are left guessing even after the play has ended as to whether Francoise was indeed a good person with high morals – or the true villain of this story.

Clearly Francoise is the protagonist of this tale, but I would have liked to see more character exploration with her sons, Maurice and Benoit (Shahin Shafaei and Osamah Sami). Maurice has a lot of anger but also displays conflicting emotions towards his mother which needed justification, and would have been great to see Shafaei able to deal with these contradictions in the narrative. Sami may have had a few opening night nerves but quickly found his way and established his character as Francoise’s ‘favourite’ son, but I felt the ensuing tension between him and his brother needed to be developed further.

There are times when the story does flounder and get repetitive in its dialogue which can sometimes take you out of the moment and undercut the drama. However, what draws you back in is the beautiful and poetic language used throughout the play, which is not surprising given playwright Fernando Arrabal‘s background in poetry.

Overall, The Two Executioners has some strong performances, some lovely writing, and brings to surface many dark questions about good and evil and right and wrong that will keep you thinking long after the lights come down.

Venue: La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street Carlton

Season: Until 25 August | Wed-Sat 6:30pm, Sun 4:30pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Conc

Bookings: http://lamama.com.au or 9347 6142

Dance, Events, Musical Theatre, Performances, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: 2013 Australian Tour of HOT SHOE SHUFFLE

Tap into this!

By Christine Moffat

The story of Hot Shoe Shuffle, in essence, is of the seven ‘Tap Brothers’ who are called to New York for the reading of their father’s will and to meet April, their long-lost sister.  To gain their inheritance, they must recreate their father’s famous act ‘The Hot Shoe Shuffle’, and it must include the dance-challenged April.

Hot Shoe Shuffle

Hot Shoe Shuffle is an original Australian show, but created in the form of an old-time movie musical, and the current season at Her Majesty’s Theatre is the 21st anniversary production.  Despite the show’s classic format, it is hard to believe it was written two decades ago, as it has all the vibrancy and energy of a debut season.

The first half of the show is like tutti-frutti icecream: a brightly coloured sugar-rush of comedy, condensed plot twists, slapstick humour, great music and dynamic tap numbers.  The second half, mainly the famous review act ‘The Hot Show Shuffle’, is like champagne sorbet.  It is elegant, ritzy, and jam-packed with dance routines reminiscent of a black-and-white Fred Astaire film.

The score is a who’s who of timeless composers, including songs from Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Ira Gershwin and Peter Allen.  The costumes for this production by Janet E Hine are a master class in what wonderful costuming can bring to a show, contributing to creating and developing the characters before our eyes.  And the choreography (David Atkins, Dein Perry, Drew Anthony) showcases the versatility of tap, including routines that were romantic, drop-dead glamorous and a sensational drunken dance by the brothers.

Jaz Flowers as April is reminiscent of a young Lucille Ball, using comedy, sex appeal and her knockout voice to full advantage.  Bobby Fox as Spring is surprisingly funny, vulnerable, almost accidentally charming, and refreshingly different to a stereotypical ‘leading man’.

David Atkins (also producer and director) makes a classy transition from his role as Spring in original production to wise mentor/slave-driver Max in this run, and yes, he can definitely still dance!  All of the cast are excellent dancers and their dance solos were fantastic, but stand-out performances includded Morgan Junor-Larwood as the gung-ho Slap and Mason Schaube as the adorable, but a bit slow on the uptake Slide.

