Festivals, Theatre, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: BREATHING CORPSES

Death comes as an end

By Myron My

Breathing Corpses is an award-winning 2005 play by British playwright Laura Wade, and the current production presented by One Little Room as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival. The play begins with death and ends in death: a circle of death that no one can escape from, and it makes for a very interesting premise.

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The show revolves around seven characters who are all linked by a series of deaths and murders. How they are linked and who dies is cleverly explored in the play, and once the penny drops as to what is actually going on, you begin to see the work as an extremely intelligent and sophisticated offering by Wade.

Despite references to local places, the events in Breathing Corpses could easily have taken place in any contemporary environment or location, so while the effort the cast puts into their English accents is admirable, they are unfortunately not the strongest or most convincing that I’ve heard. For a deeper level of intimacy and connectivity with the material, I feel more time and effort could have been spent on building the keystones of their characters.

Nonetheless, there are some good performances in the show including Jordan Brough as Ray who adds some light comedy to the often serious and dark nature of the show, and Jaq Avery as Amy the maid,who seems to have a run of bad luck with dead bodies. In contrast though, the scene between Kate and Ben (Alice Daly and Stephen Frost) seems disconnected, and the energy between the two actors doesn’t quite match. If anything, I felt the roles required more anger from Daly and for Frost to tone the emotion and shouting down a little and explore other ways to show his character’s rage.

For the most part, the direction by Brenda Addie was thoughtful, but I admit there seemed to be a lot of aimless pacing throughout. There needs to be more overt reason to have these people walking up and down the narrow stage as they speak, beyond just giving them something physical to do.

The set design by Valentina Serebrennikova, while simple, is quite effective, with a row of sharp kitchen knives stabbed into pieces of wood creating the rectangular performance space the characters are trapped within and the various uses of a metallic bench top trolley which are well-executed. The site-specific production’s venue is also appropriate and atmospheric, confined within a cold, near empty warehouse (blankets are provided).

Breathing Corpses is an entertaining piece of theatre that examines our relationships to death and how quickly the end can come for anyone. It’s a great venture for this relatively new theatre company and I look forward with deadly earnest to what they come up with next.

Venue: Candyland, 224 Normanby Ave, Thornbury

Season: until 1 October | Mon – Sat 7.30pm
Length: 80 minutes
Tickets: $35 Full | $30 Conc | $20 Groups 5+

Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Festivals, Performances, Review, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: THE MAZE

A powerfully disturbing and impressively affecting experience

By Myron My

As a young white man, I have never had to worry about walking home alone at night. In fact, I have done it often, in the early hours of the morning, and sometimes after a few too many drinks. Unlike most women, I’ve never had to worry if someone is following me, if someone has looked at me for a moment too long, or about being careful how I react when a stranger approaches me to tell me I am beautiful. Made for one audience member at a time, the immersive theatre piece presented by The Honeytrap for this year’s Melbourne Fringe Festival, The Maze, allows me to experience this for the first time through the thoughts of a woman walking alone – and it left me significantly troubled and concerned.

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The show begins with writer/director Kasey Gambling meeting with me to go through a checklist to make sure I am fit to walk alone. My neckline is high, I am wearing flat shoes – but I must be cautious of my hair as it is long enough for a man to use to grab me. I also do not have my nail-polish that detects date-rape drugs that may be dropped into my drink, nor am I carrying an anti-rape condom. Despite these issues, I am deemed fit to walk home – but should  proceed carefully.

I don a pair of headphones and stand a few metres from a lone girl, Libby (Libby Brockman) at the tram stop. Through the headphones, I hear her thoughts, conversations, and texts that she sends. As she begins her walk, I witness first hand the harassment and objectification the character receives from strangers. The Maze runs to a strict time schedule and all the actors (including Stephen Whiley, Jez Hunghanfoo and Travis Pemberton) ensure that this is achieved.

I am also very conscious of the fact that I am following this woman and while she does not acknowledge me, I can’t help but wonder what a creep I must look to anyone watching me watching her. As an audience member and reviewer I am intently viewing the performance; to an outsider, I am some weirdo leering at a woman.

