After years of online shows and activities, the Melbourne University Chinese Theatre Group (MUCTG) returned with a highly anticipated bang. How high? How about the “selling out closing night in five hours” kind of high. Continue reading MUCTG’s The Hostage: Sometimes Getting Robbed is Good for You
Hamlet has a reputation for being modern and timeless, but it is still a piece of sixteenth-century theatre. How can we make the language accessible? How can we alter themes which feel defunct—religiosity, revenge, the king as God, natural order—feel relevant? And, of course, how can we resolve problematic representations of femininity and masculinity? Continue reading HAML3T by Melbourne University Shakespeare Company
There was something deeply interesting about Four Letter Word Theatre’s Two Nights Out of Bed, and in spite of its flaws, I found myself deeply compelled. Continue reading Two Nights Out of Bed: An Ambitious Production
Endgame was a difficult show to watch and a bold choice to perform. The conviction of the performers and the success of the minimalist creative choices, however, brought it to life—in all its absurdity. Continue reading Endgame: Making the Most of Beckett’s Absurdity
It is evident that even though Nora is in ostensibly different circumstances to her original era—and women’s rights have advanced significantly—very little has changed internally for her. The home, marriage and family proves to be just as suffocating, making her reclamation of freedom just as radical. Continue reading Nora: A Doll’s House Triumphs at Union House
Mudcrabs’ Inspector Sydney Catchlove was a show with potential that was unfortunately let down by its hit-or-miss comedy, production design and directorial choices. Weird is good. Silly is good. Nonsense is fantastic—so long as the jokes carry themselves. Unfortunately, this was not the case for Inspector Sydney Catchlove. Continue reading Inspector Sydney Catchlove: Mudcrabs Deliver Mediocre Sketch Comedy for MICF
After years of Covid-related delays, opening night for the long awaited UHT production of Nora: A Doll’s House draws near. It’s a bittersweet occasion as the final UHT production to be held in this famous theatre before it is relocated, but Nora will be both a farewell and a
celebration of the many happy memories made in this space. I spoke with James Madsen-Smith and Leah Bourne, two of the performers in Nora: A Doll’s House. Continue reading Interview with the Actors in UHT’s Nora: A Doll’s House
Clocking in at almost three hours, Melbourne University Chinese Theatre Group’s adaptation of an Agatha Christie tale feels a colossal undertaking that never breaks a sweat. Immediately setting a dark tone, the play strikes a noir chord with an eerie soundscape and darkened set, save for the few scattered candles and a probing torch. We are given glimpses of gothic set pieces and portentous blocking … Continue reading The Unexpected Guest: An Unexpected Delight
Have You Herd, an experimental take on dystopia set in the fictional land of Losheepa, delights in its audience’s discomfort. It follows the struggle of a young girl and boy, played by Cheryl Ho and Samuel Rowe respectively, in their struggle against the Whoves, a wealthy ruling class who have turned Losheepa into a warzone. The set is sparse, the lighting dark, and the audience … Continue reading Have You Herd: Power to the Sheeple
CTG’s production of The Twelve is an adaptation of an adaptation, referencing both the classic 1954 play Twelve Angry Men and its 1991 Japanese film parody The Gentle Twelve. Following the deliberations of a jury who are largely too superficial and goodhearted to convict a beautiful young woman of murder, The Twelve presents a humorous and thoughtful piece of theatre. The production’s greatest strength lay … Continue reading The Twelve: The Jury’s In
The Dialog 