An ambitious showcase of 70 works of student art across 4 venues over 4 days, Mudfest: Transform exemplified the sheer talent the students at the University of Melbourne have to offer. We are taking a look back at some of the original theatre presented by students this semester – A Fleeting Glimpse, and Multiplies You By One.

Four Letter Word Presents: A Fleeting Glimpse – Original Musical

Reviewed by: Simon Brownjohn

A Fleeting Glimpse, an original musical created by Jessica Fanwong, presented by Four Letter
Word Theatre was both ambitious and well executed. The musical, which was first showcased during
Tastings last year, hit its stride for Mudfest: Transform. The story follows two protagonists with
contrasting personalities; the bubbly Alicia (Angelica Di Clemente) and reclusive Violet (Jessica Tran),
who form an unlikely partnership, and embark on adventure.

As a new work, A Fleeting Glimpse created a memorable musical experience, largely due to the
calibre of its songwriting. Composers Jennifer Gao and Riley Brennan shone in creating thematic
songs which left both a lasting emotional impression, and a lasting earworm. I was particularly fond
of ‘A Thousand Lives’, which explores the juxtaposition between the many lived experiences Violet
has written about, with her own life – stripped away from her through unfortunate circumstances.

Another strong point of the show was its costuming (Ellie Dean and Alice Miles) and makeup (El
Vance) – each expressing its characters personality wonderfully. I was particularly fond of
Dec’s (Dempsey Doyle) outfit, boasting over-the-top eye shadow and an extravagant fur coat, which
perfectly channelled Dec’s bravado and extremely high sense of self-worth. Whilst these choices
helped create clearly distinguishable personas, other aspects of the show ventured into ‘stock
character’ territory which eschewed the characters of multi-dimensionality. This was especially the
case with Alicia, whose naiveite and optimistic-against-all-odds personality and didn’t feel relatable.
Whilst we are eventually awoken towards Alicia’s flaws – co-opting her friends’ struggles for her own
writing, the audience learn this revelation through dialogue from her companion, Ember (Elaine
Wong), rather than Alicia herself. I believe this moment would have greater resonance if Alicia’s
flaws were depicted in her own onstage performance; this would also help Alicia’s character feel less
static. There was instead a dissonance between what we hear of Alicia, compared with how she is
actually portrayed.

As an unfortunate byproduct of the linear overarching story, there was not much room for nuance in each character’s arc. This led to the plot feeling overly convenient, where characters’ motivations
were malleable, in order to justify moving to the next plot point. For instance, Alicia instantly
believing Violet’s story about being a ghost writer of an imposturous bestselling author, and Violet
agreeing to join Alicia on an adventure, despite ten years of being a recluse. It felt like the
characters’ lives existed merely within the confines of the what’s presented to the audience – it’s
difficult to imagine them having unique struggles and motivations beyond the events of the show.

Whilst the band, and the actors’ singing were both impressive elements of the show, there were
instances throughout the show where they didn’t feel entirely in sync. This may be the result of the
short timeframe Mudfest shows are created in, or a consequence of unexpected changes occurring
during the production process, which may have permitted less rehearsal time than expected. The
performance took place in a makeshift area behind the stage curtain in the Union Theatre. I believe
this setup works well enough in theory, however it felt as though much of the show’s choreography
was designed with a bigger space in mind. There were several moments where onstage drama took
place in too close proximity to the band. As an audience member, this posed a challenge in
immersion; it was difficult to discern the characters as real when they were standing right in front of
the band. As I understand it, there was also a misunderstanding between the show’s production
team and Mudfest regarding whether the actors would be given microphones; they were not. I am
highly sympathetic to the cast and crew given these challenges. They provided the audience a
fantastic theatrical experience in light of adversity.

I believe that A Fleeting Glimpse has a bright future, should Fanwong wish to perform it elsewhere.
By leaning into its strengths – in my opinion, the songwriting and thematic comparison between
lived and written experiences – this show’s season could be anything but fleeting.