Gambling explores the issues around violence against women in an intelligent and honest way. There are numerous times throughout as I am following Libby that the audio (by sound designer Gavin Ingham) tellingly cuts to “commercials” advertising women’s safety products or to factual pieces of news, such as when Det. Insp Mick Hughes stated women were not safe alone in parks after the killing of Melbourne schoolgirl Masa Vukotic.

Gambling also builds skillfully on the suspense of the narrative, gradually dropping hints throughout the walk that have you thinking this story had begun well before you joined it, but you don’t realise what you are being led to is until it actually happens – and it almost stops you in your tracks.

I’ve been very fortunate that each of the immersive theatre events I have attended so far for Melbourne Fringe Festival have been unique, and each with a clear objective in mind -and The Maze is another great example. This site-specific performance explores the threats and dangers a woman faces just for being a woman and as the show concludes, I am let out into the night, alone and unsettled, and must begin to process what I have just seen.

Venue: Joe Taylor (meet at front) 7 Errol St, North Melbourne, 3051
Season: until 2 October | Tues – Sun 6.30pm, 7.30pm, 8.30pm, 9.30pm
Length: 40 minutes
Tickets: $25 Full | $20 Conc
Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Festivals, Performances, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: LOVE LETTERS TO FUCKBOIS

An act of reading, resistance, rebellion and resolution

By Caitlin McGrane

It’s a fair guess that most women who date men will have at some point come across a man who enjoys the company, time and emotional labour of women without investing any of his own energies in them and generally being an entitled fuck. These men are known in African American Vernacular English as ‘fuckbois’; and I’m pleased to report that although the title of this show made me uneasy about the potential for cultural appropriation, the performers of Love Letters to Fuckbois and Other Woes of Wayward Women, Melina Wightman and Lia Stark, acknowledged the origins of the term and their place within its increased colloquial use by white people.

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The show does exactly what it says in the title – it’s a show written by two young feminist women about their sexual and emotional experiences dealing with ‘fuckbois’, slut-shaming, and navigating and carving out their own sexual identities. Like it or not, sex is a huge part of the lives of young people and has been since time immemorial (even my nan said it was a good idea to ‘try before you buy’, a statement I have never been able to unhear). The beauty of this show is it sets the ground-rules from the beginning, explicitly stating from the outset that this will not be a place for discrimination or shame, and in my opinion there’s just not enough of those spaces for young people of any gender identification.

The show entails the two women reading and responding to letters they have written to people in their lives, including but not limited to ‘fuckbois’, mothers, aunties, ex-boyfriends, and then finally a beautiful, raw and searing heartfelt letter to themselves. I was impressed with how expressive and honest the two performers were, and how they confidently and bravely took ownership of the show, the space and the subject matter. The way they have structured the show means each night will be subtly different depending on the letters they choose at random from a fishbowl.

For me the only thing that let the show down was that title; as much as I appreciate that ‘fuckboi’ succinctly conveys the type of person they’re speaking about, it would have been better if they had chosen a different word that didn’t immediately evoke such problematic appropriation. As far as I know the word ‘fuckhead’ is still up for grabs and is basically the Australian equivalent. But I’m also super aware of my own place in this debate, as a white woman trying to write a review about a show written and performed by two other white women that includes a potentially problematic word in the title, maybe this isn’t my debate to even enter into, but I still think it’s worth mentioning.

Love Letters to Fuckbois helped to remind me that being single as fuck in your 20s is a rite of passage, and feeling rejected and unlovable is common as people attempt to navigate choppy emotional waters. That’s not an excuse however for treating women like sex vending machines where if you put enough kindness coins in they eventually dish out blow jobs. I’m glad Mel and Lia have written and performed this show because too often women get shamed for having a) sex, and b) emotions. Standing up to say ‘This is not ok’ sends a powerful cultural message, and for my money its one that is definitely worth repeating.