The level of entertainment and fun in this show is phenomenal.  At the preview the cast received a well-deserved standing ovation.  A word of caution though – The Hot Shoe Shuffle is infectious: if you see the show, you may feel compelled to take tap lessons…

Melbourne dates: Aug 12 – Sept 8

Show times: Tues 1pm/ Wed 1pm & 8pm/ Thurs & Fri 8pm/ Sat 2pm & 8pm/ Sun 3pm

Venue: Her Majesty’s Theatre, 219 Exhibition St

Tickets: Premium from $110*/ A Reserve from $89*/ Groups 10+ from $69*/ Family from $276*/ Schools/Dance Schools groups 10+ $50* *(*booking fees apply)

Bookings: http://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/show.aspx?sh=HOTSHOE13

Official website: www.hotshoeshuffle.com

Events, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Mockingbird Theatre Presents EQUUS

Intensely moving

By Vikki Doig

A mere 40 years after it was written, Equus still packs a powerful punch. Originally penned in 1973, Peter Shaffer‘s play follows the case of Alan Strang, a 17 year-old boy who is taken into a mental health institution to be treated after his pathological religious fascination with horses causes him to commit an act of unspeakable violence. Shaffer was inspired to write the play after hearing a story about a boy blinding six horses, as a means of trying to make such an act comprehensible.

Equus - Scott Middleton

The format of the play is a kind of medical whodunit, with the audience acting as witnesses to the unfolding story and development of trust between the two main characters (which, my partner pointed out, was akin to breaking-in a horse). Equus is Mockingbird Theatre‘s current production, and upon entering director Chris Baldock’s eerie world, which is somewhere between a stable and a temple, I was immediately struck by the wonderful overall design, the image of the horseheads hanging on the wall like trophies and the strong, almost tribal, presence of the horse-chorus.

We meet Dr. Martin Dysart, portrayed by a wonderfully well-cast Jeremy Kewley, who expresses his frustration at his profession and questions his own purpose. After a bit of a shaky start to the show (I found myself willing him to slow down his dialogue) his commitment to the role was absolute. Scott Middleton portrayed a beautifully vulnerable and fragile Alan Strang – menacing at first, but more human as the play went on – and the growing relationship between these two characters was a real strength of the show.

Other characters joined and left the action seamlessly, creating a very immediate space in which the motivations of the young boy, his relationship with his parents (played exceptionally well and, at times, comically, by Soren Jensen and Amanda McKay) and his eventual violent contact with the horses could be played out and reflected upon. The horse chorus, all-seeing and all-knowing, mirrored Alan’s emotion in their every movement and maintained strength and focus from the minute the audience entered the space (it was a nice touch to bring them out last at the curtain call!). Particular mention should go to Maggie Chrétien, whose portrayal of the sassy Jill Mason was, although only having a small amount of stage time, one of the strongest performances of the night.

Chris Baldock has created a production faithful to Shaffer’s original script and clearly has great passion for the words and concepts explored in the text. However, having seen an extremely powerful contemporised interpretation of the play in the UK a few years back, I personally felt detached from this version which seemed to historicise the key themes of reason versus passion and rehabilitation versus medication rather than present them as significant and culturally relevant questions which still resonate with contemporary audiences. For this reason and for me, I felt that the production didn’t quite have the power and impact it could have and this was compounded by the questionable English accents from some of the cast.

Despite this, I certainly enjoyed the show and was left with a poignant comment from Dysart running through my head: “Passion can only be destroyed by doctors. It cannot be created”, for working with children in education and the arts always makes this play and its conflict between (seemingly) necessary medication and a natural capacity for passion and emotion profoundly affecting. Because once that passion is gone, can we ever really get it back?

VENUE: Mechanics Institute Performing Arts Centre, cnr Glenlyon & Sydney Rds, Brunswick

DATES: 3rd – 17th Aug

TIME: Tue 6th – Sat 10th 8pm, Wed 14th – Sat 17th 8pm

TICKETS: $30 Full/ $25 Con or Groups 10+/ $20 Tue 6th

BOOKINGS: www.trybooking.com/40833 or bookings@mockingbirdtheatre.com.au

Events, Performances, Review, Theatre

REVIEW: Blue Cow Theatre Presents ART

We know what we like

By Myron My

How many times do we see a movie with a friend and we love it and they hate it? Or we go to a museum and are taken in by a piece of art but our friend thinks it’s rubbish. Generally we put it down to a simple difference of opinion, but not in Art.

