Heathers: Bullets, Bombs and Beautiful Harmonies
Heathers: The Musical, based on the 1988 film of the same name, is not your typical high school musical. It is set at an educational institution, the fictional Westerburg High, and it does feature all your usual stereotypes; jocks, nerds, the popular girls and try-hard teachers. Murder, suicide, bombs and bullets however? Let’s just say it’s not exactly Grease or Hairspray… Continue reading Heathers: Bullets, Bombs and Beautiful Harmonies
Our Father: An interview with the writer
On September 26 – 28 Our Father, the award winning family drama will be presented in collaboration with Union House Theatre as part of the 2019 Melbourne Fringe Festival. In light of the recent Royal Commission into Institutional Child Abuse, Our Father dives into the psychology of a family turned upside down. From emerging writer Lucy Holz and director Meg Taranto, this show rejects the … Continue reading Our Father: An interview with the writer
Helmut’s Helmet: Humour in the Himalayas
Helmut’s Helmet, written by Finbar Todd, directed by Sophie Newnhan and presented by Trinity College, is a brand new and extremely funny Australian play. Set largely in the shadows of the Himalayas, the show revolves around Robbie (Niamh Todd) as she and her best friend Sue (Annie McGinley) jet off to Nepal to join a charity, aiming to do some good. Almost immediately their motives … Continue reading Helmut’s Helmet: Humour in the Himalayas
Be More Chill: A Musical That I’d Kinda Be Into
Be More Chill opened on Broadway in March this year, closing in August after just 177 performances. Fresh off Broadway, St Hilda’s College, under the direction of Bebe Berryman and Ryan McAllery, have brought the show to the Union House Theatre for Melbourne audiences to enjoy. Evoking a modernised Little Shop of Horrors, Be More Chill tells the tale of Jeremy Heere, a quintessentially unpopular … Continue reading Be More Chill: A Musical That I’d Kinda Be Into
Grease: It’s Got the Grease, but Lacks the Lightning
Under the direction of Emily Bolton, University College Theatre Company take us back to 1959 at Rydell High with their production of Grease. Grease is a challenging text to deal with; its 50s-tinged song and dance numbers require a great deal of energy, and its iconic characters must be played with utmost commitment. Furthermore, any slipups will be noticed, as the original production and film … Continue reading Grease: It’s Got the Grease, but Lacks the Lightning
Let Men Tremble: A bloody critique of patriarchy and tradition
LET MEN TREMBLE begins with an eerie image: seven women repeating a chain of sexual dance moves as three men in suits scrutinise them and take notes on clipboards. As the audience walks in to this scene, we are immediately put in a position of discomfort. Thoroughly disturbing, this scene is one of the play’s greatest strengths. This image of surveillance and control of women … Continue reading Let Men Tremble: A bloody critique of patriarchy and tradition
Footloose: An Impressive Feat of Feet
Footloose opens with Ren McCormack and his mother Ethel moving from Chicago to small town Bomont, and Ormond Drama have made the same journey, after performing Chicago at the Union Theatre last year. Back at the same venue in 2019, the theatre is abuzz with opening night nerves and excitement, as family, friends and the rest of the audience eagerly await their introduction to Ren … Continue reading Footloose: An Impressive Feat of Feet
The Pineapple War: Mean Girls meets The Handmaid’s Tale
The year is 2022. A violent civil war has torn Australia in two, with Queensland being sold to China, and the rest of the country now operating as a fascist, totalitarian state known as Nation One. Despite the new state’s strict and conservative laws which include criminalising homosexuality, barring women from attending university, forcing young men to serve in the military and sending political undesirables … Continue reading The Pineapple War: Mean Girls meets The Handmaid’s Tale
Much Ado About Nothing: Bell has not been idle
Melbourne is Bell Shakespeare’s second stop on its nationwide tour of the classic comedy Much Ado About Nothing. The story is perhaps the original romantic comedy, and follows Beatrice (Zindzi Okenyo) and Benedick (Duncan Ragg), who go from mildly disgusted in each other to totally infatuated. Around them there are a number of friends, family and vagrants living in Messina, including another pair of lovers … Continue reading Much Ado About Nothing: Bell has not been idle
Tusk Tusk: A triumph of youth
Tusk Tusk, written by English playwriting prodigy Polly Stenham, gives young actors a chance to portray the sharp realities of children in the system. The play captures a complex web of familial relationships against a backdrop of intense classism, providing an urgent and relevant insight into children trying to be adults. Centering around three siblings, the fifteen year old eldest Eliot (Ben Walter), his fourteen … Continue reading Tusk Tusk: A triumph of youth
The Dialog 