MJ: The Musical Won’t Stop Until You’re Dancing Too

REVIEW BY CHARLOTTE FRASER EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT ‘Study the greats and become greater’ – these scribbled words stand out among the collage of Michael Jackson’s handwritten notes projected onto a scrim. Musicians and dancers file casually onto the stage as the audience is still chatting and drinking. It’s opening night. Excitement and anticipation are buzzing through Her Majesty’s Theatre. In a room of glitter … Continue reading MJ: The Musical Won’t Stop Until You’re Dancing Too

Queen’s College’s Mamma Mia Is Infectious, Sparkly, And Leaves The Audience On Their Feet!

REVIEW BY GRACE DWYER EDITED BY MYA HELOU Is there any band as crowd pleasing to the Australian public as ABBA? Science says no. And the almost full house (on a Thursday night, too!) for Queen’s College’s Mamma Mia! is absolutely ready for any and all seventies jams the musical is going to throw at them.  The house lights go down, leaving a yellow spotlight … Continue reading Queen’s College’s Mamma Mia Is Infectious, Sparkly, And Leaves The Audience On Their Feet!

International House’s Clue: On Stage Is A Play That Plays

REVIEW BY CHARLOTTE FRASER EDITED BY OLIVIA DI GRAZIA Picture this: you enter the Guild Theatre, transformed into an early 20th century manor house evocative of an Agatha Christie-esque world. Feeling brave, or perhaps foolish, you sit in the first row. You’re warned about the close audience proximity, the themes of murder and mystery and the unpredictability of live performance. A giddy air of anticipation … Continue reading International House’s Clue: On Stage Is A Play That Plays

Audience Please Make the Right Decision Challenge Failed: 5 Locktin

REVIEW BY BRONTE LEMAIRE EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT It’s always a pleasure rocking up to the Motley Bauhaus, especially during a night buzzing with theatre festivities. At 9pm the place is packed with Netherworld Festival shows. There’s a guy with wings at the bar, Snape is wandering around telling dad jokes, and I’m pretty sure someone’s upstairs with very little to cover themself–or perhaps nothing … Continue reading Audience Please Make the Right Decision Challenge Failed: 5 Locktin

Is That A Chainsaw In Your Pocket Or Are You Just Happy To See Me? See You Sunday’s American Psycho: A Musical Thriller

REVIEW BY ELLA CALLOW-SUSSEX EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT I have not read the book or watched the movie of American Psycho. As a teenager I had one too many encounters with a boy that didn’t understand satire, idolised American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman and decided to lecture me on how life changing and validating the story was. As a result, it was with some caution that … Continue reading Is That A Chainsaw In Your Pocket Or Are You Just Happy To See Me? See You Sunday’s American Psycho: A Musical Thriller

Barkly Theatre’s Oedipus: A Complex Look at a Consummate Classic

REVIEW BY MYA HELOU EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT The stage is fully visible when I enter the cozy black-box theatre. Lucas Prescott’s carefully constructed runway of wooden pallets is framed by two white drapes hanging from the ceiling at the back of the stage, oddly human-shaped rubbish bags dumped along the sides. It’s a texturally dense amalgamation that looks like a makeshift rebuilding of something … Continue reading Barkly Theatre’s Oedipus: A Complex Look at a Consummate Classic

High School Musical: A Wildcat Performance By University College 

REVIEW BY TARAS SCURRY EDITED BY AZMY AZURITE University College rallies in, filling the first floor of the Union Theatre with a buzz of anticipation. It’s opening night and the lights are shining bright, excitement trickling throughout the theatre, cheers flooding through for the first act as Producer and Musical Director Samantha Johnson’s vision springs upon the stage.  The company starts strong, with athleticism from … Continue reading High School Musical: A Wildcat Performance By University College 

Jazz everywhere, booze everywhere, joy everywhere in Ormond College’s Chicago!

REVIEW BY GRACE DWYER EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT Chicago is big. It’s the hit 1975 musical that went on to claim 2002’s Best Picture, enjoy long-lasting intercontinental theatrical success, and ensure every theatre kid has their own favourite Merry Murderess. A perfect show for Ormond Drama, who blew us away last year with their 2024 production of Into the Woods, so my friends and I … Continue reading Jazz everywhere, booze everywhere, joy everywhere in Ormond College’s Chicago!

Earnestly Stylish Fun – Camberwell Grammarians’ The Importance of Being Earnest

REVIEW BY TOM WORSNOP EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT Old Camberwell Grammarian Theatre Company’s staging of The Importance of Being Earnest offers a visually delightful rendition of Oscar Wilde’s iconic farce about two upper-class bachelors, named Jack and Algernon. Each are pretending to be a fictional man named ‘Ernest’ in order to win over two women they’ve fallen in love with – Gwendolen and Cecily respectively. … Continue reading Earnestly Stylish Fun – Camberwell Grammarians’ The Importance of Being Earnest

‘no title’ – But No Less Power

REVIEW BY GRYFF CONNAH EDITED BY EMMA PARFITT OCD often manifests as an amorphous, nameless thing. It metastasises in silence, slowly and surely until, one day, its shapelessness is your whole shape and it is staring you in the face from all sides. I would know; I am living with it.  The experience of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) is something that is very difficult to … Continue reading ‘no title’ – But No Less Power