Art

Produced by Blue Cow Theatre, Art is a French language play by Yasmina Reza and translated here by Christopher Hampton, and aesthetic conflict is at the heart of this comic yet dramatic play.

Serge (Jeff Michel) has bought a painting: a very expensive painting. A painting that is completely white. He loves it but one of his best friends Marc (Robert Jarman) thinks it is awful– to put it mildly – and can’t move on from this. Yvan (John Xintavelonis) is stuck in the middle of this argument trying to pacify the two, but eventually gets embroiled in their fight.

Michel, Jarman and Xintavelonis are perfectly cast in their roles. Their rapport and the strength with which they take on their respective characters was imperative for the success of a play such as this, as it relies so heavily on an emotional response from the audience.

I was particularly impressed with Xintavelonis’ nuanced performance as Yvan, especially in the excellent scene when he’s explaining why he is late for dinner.

The play uses a mixture of monologues, duologues and then ultimately a group scene to tell the story. As an audience member, your state of mind is constantly fluctuating between feeling like an uninvited voyeur to being made the privileged listener in a confessional.

This unease keeps you intensely engaged and wondering what is going to be revealed next and how the characters’ personal thoughts will compare and contrast to their conversations with each other .

Art looks at the fragility of friendship and how vulnerable we can become by letting people in. With a lovely blend of comedy and drama, this play explores the value of friendship, through the issues of art, personal opinion and aesthetic appeal and the importance we place on them.

This production was performed at GasWorks Arts Park on August 1st to 3rd 2013.

Events, Musical Theatre, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Four Letter Word Theatre Presents THE WILD PARTY

Let the fun begin

By Bradley Storer

Upon entering the Main Stage area at Revolt, the audience is immediately immersed in the dingy but seductive Prohibition-era charms of the ‘speak easy’, with tables set up close to the stage and lit eerily by candles. The dark cavernous space of Revolt seems an oddly fitting place for this 1920’s tale of a party thrown by a pair of vaudeville performers on their last legs – a potent cocktail of sin, depravity and eventual tragedy.

Rosa McCarty is a knockout as Queenie the party’s hostess, a blonde bombshell past her prime, throwing herself into the fading performer’s depths of hedonism and disillusionment with abandon and a fierce belt.

The Wild Party

James Cutler is continually compelling as the brutish Burrs, her abusive and bullying husband, bringing ferocious energy and sinister glee to the role that makes him exciting to watch. Their volatile and destructive relationship, although disturbing, is vividly invoked by the two performers.

The musical unfortunately has trouble finding its feet in the first act. Despite a cavalcade of strange and curious characters that pour onstage at the beginning of the show, including a charming polysexual predator (Ed Deganos), a lesbian stripper and her borderline comatose lover (Samantha Hammersley and Renee Pope-Munro) and a creepily close pair of male twins (Samuel Dariol and James Worsnop), there is a lack of energy onstage which makes the ‘party’ atmosphere hard to maintain. Maree Barnett as the cunning diva looking for a comeback emits smouldering ambition, while wielding a pair of surprisingly flexible legs like a weapon. The arrival of Kate, a vaudevillian star and Queenie’s best friend/enemy (played with commanding confidence by Alana Kiely), and her lover Black (Christian Cavallo) raises the spirits of the ensemble considerably, culminating in an Act Two ode to gin that explodes with an dynamic vitality that has been missing so far.

A daring move is the inclusion of a secondary ensemble, a collection of malevolent Satanic spirits who seemingly manipulate and corrupt the characters unseen by anyone whilst wandering offstage and through the audience – a very original idea, which has mixed results throughout the evening. While feeling like an unnecessary addition in the first act, director Robbie Carmellotti finds some electrifying tableaus in the second act that utilize them to a better degree.

An evening of daring and boundary-pushing theatre that, while sometimes not entirely succeeding, is nevertheless admirable for the depth of its invention and ambition.