Love Letters to Fuckbois and Other Woes of Wayward Women is now playing at Wick Studios in Brunswick until Tuesday 20 September at least twice a day; I strongly recommend you see it. For more information, visit: https://melbournefringe.com.au/program?event/love-letters-to-fuckbois/ee98be93-bbda-4fe4-ac04-210d90324304

Cabaret

Melbourne Fringe 2016: HOW CAN YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT?

Waking up to the world

By Myron My

In How Can You Sleep At Night?, Christian Taylor delves into the world of climate change, death and insomnia. While I was initially uncertain on how one could cover these three topics in detail and with clarity in a 60 minute show, Taylor easily accomplishes this and much more with his debut solo performance for the 2016 Melbourne Fringe Festival.

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Taylor is having somewhat of an existential crisis about the world while also dealing with what happened to Andy. He can’t sleep at night and the only one that he seems to be able to talk about this to is to a sentient jellyfish, voiced by a different actor every night. On the performance I attended, Hayden Burke had the honour and his sassy banter with Taylor was full of laughs and deep thoughts. If there were an award for best non-human performance in a Fringe show, it would go to the jellyfish.

Taylor is charmingly honest and vulnerable on stage, freely allowing the audience to see his anxieties and worries. His story-telling is engaging, and while he shares seemingly unconnected thoughts and ideas, by the end of the show he manages to bring them all together with ease. There are some really touching moments throughout the show, and to see people decline Taylor’s offer to dance the waltz with him was upsetting, such was the emotional response he elicits.

The intelligent set design and visuals aids used throughout the show prevent us from getting too overwhelmed or confused by the science and astrophysics information regarding the galaxy, gravity and mass. The lighting used is also well thought-out, particularly when Taylor gets us to imagine looking up into the sky, and seeing all the colourful stars that are out there.

Somehow Taylor has to try and make sense of all this confusion and uncertainty over the future – we all do. How Can You Sleep At Night? doesn’t seek to give you the answers, but it wants us to think about them and how our choices will ultimately affect us and everyone around us. Until then, as Taylor and the jellyfish acknowledge, all we can do is just keep swimming.

Venue: Fringe Hub – Upstairs at Errol’s, 69 – 71 Errol St, North Melbourne, 3051
Season: Until 23 September | Tues – Sat 6pm, Sun 7pm
Length: 60 minutes
Tickets: $24 Full | $20 Conc | $18 Cheap Tuesday
Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Image by Bec Taylor

Festivals, Theatre, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: HEARD OF ELEPHANTS

Ambitious work acknowledges the elephant in the room

By Myron My

Presented as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, Heard of Elephants is a musical on elephant conservation that follows a herd of elephants over a year as they face daily threats from nature and man. Further to that, the play explores the intricate relationships these animals share with each other by exploring their strong links to family, mating rituals and traditions within their species.

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The way writer and director Katherine Phelps has humanized elephants with her cast (Alanna Baschera, Victoria Haslam, Karanvir Malhorta, Suhasini Seelin and Harlene Hercules) is surprisingly clever and charming. Their basic movements and simple costumes easily persuade you that they are indeed elephants, provided you allow the magic of theatre to do its work.

The narrative switches between two perspectives: that of the elephants, and that of Chene (James Ao), a conservationist working to keep the elephants safe in their uncertain present. It is here that Heard of Elephants begins to struggle finding a balance between entertaining and educating the audience. Phelps is clearly passionate about conservation and saving the elephants however, in order to make her point, the story unfortunately loses its heart and its engagement with the audience. We spend close to an hour getting to understand how elephants live and the threats that surround them, but the final ten minutes seem chaotic and clumsy as Phelps attempts to cover too much plot too fast.

The stage design, while minimal, is actually quite effective; the scene where the herd is bathing in water, the birthing of Mim and the lighting during the drought are creatively constructed. However, it would benefit the show more if the sound and lighting crew were not positioned at the front of the stage with the cast, as this was often distracting from the actual performance.

While Heard of Elephants has an important message to convey, I feel it needs to rethink the story it wants to share and take its time telling it, so that the audience can truly appreciate what is happening and being said.

