Cock: Comedic but unsettling
Director Beng Oh’s production of Cock by Mike Bartlett returns after a 2018 season at The Stables, Meat Market, and is now being staged at the inimitable fortyfivedownstairs as part of Midsumma 2019. Cock centres around John (Matthew Connell), who’s in a seven-year relationship with a man M (Shaun Goss). Having long identified openly as gay, John finds himself attracted to a woman W (Marissa O’Reilly). The play’s tension … Continue reading Cock: Comedic but unsettling
A Party to Murder: Killing It
Melbourne University Chinese Theatre Group’s production of A Party to Murder is a homage to possibly the world’s most famous detective writer, Agatha Christie. As I enter the theatre on the production’s closing night I am torn between excitement and apprehension – as an avid Christie fan I’m a sucker for a good mystery, but I’ve also seen a few too many twee repertory productions of The … Continue reading A Party to Murder: Killing It
Rhinoceros: What’s Grey, Weighs a Ton and is An Allegory For Fascism?
The programme for Trinity College’s 2018 production, Rhinoceros, states the college’s move away from more serious theatre to something funny. Perhaps the most studied piece of absurdist theatre in the world after Waiting for Godot, this play certainly is ripe with comic potential. The students at Trinity have, accordingly, provided a hilarious, madcap rendition of Ionesco’s work. Being an allegory for fascism, the weighty themes … Continue reading Rhinoceros: What’s Grey, Weighs a Ton and is An Allegory For Fascism?
IDA: Not Your Princess
Reproducing respected writer Anita Punton’s much loved 1994 production of ‘The Princess Ida Parlor’ was always going to be a challenge. Completely readapting IDA for a modern audience whilst also being forced to completely re-compose the score seems almost impossible. Yet, despite the potential setbacks, the indispensable Union House Theatre has triumphed once again in creating an engaging, informed and most of all, inspiring theatre … Continue reading IDA: Not Your Princess
‘Ida’: Interview with Lucy Seale and Emily White
Union House Theatre’s 2018 production Ida follows the story of the first female students at the University of Melbourne. Earlier this week, I spoke with cast members Lucy Seale and Emily White to hear about the show and their experience with the production. So just tell me about Ida E: So, it’s a remount of a 1994 musical that was done here in 1994 L: In the … Continue reading ‘Ida’: Interview with Lucy Seale and Emily White
Ophelia/Machine: Hamlet Who?
Shakespeare’s Hamlet is arguably his most frequently performed play, with Hamlet himself known as one of theatre’s most iconic leading men. The original text has been interpreted and reinterpreted throughout theatrical history, with big names, gender swaps and re-contextualisations providing fresh takes on the play. The most subversive and widely respected of these interpretations is Heiner Müller’s Hamletmachine. This 1977 play originally ran for seven … Continue reading Ophelia/Machine: Hamlet Who?
The Witches of Eastwick: Wickedly Slick
From novel, to film, to theatre, The Witches of Eastwick has had many incarnations, the latest being UMMTA’s most recent production. Three single women, outcasts from their town of Truman Show-like domestic perfection, pray for the ‘perfect’ man to save them from their struggles. When he arrives, innocent fun turns into manipulation and harm of a more serious kind, and the three ‘witches’ must unite to … Continue reading The Witches of Eastwick: Wickedly Slick
The Addams Family: No Normal Night Out!
The Addams Family is an absolutely fantastic choice for a college musical; rampant in innuendo-fueled laughs, boasting a catchy yet surprisingly complex score and a fun dose of gothic aesthetic. Plus, if all else fails, it has the unique ability to lean upon audience nostalgia for its iconic source material. I was particularly excited to learn that St. Mary’s College would be tackling it in 2018, … Continue reading The Addams Family: No Normal Night Out!
Mindquest: Saving The Universe, One Hipster at a Time
A trio of unlikely adventurers. A quest to save all humanity from a terrible fate. It may sound familiar, but I bet you haven’t seen it done quite like Mudcrabs do it in their first long-form narrative work, Mindquest: Journey into Forever. The show centres around Eva (Liv Bell) and Gil (Shane Woods), two Brunswick locals pulled into a quest to save the universe from … Continue reading Mindquest: Saving The Universe, One Hipster at a Time
Alone Outside: A Burdensome Picture of Living Rural
Clocking in at just an hour, Liz Newell’s play, Alone Outside crafts a delicate portrait that moves too slowly and ambles too indulgently to be fully appreciated. Taking a narratorial approach to ever-shifting family dynamics and growing up rural, Newell taps into universal experiences of love, loss and compassion. It is unfortunate to see such interesting themes and topics collapse beneath a logy execution. Further, the … Continue reading Alone Outside: A Burdensome Picture of Living Rural
The Dialog 