VENUE: Revolt Melbourne, 12 Elizabeth St, Kensington

DATES: 31st July – 3rd August

TIME: Tue to Sat 7:30pm, Sun 3pm

TICKETS: A Reserve $60/Concession $40, B Reserve $45/ Concession $30, C Reserve $25, Table of 8 $900

BOOKINGS: www.fourletterwordtheatre.com, www.revoltproductions.com,  boxoffice@revoltproductions.com , at the door.

Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Reunion at THE BUTTERFLY CLUB

Clash of an ex-high school quartet

By Myron My

Reunion

In the short play Reunion, four friends organise a catch-up to see what life has been like for each since they graduated from high school five years previously. We meet best friends, Charlie and Phil (Gabriel Bergmoser and Finn Gilfedder-Cooney), Charlie’s ex-girlfriend Sophie (Ashley Tardy), and Jane (Kayla Symons), who seems to be harbouring some strong animosity towards the group. As the evening progresses and the shots are downed, secrets are revealed and the tense friendships are tested even further.

Bergmoser, who is also the writer of Reunion, has created some highly entertaining dialogue between Charlie and Phil. Their rapport is very believable and easily establishes the long-time relationship between the two friends. Both Bergmoser and Gilfedder-Cooney also do extremely well in then bringing Charlie and Phil to life. By contrast, I was disappointed with the dialogue and characterisation of Jane and Sophie. I felt more work was needed to give these two women more depth and emotion.

Unfortunately the story of Reunion is also a bit disjointed and underdeveloped, so when it’s revealed why Jane is so angry with the group, I couldn’t help but feel a bit cheated. As an audience member, you are racking your brain throughout the play trying to determine what Jane’s issue could be, and when the reason comes out, my first thought was ‘Is that it?’

The lighting and sound design by Boden Lee Tennant worked effectively in creating the fluctuating atmosphere and I enjoyed the way the sound worked to set the environment for each scene. In fact it was so appealing, I would have liked this to have been continued throughout, with some traffic noises for scenes set outside or water running in the bathroom.

Reunion is a good attempt at character investigation and interaction: although there are still some creases that need to be ironed out, there is great potential for this show should the narrative and relationships be explored further to allow these characters to reach their full potential.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 256 Collins St (entry via Carson Place), Melbourne

Season: Sunday 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th August | 9:30pm

Tickets: $23 Full | $20 Conc

Bookings: http://www.thebutterflyclub.com

Events, Musical Theatre, Opera, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Victorian Opera’s SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE

Simply – see this

By Bradley Storer

Victorian Opera undertakes a gargantuan challenge, both technically and artistically, with their production of Stephen Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George.

SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE

This Pulitzer Prize-winning exploration of the life of French artist Georges Seurat and his painting ‘A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of la Grand Jatte’, and the life of his fictional descendants, indelibly changed the landscape of the Broadway musical when it premiered in 1984, and the shadow of the original production is hard to escape. An opera company attempting to mount the musical presents even more challenges, given the fundamental differences between the art forms.

I can happily say that Victorian Opera has risen to the challenge and exceeded it spectacularly. The set design alone, inherently important to the meaning of the show, is astonishing. A simple bare scaffold  and a winding staircase unfolds into a continual array of surprising and delightful scenes – trees, buildings, sketches and pieces of George’s work fly in and out, all contained within a frame that resembles the outline of an artwork.

Alexander Lewis as the artist Georges Seurat brings a humanity, vulnerability and anguish to the role, as well as a flawless operatic tenor voice – for this reviewer, he lacked the fire and intensity at times needed to believe him as a visionary artist, but this is a small complaint. Christina O’Neill as his lover Dot overplayed her sensuality and sexuality at the beginning to a strident degree, but in the character’s more reflective moments she was perfection, and as this quality became more pronounced over the course of the show O’Neill created a strong and heart-breaking character who, more so than even George, is the soul of the show.

