Reviews

Medea

By Luigi Cherubini. The Met’s Live and HD Series. In selected cinemas nationally from November 19, 2022.

The Metropolitan are to be congratulated for their initiative of filming and making opera more accessible to a wide audience, particularly those of us who do not live in the USA.

Their choice of Medea by Luigi Cherubini, composed in 1797 with a libretto by François-Benoît Hoffman and based on Euripides' tragedy of Medea and Pierre Corneille's play Médée has come out of left field as it is not commonly in the repertoire of most opera companies throughout the world.

RBG: Of Many, One

By Suzie Miller. Sydney Theatre Company. Wharf 1 Theatre. Oct 29 – Dec 3, 2022.

Playwright Suzie Miller always wanted her good mate Heather Mitchell to play Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the late legal firebrand of the US Supreme Court.   And Mitchell delivers a tour de force in Miller’s masterful new play.

Perfectly sustained for 90 minutes, it’s a riveting journey with RBG from age 13 to 87, with Mitchell also making split second shifts to voice 30 other characters, including three American Presidents.

Bedside Manners

By Derek Benfield. Therry Theatre. Arts Theatre, Adelaide. November 3 -12, 2022

Farce in theatre is described as ‘a type of comedy that places exaggerated characters in improbable situations where they face a number of outrageous obstacles.’ And believe me, Therry Theatre’s production of Derek Benfield’s Bedside Manners could be the basis for that definition.

Blacklisted

Written and performed by Almitra Mavalvala. Directed by Bernadette Fam. Hayes Theatre in association with Rogue Projects. November 9 - 12, 2022

Canadians have received lots of good press of late for being nice. Anyone seeing the musical Come From Away, or who admired the smiles of their photogenic Prime Minister would be left with the impression of a nation that is very tolerant.

Pakistan born Almitra Mavalvala gives another perspective of the country, in her tongue in cheek cabaret that is fascinating, funny and tuneful.

‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore

By John Ford. The Company. Flow Studios, Camperdown. November 2 – 13, 2022

A blood-drenched Jacobean revenge tragedy, written nearly 400 years ago, says more about our contemporary world than we probably care to admit.  

Playwright John Ford was a contemporary of Shakespeare’s, but while Romeo and Juliet’s family feud provided a killing field, Ford’s add on to star-crossed love, the abiding taboo of incest, inspires a huge, bloody 17th century massacre, even in this tightly edited, reduced cast version.

Caravan

By Donald Macdonald. Henry Lawson Theatre. Directed by Jason Darlington. 4th – 19th November 2022

I read this play several years ago and didn’t find it particularly funny. Henry Lawson Theatre gave it a red hot go at convincing me otherwise.

Jason Darlington, making his directorial debut, showed tremendous promise in his first outing, bringing together a cast of HLT regulars, much to the delight of the full house, very supportive and highly amused audience.

The Boy From Oz

Music and Lyrics by Peter Allen. Book by Nick Enright. Noosa Arts Theatre. Oct 27 – Nov 19, 2022

If you are a Peter Allen fan (and I never really realised just how many there were) then you will love Noosa’s The Boy from Oz.

It is a slick, polished, sequined soaked, tight, bright, shiny, sparkly, mirror-balled colour fest – but with enough poignancy and social reflections to give it a bit of weight and a lot of backbone.

Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap

Playhouse, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), Brisbane. 4 to 20 November 2022, then touring.

Having resisted the temptation of The Mousetrap in London’s West End for the 20+ years I have lived there, I’m glad it was this Australian production that introduced me to the play. This is a top-notch cast and a fitting reminder of Agatha Christie’s contribution to our entertainment catalogue. Perhaps it is the recent lockdowns that have led to the revived popularity of Agatha’s work: she certainly was always ‘binge-worthy’ long before that expression existed.

The Sound of Music

Music by Richard Rodgers; Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II; Book by Howard Lindsy and Russel Crouse, based on "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers". Hills Musical Theatre Company. Jointly directed and musically directed by William Pulley and Rodrigo Medina Noel. Choreographed by Kaitlin Hillier. Model Farms High School Auditorium, Baulkham Hills. November 4 – 12, 2022

It was this reviewer's first opportunity to see a production by HMTC and visit this venue. Their 50 years of experience fueled expectations but this feeling was immediately tempered upon entering the huge hall; knowing from experience just how much these bigger spaces can swallow some productions. Any trepidation was cast aside however, as the nun ensemble deftly infiltrated the audience in the opening sequence to breathe a palpably reverential atmosphere into the cavernous space with strong, clear harmonies.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Hugh Wheeler. The Attic Theatrical. The Art House, Wyong. Nov 3 - 12, 2022

The Attic Theatrical is a relatively new community theatre group on the central coast but they've certainly made a big splash with their latest production, Sweeney Todd.  Right from the get-go the Dickensian London atmosphere is appropriately dark, ominous and unsettling.  David Rowe's clever set design affords many entry points for the cast in an intimate setting that really draws the audience into the action.

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