Venue: SomaChi Yoga Studio, 15 Belford St, Collingwood
Season: until 2 October | Fri – Sat 7.30pm, Sun 2.30pm
Length: 70 minutes
Tickets: $25 Full | $22.50 Conc / Groups 6+ | $20 Children
Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Image by Gregg Kerr

Festivals, Performances, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: DION

Compelling ‘drive-by’ theatre

By Myron My

Dion. Oh Dion. Why’d you go and break my heart? That’s what writer/director Davina Wright explores in the new immersive piece by Gold Satino for Melbourne Fringe Festival, aptly titled Dion. It’s business as usual here, as three audience members jump in the back of the Honda Jazz and are driven around the outskirts of North Melbourne in what can be called an epic “fuck off” homage to exes.

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What I really enjoyed throughout Dion is the juxtaposition of being connected with the show yet witnessing distant and detached vignettes. The performers (Tamiah Bantum, Ross de Winter, Lachlan McColl, Cazz Bainbridge, Xavier O’Shanessy and Wright) all exude this feeling that they are living in their own world and generally void of any emotion but the connectivity felt with the subject and the scenes that play out paint a completely different picture. The exploration of first kisses, last kisses, fleeting moments, broken hearts and heartache; they are all experiences we’ve had and something we can all relate to.

The beauty of Gold Satino productions is that all scenes are open to interpretation: you give meaning and value to what you are seeing. Who these people are, where they have come from, where will they go? – it all depends on what you want to happen and how you choose to seen it.

As you keep an eye out for what is part of the show, you begin to notice a lot more people out in the streets that could easily be in the world of Dion. One particular example in last night’s drive is the elderly couple out walking their two dogs, which formed a comforting contrast to the sadness Dion is exploring.

The show runs on a very tight schedule, timed to the second no doubt, and from an audience perspective, there is not a single glitch. Speculating on the logistics of how the performers manage to get around so quickly and be in the scene before the Jazz even approaches is like guessing how David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear.

The sound design by Tom Davies is a balanced mix of love anthems such as Billy Ocean’s “Love Really Hurts Without You”, and a poignant soundscape that captures the moods of scenes perfectly, such as the ocean sounds we hear as we witness one performer crying alone in their car.

It’s a shame that the opportunity of seeing Dion is limited to three people per show (and is now a sold-out season at that) as Gold Satino is a company producing performance works that more people should be seeing. But perhaps that’s part of the plan. If everyone got to see what happens behind the closed doors or in the dark alleys, would the emotive and evocative insight that Dion offers be as effective?

SOLD OUT SEASON
Venue: Fringe Hub steps – Arts House, 521 Queensberry Street, North Melbourne, 3051
Season: Until 1 October | Tues – Sat 7pm, 8pm, 9pm, 10pm
Length: 60 minutes
Tickets: $31 Full | $25 Conc | $21 Cheap Tuesday
Bookings: MelbourneFringe Festival

Festivals, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: THE CURIOSITY EXPERIMENT

Care to hear a little ghost story – blindfolded?

By Myron My

Performed at this year’s Melbourne Fringe Festival, The Curiosity Experiment is a ghost story revolving around a supernatural experience that occurred at the Delamere family home many years ago. The twist, however, is that for the majority of the performance the audience are instructed to wear blindfolds so as the story unravels, they can only rely on their hearing, allowing their imagination to create the haunting visuals for them.

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Created and produced by Nathan Schulz and Audrey Cadzow, the show is capped at 13 audience members, which allows for a small enough group wherein a certain level of intimacy can still be reached. And of course the bad luck that is associated with the number subconsciously helps build the intensity of the performance.

The set design in the room is highly atmospheric and as we take our seats around the circular table, it’s easy to believe you have been transported back in time. The room is dimly lit as our host sets the scene for us and the antiquities and toys that sit around the room all hold an air of something sinister to them.