Nancye Hayes as George’s mother is hilariously understated and her Act One duet with Lewis ravishes with its delicate loveliness. The ensemble of Sunday, a mix of musical theatre and opera singers, are uniformly strong, all bringing hilarious and touching characterizations . The finale of Act One, the culmination of George’s work in assembling his masterpiece, is a glorious tribute to the power of art to create meaning in the human condition.

Having attended a panel discussion with the artistic team for Sunday, it is clear that this is a labour of love from an ensemble of artists that have enormous respect for the work and a singular vision for its creation. Here this union creates a magnificent production, a stunning and original artistic vision expertly executed and a triumph for all involved.

Venue: The Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Rd

Dates:    Sat 20 , Tue 23, Wed 24, Thur 25, Fri 26, Sat 27 July at 7.30pm and Wed 24, Sat 27 July at 1:00pm

Bookings: www.artscentremelbourne.com, Ph: 1300 182 183

Events, Music, Performances, Review

REVIEW: A VERY GAGA VARIETY FUNDRAISING NIGHT

Variety night an exciting preview for new musical

By Scarlett Harris

Last night at their new location on Carson Place in the city, The Butterfly Club hosted a Lady Gaga variety show in an effort to raise funds for the latest creative endeavour of Kin Collaborative’s Melbourne Uni student arm. Kin CoLaboratory’s MUD Festival entry, Gaga & Assange, promises to be a romp of epic pure-pop proportions.

Gaga and Julian Assange both rose to dizzying heights of infamy around the same time: she with her anthem of tolerance, “Born This Way”, and he with the release of U.S. diplomatic cables and apparent “honey-trapping” rape charges.

Gaga & Assange

Gaga & Assange plays on this theme of sex, introducing the two via a sex-tape- and STD-fuelled romp—a “Bad Romance”, if you will—and going on to dissect the egos and dogmas of two of pop culture’s most recognisable names and faces.

But as for last night, it was a riotous tribute to all things Mother Monster, with renditions of “Paparazzi” by Gaga & Assange creator, Will Hannagan; Gaga’s Tony Bennett effort, “The Lady is a Tramp”, with G&A director and MC for the night, Jeremy Russo; and “Bad Romance”, “Alejandro” and “Americano” by Melbourne bluegrass band The Scrimshaw Four.

Alex Frank and Alexia Brinseley had the audience in stitches for “Edge of Glory”, “Hair” and “You & I” (arguably the performances of the night), while Belinda Jenkin remixed “Dance in the Dark” and “Just Dance” into ballads, and James Worsnop and Nicola Guzzardi parodied “Telephone”. The Collaborative topped off the night with a mashup of two original songs from Gaga & Assange, staged by their very own Gaga, Laura Raiti.

After the success of this fundraising event, I’m looking forward to seeing whether the musical deals with our readiness to let certain things about its titular “characters” (because isn’t that what they are—especially Gaga—to an extent?) fly, like Gaga’s alleged cosmetic surgery and Assange’s abovementioned sexual assault, in order to embrace their wider messages of acceptance and freedom of information, respectively. All with a side of Europop club anthems to boot.

A Very Gaga Variety Fundraising Night was performed at The Butterfly Club on Wednesday July 17, 2013

Comedy, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Evgeny Shwarz’s THE DRAGON

Comedy trio Tripod spread their draconian wings

By Ross Larkin

Corruption. Power. Denial. Oppression… Sound amusing? Well, it is.

Toby Schmitz has adapted Evgeny Schwarz’s 1944 satirical play The Dragon into a modern theatrical feast of fiery wit and cleverly apt and poignant dialogue.

From the outset, some skepticism is understandable. Has director, Marion Potts, created a fairy tale? A pantomime? A musical? It’s a little hazy. Soon after, however, it really doesn’t matter.

TheDragon

Melbourne’s ingenious comic trio Tripod (Scott Edgar, Steven Gates and Simon Hall) have not only written the music for the piece, they also perform their catchy soundtrack while portraying the good guy onlookers as well as the contrasting evil three-headed dragon – one hilarious head each.

