Tag: La Mama Theatre

Festivals, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Spoilt At MELBOURNE FRINGE

An acerbic examination of the over-indulged

By Myron My

Spoilt, as the title indicates, is a satirical look at the kinds of women who are spoilt: spoilt by money, vanity and the luxurious life they lead. Through parodying five such women, creator and performer Liz Skitch certainly succeeds in making her point about how the values that these women hold are heavily misguided.

Spoilt

Skitch is on stage with five wigs and five pairs of shoes placed around the performance space. There is a box next to each wig with a few additional props – a necklace for one, a pair of shorts for another, et cetera. Her transformation into each character is an interesting process to observe, with Skitch remaining completely void of expression and emotion between changes and slowly becoming the embodiment of that character as she gets “dressed”. Her mannerisms, physicality, voice and especially her facial expressions astutely define all these women. Having studied at the school of Philippe Gaulier in London, Skitch is more than capable of giving herself over to these characters but not letting them run rampant.

In terms of characters, Jackie the celebrant and fitness trainer Peta Swift, are absolutely hilarious and had everyone in stitches. Her interactions with the audience as Peta feel very natural and even when an audience member of the evening I attended revealed his unusual deepest desire to us all, Skitch didn’t drop the persona.

Nineteen-year-old Larissa – reminiscent of Chris Lilley’s Ja’mie King – is another highlight as she details her incredible journey of being the Miss Universe runner-up. However, I don’t feel the remaining characters of Sonia and Sue were given enough developed narrative to keep us interested. They have some funny moments but possess nowhere near the caliber of back story and depth that the other three have. If anything they were too similar to the other more established characters of Larissa and Jackie respectively and they suffered for that.

Skitch has created a show that keeps the audience interested, attentive and provides a ruthless and incisive insight into the lives that such people lead. With her brilliant delivery and pace, Spoilt is a well-executed tragicomedy that has something very intelligent to say.

Spoilt is showing as part of the 2013 Melbourne Fringe Festival.

Venue: La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street Carlton

Season: Until 29 September | Thurs-Sat, 6:30pm, Wed, Sun 8:30pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Conc

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

Cabaret, Cabaret Review, Events, Performances, Whats On

REVIEW: Maude Davey in MY LIFE IN THE NUDE

Bearing all for her art

By Myron My

Before you even walk through the door of the La Mama Theatre, you are greeted by a woman wearing high heels, a shawl and sparkling jewellery. And that’s it. For 29 years, Maude Davey has been taking off her clothes in public and My Life In The Nude is a celebration of Davey’s work throughout those years.

Davey regales us with stories such as her entry into the Miss Wicked Competition in 1991 to teaching burlesque for deaf and disabled women. Some stories are so outlandish that they are bordering on absurd that they are almost hard to believe, but all of Davey’s stories captivate and engage us.

Maude Davey

The costume changes are eye-catching and varied to say the least. At one point Davey wears a gorilla suit whilst dancing to ‘Beautiful’ by Christina Aguilera, a sparkly number that almost blinds us with its shimmer to a costume once owned by Jeanne Little (enough said on that one).

Davey has certainly led an intriguing life but she has put a lot of thought into this show and has taken a creative and humorous but sincere look at body issues, nudity and sexuality through a performer’s perspective and what it means to be naked on stage to them. Davey talks about her breast reduction at 17 and the threshold of judgement we have from each other and upon ourselves.

There is a strong message in Davey’s show and that is, as she clearly puts it at one point: “I am beautiful and I am worthy of your regard”. In today’s age with so many body issue images pressuring us, it’s a great reminder that we all have beauty and that it is there waiting for us to appreciate it.

Davey’s finale is powerful and the room was utterly enthralled by her. The image of her full of anxiety and fear and then her cover of Anthony and the Johnsons’ ‘Am I ever Going to see Your Face Again’ was a beautiful moment of live performance we seldom see on stage.

My Life In The Nude ran for almost half an hour over its advertised time but I would gladly have sat there another hour and be dazzled by Maude Davey’s tales. A great show not to be missed.

Venue: La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street Carlton

Season: Until 21 July | Thurs-Sat 7:30pm, Wed, Sun 6:30pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Conc

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

Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

Review: THE JOY OF TEXT by Robert Reid

School controversy cleverly examined

By Myron My

Written by Robert Reid, The Joy of Text receives a second life at La Mama Theatre after premiering with Melbourne Theatre Company last year.

The Joy of Text

Set in a high school, RePlay’s production deals with the politics and concerns faced by teachers and students on a daily basis – and some issues that do not occur so often…

We are witness to some very wordy and intense monologues and discussions about what happens when the line of student/teacher relationship is crossed; who is the victim and why – or is there even a victim? Would two years make the world of difference?

The cast here could not be faulted. There was amazing energy between them and a connectedness with the characters they played. Colin Craig does have the added pressure of carrying the play with his portrayal of central character 17-year-old student Danny, but does an amazing job of showing a perfect balance between Danny’s vulnerability, intelligence and bratty behavior.

