Reviews

Baby Shark and Tails of the Seven Seas

By Chris Vuk. FringeWorld / Music Makers Foundation. The Theatre at Planet Royale, Lake St, Northbridge, WA. Jan 18 - Feb 2, 2024

Baby Shark and Tails of the Seven Seas, presented by the Music Makers Foundation as part of FringeWorld, had sellout seasons at both the Edmonton and Edinburgh Fringe, and I would have thought, given its recognisable branding, that similar sales would be happening here.

Nurse Georgie Carroll: Survival of the Fittest - A Work in Progress

By Georgie Carroll. FringeWorld. Johnny Fox’s, Lynott’s Lounge, James St, Northbridge, WA. Jan 17 -Feb 2, 2025

Nurse Georgie Carroll: Survival of the Fittest - A Work in Progress is a very funny show, with former nurse Georgie Carroll telling stories of nursing, raising children and approaching 50.

A laid-back relaxed and really likeable performer, Georgie works her crowd well, with easy banter and friendly interaction, in a gorgeous Northern English accent.

Recently giving up her nursing licence for full-time comedy, Georgie jokes that this allows her to say more, and her hospital stories are especially funny.

The Game

Devised by the cast. FringeWorld. The Robyn Company and State of Play. Directed by Leah Robin. Rehearsal Room 1, State Theatre Centre of Western Australia. Jan 17-19, 2025

The Game, presented by The Robyn Company and State of Play as part of FringeWorld, is a production which deserved a longer run. A genre-fluid show about women’s soccer, and more broadly about women’s sport, it blended dance, documentary, drama and audio-visual presentation to make a stunning little show that is a personal favourite.

A Simple Space

Gravity and Other Myths. FringeWorld. The Aurora Spiegeltent, The Pleasure Garden Northbridge, WA. Jan 17 - Feb 16, 2024

The stunning acrobatic show A Simple Space runs the full length of FringeWorld, giving you plenty of chances to catch this show. You should do yourself a favour and add it to your viewing schedule, even if you think that circus or acrobatics really isn’t your thing.

Presented by Gravity and Other Myths, A Simple Space shuns the dazzle and dazzle of traditional circus, with minimal equipment, deliberately muted and understated costumes and no bells and whistles (there are however hundreds of plastic balls).

Peculiar Plants and the Ants Who Dance

By Estelle Brow and Izzy Leclezio. FringeWorld. The Middar Room, State Theatre Centre of WA. Jan 18-25, 2025

If you have been in and out of the Middar Room as part of your FringeWorld travels, entering for Peculiar Plants and the Ants Who Dance, feels quite different. Handed a flower to hold, you will find that the front few rows of chairs have disappeared and been replaced with comfy cushions, and the low stage is set with a reasonably complex set.

Relative Values

By Noël Coward. Aspect Theatre. Directed by Candice Mitrousis. Shirley Burke Theatre, Parkdale, Victoria. January 17 – 25, 2025

“Above all, I drink to the final inglorious disintegration of the most unlikely dream that ever troubled the foolish heart of man - Social Equality.”  Crestwell, the Butler - Relative Values by Noël Coward 1951.

All The Times I Could Have

By Anja Starkiss and Jamie Whirledge. FringeWorld. The Almost Collective and State of Play. Directed by Lucy Nunn. The Middar Room, State Theatre Centre of WA. Jan 17-19, 2025

Presented by The Almost Collective and State of Play, All The Times I Could Have, is a beautifully crafted one act play that is superbly produced and directed and intelligently and skilfully acted.

Madagascar – A Musical Adventure Junior.

By Kevin del Aguila George Noriega and Joel Someillan. Exit Left. Ian Williams and Michaela Nichols (Direction), Suzen Parnell (Costume and Makeup), David Szoka, Ian Williams and Mackenzie Williams (Technical) and Laura Storey (lighting). The Playhouse Theatre, Hobart. 7-18 January 2025

This one-hour production of Madagascar is delightful and genuinely entertaining for all ages.  Remarkably, it was prepared and staged in two weeks.

Arsenic and Old Lace

By Joseph Kesselring. Beaumaris Theatre, Vic. Director: Peter Newling. November 15 – 23, 2024

Arsenic and Old Lace is a classic black comedy about the only thing more deadly than poison: family.

Mortimer Brewster’s engagement announcement is upended when he discovers a corpse in the window seat of his elderly aunts’ boarding house. Mortimer rushes to tell Abby and Martha before they stumble upon the body themselves, only to learn that they are not just aware of the dead man in their parlour; they were the ones who killed him!!

4 Teachers For Teachers

Presented by Ty Gray. Fringe World. Comedy Den at Neon Palms, William St, Northbridge, WA. Jan 17-24, 2025

The first week of FringeWorld is a great week to try and attract a teacher audience - with a crowd still on holidays, but anxious for some sympathetic entertainment before returning to the frontlines in a few days. 

Presented by Ty Gray (pictured), a Secondary Drama teacher, it features Ty and (theoretically) three other teachers with classroom-based humour.

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