When the visual element of a show is removed, the rest of the senses must be enhanced for the audience to still feel the full effect of the performance. While I tried to focus on the tale at hand, I did find myself getting a bit lost in the details and with actors playing different characters – sometimes of the opposite gender – it sometimes got confusing as to who was saying what or doing what. The cast however deliver some great voice work, with clear emotional responses as well as an overall and enduring creepiness in their performances.

A deliberate move by the creators is for the blindfolds to not completely block out vision, so you are able to peek into the darkness and see the shadows creeping around the room. For the most part though, I did keep my eyes closed and when they were opened, there was always a startled reaction to “see” what was happening. However, I generally respond to things internally rather than externally, so my nerves would not have been evident.

Even though the impact of the ghostly tale of The Curiosity Experiment might not leave you sleeping with the lights on, it is still a unique and enjoyable immersive experience where it is up to your own imagination to decide how far you go into the darkest corners of your mind.

Venue: Wick Studios – Room 13, 23-25 Leslie St, Brunswick, 3056

Season: Until 20 September | Sun – Tues 7pm, 9pm, Sun additional 5pm show

* NEW Additional Show Tue Sept 20 5pm

Length: 80 minutes
Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Conc/Cheap Tuesday
Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Festivals, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: SAVING SPIDERS

Not all is as it seems…

By Myron My

In Saving Spiders, presented by Darebin Arts Speakeasy and GRANITE for the 2016 Melbourne Fringe, Tina is a young woman who is living her life as if it is one big party. Between her boyfriend Grant and best friend Gracie, their shared existence consists solely of sex, drugs and good times. There is little responsibility in any of their lives, just a lot of fun – until the moment the fun stops, and things can never be the same again.

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Saving Spiders relies on its cast to ensure its success, as it is very much a character-driven piece. Fortunately Zoe Boesen, Paul Blenheim, Ryan Jones and Leila Rodgers (who also wrote the show) all embrace their characters wholeheartedly and their resonant interactions with each other feel as If they have known each other for years.

The intriguing story develops organically and this is due to Rodgers’ ability to write strong fleshed-out characters where much is understood about their relationships without Rodgers’ needing to explicitly state it. It feels like Rodgers is writing about us, or people we know, so we can instantly relate to their lives and actions.

As the narrative continues, Rodgers takes a less linear path as we begin to go inside Tina’s mind and see how she is slowly unraveling for reasons that are initially a mystery to the audience. Brigid Gallagher’s skillful direction is a highlight here, particularly the scene where Grant and Gracie begin to clear out Tina’s bedroom, exposing the cold hard realities of Tina’s life in the present and how the party is well and truly over.

Everyone wants to be surrounded by their best friends, those they can trust implicitly and always know will be there for them. Saving Spiders explores what happens when that is no longer the case. Powerful theatre that is highly entertaining.

Venue: Northcote Town Hall, 189 High St, Northcote, 3070 

Season: until 24 September | Tue – Sat 9:15pm, Sun 8:15pm 

Length: 60 minutes

Tickets: $25 Full | $20 Conc/Cheap Tuesday/Groups 4+

Bookings: MelbourneFringe Festival

Cabaret, Circus, Festivals

Melbourne Fringe 2016: NO FRILLS CABARET

All the talent and tension without the tinsel

By Joana Simmons

No Frills Cabaret is exactly as the title says. No marketing, no budget, no MC. It may have no frills but it is definitely full of extremely entertaining and skillful circus and comedy. It is an absolute joy from start to finish. Created and produced by Christopher Carlos and Matthew Casey and combining some of Australia’s best established and upcoming circus artists, this is one action-thrill-packed hour that proves how much talent there is on these fine shores.

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From the rowdy Rockstar opening, we are told we are in for a “cheap fun easy to watch highly skilled night of awesomeness” and the crowd whoops and cheers with excitement. Basically, each performer came on, nailed their act, and announced in their own candid and comedic way the next performer. The skill level and variety is jaw-dropping. Hula Hoops, foot-juggling, headstand-balancing, lira, contortion, trapeze, juggling and teeterboard: the list alone is exhaustive yet this energetic cast made it look so easy. The thing that knocked my socks off in this show is how each act had its own concept, well thought-out, clearly acted-out and amazingly executed. It helps us to connect to the tricks so much more when there’s a story behind it; like a fight between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker, or a man who has been abducted and turned into a JuggleBot as an experiment.