Dead End Theatre Presents: Multiplies You By One

Reviewed by: Dempsey Doyle

As the debut show of Dead End Theatre, directed by Simon Brownjohn, ‘Multiplies You by One’ is a
simple tale with a deeper construct. To the naked eye, the premise of the show is austere: after a
long while apart, three friends meet up at a bar, sharing candid chatter. Initially, first-world topics
such as unpleasant job stories, vacations to the Maldives and the annoyances of dating overrun the
discussion, However, as the discourse continues, each friend’s internalized emotions gradually
unravel.

The stellar trio of cast members, portraying characters of their same names, were able to
differentiate between inner turmoil and external presence seamlessly. Brownjohn depicted a
struggle with envy, flightiness, and anger with an aggressive tone, knocking over beverages and
filling the room with his booming voice and chaotic movements. Contrarily, Sophia Zikic’s persona
was more detached and thoughtful, as their soft-spoken delivery sold the convincing image of a
character with a wide imagination. Meanwhile Aaditiya “Aadi” Gupta concealed complexity under a
calm, quiet exterior. His emotional expressivity shifted noticeably when the audience gained just a
peek of his secret sadness, in the form of a lament- yet, this change was subtle enough to not take
away from his enigmatic facade.

The trio bounced off each other in such a casual, effortless manner that I almost forgot I was
watching a play, and not eavesdropping on a real conversation. However, while likely not the fault of
the creative team, I wish that this show had a longer runtime to further develop upon their
individual conflicts. Although no character was one-dimensional, I couldn’t help but ask myself: what
are some of the deep-rooted causes behind these characters’ mindsets? Did these flawed states of
mind cause the trio to drift apart in the past? I was left yearning so much more for these individuals I
had only just met twenty-five minutes prior, and could foresee so much potential for further growth.
The minimalistic lighting and sound designs, executed by Finnley Greet and Kit Nicholson
respectively, allowed for further focus on this show’s aforementioned acting prowess. The bar
scenery was washed with a warm, welcoming glow throughout, contrasting with the darker
implications of the show, and only changing each time we delved into the mind of each person. The
lights would grow darker, and distorted audio would play in the background, drowning the audience
in a labyrinth with each moment beneath the surface. While unembellished, less was more when it
came to these decisions, as they perfectly adorned the show’s polarity.

These design, scripting and casting choices may seem simplistic when described, but in actuality,
they work together to exuberate the pièce de résistance of the show: a film that plays behind the
actors throughout the show. Part of me did wish that this screen was smaller as to not constantly
demand my attention away from the actors during their pinnacle moments onstage. However, this
flick was so carefully crafted in how it built upon metaphors behind each character’s emotional
status, which I found to be the most poetic part of this show.

Brownjohn’s mind was a video game, each of his moves calculated as to not trigger his fear of
vulnerability. At times when he spoke, a humanoid monster would appear on screen, next to buttons
reading “Fight”, “Flight” and “Seduce”. Zikic was a snail: the quietest of the trio, but in their own
imagination within their shell. The film elaborated with clips of them rolling plasticine shells, and
their attempts to fake a smile with the material. Finally, Gupta was a lake, externally peaceful and
serene. However, this image was shattered by the screen with glitchy images of a lone man
appearing by the lake, the more Gupta revels in his depression. The film even moseyed into its
watchers’ own heads, with videos of Subway Surfers and Minecraft parkour popping up on screen as
the trio discussed the meaning of life. Hilariously, I felt as if I had been sucked into my own Reddit-
filled Instagram feed.

Yes, the true, underlying resolve of ‘Multiplies You by One’ is to examine the relationship between
two mediums which are not usually concocted into one stage piece: media and theatre. The cast,
while able to act out their sentiments with great success, were supported throughout by the
background film, which depicted their inwardness when and where they are unable. It undeniably
left a lasting impression- not only on me, as I contemplated the realism and relatability of its
characters- but also on Melbourne University’s theatre community, with a promising inaugural
show.

Mudfest: Transform presented works across the UniMelb campus from 22nd – 26th of August, 2023.