Another notable mention would be Elizabeth Thomson‘s impressive work as the long-suffering English teacher Diane who wants to introduce a controversial text to the syllabus about a student’s relationship with a teacher. Kasia Kaczmarek (Ami) and Jason Kavanagh (Steve) also give strong, authentic performances in their respective roles.

The inclusion of a projection on the stage showing more to an environment was a brilliant idea by director Peita Collard: mixing the acting in the projection into the acting on stage was played out perfectly.

For example, Diane telling a student on screen to pick up the rubbish on the floor interrupts a conversation that Ami and she are having on the stage. The student does so but as soon as Diane turns her back to her, the student just throws it back on the ground and returns to her friends. This production thus does an incredible job of mixing multimedia to expand and augment the story.

The Joy of Text explores an education system where there is still a lot of grey areas about serious ethical dilemmas, resulting in panic and metaphorical lynching when these issues occur in our schools.

This is a very smart and insightful production with moments of comedy the cast do a wonderful job playing about with, and leaves a strong impression that will have you thinking about and discussing the play and its themes long after you’ve walked out of the theatre.

Venue: La Mama Courthouse, 349 Drummond St, Carlton

Season: Until 24 March | Wed, Sun 6.30pm | Thu, Fri, Sat 7.30pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Concession

Bookings: http://lamama.com.au

Events, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

Review: NOA at La Mama

Interesting possibilities end up all at sea

By Myron My

I love it when there is something unique or different about a performance and when we were asked which way we would like to enter the stage, I thought that NOA would be one of those experiences. We could enter the conventional way or go up some stairs, down a ladder and be led to our seats in the dark.

There was much anticipation about what was about to transpire as everyone got seated and the performance began. Unfortunately, for the next 45 minutes I sat there often confused, sometimes uninterested and ultimately left wondering about too many things.

NOA

NOA attempted to look at themes of loss, friendship and survival, yet I struggled to find any definitive moments where any of these were explored. Excluding the last few minutes of the show, we were witness to two siblings (Karen Sibbing and Joshua Ferenbach) playing different characters in short skit-like scenes, including Mike the Magician and his “amazing” 3 cans/2 coins trick but nothing particular came from any of this.

The flimsy plot revolves around Noa and his sister – who live inside a bunker built by Noa and are honing their survival skills for their own experiences. The character development was minimal at best and just when I thought we were going to get some idea as to why these characters were doing what they were doing it went back to the surreal character dress-ups. However I must say the commitment which the performers played their troubled characters was a highlight of NOA.

Eugyeene Teh’s set design was the other highlight. Much time and effort had gone into replicating a bunker and encapsulating its claustrophobic and tight environment. Lighting designer Amelia Lever-Davidson further amplified this sensation with her atmospheric changes from darkness through dullness to dazzling brightness.

Overall and unfortunately, NOA felt contrived and had a level of pretentiousness to it that prevented me from connecting with the piece. I appreciate that theatre should investigate unknown areas and be innovative and explorative but unlike Noah’s Ark, this ship sank very quickly for me.

Venue: La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street St, Carlton

Season: Until 21 December | Tues, Wed, Sun 6:30pm. Thu-Sat 7:30pm

Tickets: $25 Full | $15 Concession

Bookings: http://lamama.com.au

Events, Festivals, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

Review: THE CAUTIONARY TALE OF BARRY VON PEABODY AND THE SCARLET ST THEATRE

It’s the little things in life…

By Adam Tonking

Prepare yourself for an avalanche of cute. The Cautionary Tale of Barry Von Peabody and the Scarlet St Theatre is an epic tale of death and redemption, about a child from Berlin in 1938 who grows up to sacrifice everyone he loves as rebellion against his strict German father. And it’s performed by Jacob Williams’ adorable and tiny little puppets.

The story itself sounds bleak and depressing, but ultimately the story is unimportant, and not even particularly well told. The focus here is the gorgeous puppets, and the artistry of Williams and his tiny little theatre. There is just no end to the detail Williams has put into his show – tiny little red velvet curtains on a tiny little stage with tiny little footlights and gargoyles. And it is damn cute.

The characters are eccentric-looking creatures, and Williams brings them to life through his impressive talent. After all this is an epic tale, covering several decades, different locations, and many different characters. All of this is manipulated by Williams alone: the cast, the set-changes, lighting cues, the special effects – he even manages to involve the audience. It is a monumental feat, and Williams pulls it off brilliantly.

Restricting the audience to fifteen at a time I assume was mainly for the logistics of ensuring everyone could see the tiny little puppets, but it also lent the show a sense of intimacy and comradery, not only with the audience but with the puppets and the puppetmaster as well. The novelty of all this adorableness never grows tiresome, and even stretches to cover any gaps in pacing and storytelling. This is all about the cute characters, adorable staging, and the clever manipulator Williams. Sit back, admire the technical brilliance, and prepare to say “Awwww!” a lot.

The Cautionary Tale of Barry Von Peabody and the Scarlet St Theatre is on at La Mama Theatre, 205 Faraday Street, Carlton 3053 from Tuesday 10 April till Sunday 22 April, at 6.30pm Tuesday, 8.30pm Wednesday, 9pm Thursday and Friday, and 4pm Saturday and Sunday. Book at www.lamama.com.au or by calling 9347 6142.