Production wise, it is almost bang on. A boss soundtrack combined with simple and effective lighting puts this show on the top shelf. Although mostly performers weren’t mic’d, there was only one moment in the Jugglebot act where it was difficult to hear Jeff Young from where I was at the back. Special mention to the crew who made the scenes glide easily from one to the other, moving equipment on and offstage without it detracting from what else was going on. The costumes (obviously without frills but with many a sequin) tied everything together, being sexy where they needed to be without being cheap, and showing off the incredible physiques of the performers while adding to each character.

I want to highly commend all the artists for their authentic interactions with the audience, as this is one thing I find commonly lacking in circus. Each concept had clear characterisation, physicality and emotion, which is hard enough to do on its own let alone when you are balancing things on your feet or spinning through the air with your leg behind your head. Individual standouts were Malia’s babin’ badass opening Hula Hoop act, Chris Carlos’ head-balancing and Jobby and AJ’s teeterboard finale- (he did a move which is apparently called the Coca-cola; air time and applause levels were both high.)

Circus, like cabaret, is becoming more and more popular and sometimes runs the risk of being, dare I say it, showy, predictable and naff. This show is the complete opposite. There has been a lot of thought put into how to make us “wow” and cheer as much as we did, instead of relying on tricks alone. It is inspirational to see so many talented young people work so hard to put on such a slick show. For circus virgins to the most experienced viewers alike, this will get your heart racing and hands banging together. The season is limited, so say YES to No Frills.

No Frills Cabaret was performed from 16 – 18 Sep 8.30pm at The Melba Spiegletent for Melbourne Fringe Festival 2016

Festivals, Theatre, Whats On

Melbourne Fringe 2016: BLIND SPOT

Kidnapping was just the beginning

By Myron My

In 1972, Edwin John Eastwood and Robert Clyde Boland kidnapped six female pupils and their teacher in the rural town of Faraday. They demanded a million-dollar ransom but were later captured when the hostages escaped. Fast forward 34 years later, and Daniel Santangeli‘s immersive theatre performance Blind Spot offers a fresh look at this crime and its related events for Melbourne Fringe Festival 2016.

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Blind Spot is a show for two people at a time (so bookings are absolutely essential) and begins at the end of the story as we work our back to the start. As we play the role of the two men, we are taken through various moments surrounding this event, located in prisons, courtrooms and homes. The less said about the story and the process of the show the better, as the element of surprise and the unknown works best here.

Performers Elizabeth Millington and Kieran Law excel in their roles, playing a myriad of characters with distinct personalities,:from a loving sister or a firm and authoritative prison guard to a bumbling lawyer, there is strong commitment from both. There are numerous moments where how we choose to respond to what’s being presented changes the way a scene is played out, and in return Millington and Law ensure that their characters react appropriately and honestly while sticking to the overall scripted story.

Yvette Turnbull creates an authentic world in the Northcote Town Hall with her set design and the ways in which the space is re-used to create the different environments is masterful. A particular highlight is the conversation during the prison visiting hours via the direct connect phones. The lighting design throughout the show is also executed well, especially during the opening moments, with a sense of unease and vulnerability pulsating in the room.

While there are a number of immersive and interactive experiences throughout this Melbourne Fringe Festival, and all worthy of an audience, what sets Blind Spot apart is that it explores an intriguing piece of Australian crime history that leaves you questioning what drives people to do the things they do.

Venue: Northcote Town Hall, 189 High St, Northcote, 3070
Season: until 1 October | Wed – Sun 5:15pm, 6pm, 6:45pm, 8:15pm, 9pm Sat-Sun also 2:15pm, 3pm, 3:45pm
Length: 60 minutes
Tickets: $30 Full | $25 Conc
Bookings: Melbourne Fringe Festival

Image by Eugene Howard