Sir Lancelot (played with gorgeous charm by Jimi Bani) arrives in a small village to slay said dragon and relieve its inhabitants of the oppression and control inflicted by their so-called ‘almighty’, while rescuing a fair maiden (Nikki Shiels), condemned to wed the manipulative beast.

However, the brainwashed town and its foolishly egocentric and impressionable mayor (the ever-impressive Kym Gyngell), are under the illusion the dragon is to be worshipped as their all-knowing leader, and remain under its spell, oblivious to their repressed existence, and therefore resistant to Lancelot’s quest.

In an Orwellian struggle to revolutionise a totalitarian-wracked culture (coincidently, or more likely deliberately, in line with current Australian politics), Schmitz’s impressively astute and often poetic dialogue, meshed with Tripod’s loveable commentating music and lyrics, is a delightful merry-go-round of tension and fun.

Perched on a very effective revolving set, The Dragon is confronting, thought-provoking, amusing and highly satisfying, thanks to a brilliant script and soundtrack, not to mention a delightfully talented cast.

The Dragon is playing now until July 26, 2013.
Wed to Sat 7.30pm, Sat 2.00pm matinee,
Sun 5.00pm, Tues July 23 at 6.30pm.

The Malthouse Theatre, 113 Sturt Street, Melbourne.

Bookings on (03) 9685 5111 or at www.malthousetheatre.com.au

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

REVIEW: The Stand-Up Experience Present EXIT LAUGHING

Stand up and make us laugh!

By Deborah Langley

What can you learn in a week? Well, according to Stand Up Comedy coach Robert Grayson, you can learn how to be more confident, make people laugh and potentially launch a national comedy career.

On Sunday night, I went along to The Last Laugh Comedy Club to see what all the fuss is about.

You Stand Up

For the week prior to this performance, nine aspiring comedians took the plunge into Robert Grayson’s one-week intensive stand-up comedy workshop. This step-by-step introduction, for beginners or intermediates, promises to take participants to a whole new comic level and give an anxiously awaiting audience of supporting friends and family a night of belly laughs at the end of the week.

Firstly, my congratulations go out to all the performers. Truly one of the scariest things you can ever do is present your own words in front of a group of people in the hopes that they will find you funny. I’ve done it myself and can honestly say that all the performers I saw on Sunday night did an amazing job.

Some highlights for me were fresh-faced 27-year-old Ben who brilliantly told of getting carded and not being about to pick up because he looks like a 12-year-old; NT tough man, Wing who had some of the most ‘un-tasteful’ jokes I’ve heard in a long time – but made the audience laugh nonetheless; and bed salesman Sam who looked so natural on stage that he’s sure to have a future in the stand-up game.

As this was a workshop demonstration I will leave my performance review there – hit and miss jokes, but a fun night to support your friends.

Unfortunately, if we are going to review the experience as a whole, the sentiment starts to fall down. As someone who had never made it up the stairs to The Last Laugh, it was extremely hard to find, and I actually ended up in a HillSong Church Service (weird) because there was no signage and no information to help people find their way. Once in the right place we, the audience, had to wait almost half an hour after the scheduled start time to see anyone up on stage: a frustration made much worst by having to be subjected to blaring heavy metal music for almost all of that time. After 30mins of the successful and not-so-successful gags and far too much stage time by the Comedy Coach himself, we were given an intermission, which was not needed and was basically taken as an invitation for people who had already seen their friends to leave.

Disappointing, because it had all the makings to be an easy-to-find, laid-back environment for a really great on- hour gig with some cringe moments and some genuine laughs – perfect for friends and family showing support, and the general public after a cheap night of entertainment which some unexpected big laughs – exactly what you would expect from a ‘open mic’-style show.

For more information about the comedy workshop check out the website www.youstandup.com and give yourself the chance to make people laugh at all the silly things that go through your head.