Book and Lyrics by Hugo Chiarella. Music and Lyrics by Naomi Livingston. Hayes Theatre, Sydney. Directed by Kate Champion. October 12 - November 18, 2018
When the lights go up on this new Australian musical, there’s a sense of maturity - Sydney’s Hayes Theatre is now producing premieres of variety and accomplishment rarely seen in this country before. Evie May, a fictional story based around the long-gone Tivoli vaudeville circuit, is a complex work that starts slow and is not always successful. But when it hits its stride, this show nails it. Some of the music and writing is superb - and it’s given the best start possible with a brilliant production.
By Arthur Miller. Grads. Directed by Barry Park. Dolphin Theatre, University of Western Australia. 17-20 October, 2018
You will need to move quickly to catch Grads’ impressive production of A View From the Bridge, as it runs for just five performances, ending this Saturday. I imagine that it will be difficult to get a ticket at the end of the run, as word will quickly spread about the high quality of this classic drama.
Queensland Symphony Orchestra. Conducted by Dane Lam. Hosted by Guy Noble. Music on Sundays Presented by QSO. Concert Hall, QPAC, 14 October 2018
Queensland Symphony Orchestra has found a very clever and engaging concept in its Music on Sundays series. The 2018 season of it has just wrapped up with Tradies and Artists. Each show in the series is curated on a theme and hosted by an entertaining emcee. The result is a production that presents a highly accessible way for people who aren’t usually orchestra-goers to understand and appreciate the music.
By Ray and Michael Cooney. Tea Tree Players. Director: Barry Hill. Tea Tree Players Theatre, Surrey Downs. 10-20 October, 2018.
If comedy is hard, then farce is especially so. For a really crackerjack farcical comedy to have been written in the first place is relatively rare; to see it staged and performed at the level of true expertise required feels like a privilege. TTP’s production of Tom, Dick & Harry is all of this, and more besides: it’s a joy!
Based on The Dreamworks Animation Motion picture and book by William Steig. Book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. Music by Jeanine Tesorei. Willoughby Theatre Company. The Concourse Theatre, Chatswood. October 13 – 28, 2018.
Willoughby Theatre Company’s production of Shrek, the classic family movie turned stage musical, was a delightful experience on a mammoth scale, with production values on a par with professional theatre I have seen of late.
By Reg Cribb. WAAPA Second Year Acting Students. Directed by Andrew Lewis. Enright Studio, WAAAPA, Mt Lawley, WA. 12-18 October, 2018
The world premiere of this moving original commissioned work by Reg Cribb, is presented by Second Year Acting Students, and designed built and crewed by Production and Design Students.
Reg Cribb, working with WAAPA with support from the Mindaroo Foundation, has created a collection of stories and songs, all based on real-life incidents that reveal people’s vulnerability to bullies.
Book, Music and Lyrics by Kevin Murphey and Laurence O’Keefe. Based on the film written by Daniel Waters. Presented by Dramatic Productions (ACT). Produced by Richard Block. Directed by Kelly Robert and Grant Pegg. Gungahlin Theatre. 12 – 27 October 2018
The Heathers are a colour-coded, croquet-playing triad of pure teen bitch power. Veronica Sawyer tries to join the group but is ejected when she refuses to bully her friend. She falls in love with JD, an intellectual outsider with ideas for revenge. And that’s when the deaths start. People of my vintage will remember the dark, dark 80s movie about bullying, harassment, toxic love, revenge and murder in an Ohio high school, which was adapted to musical form in 2014.
By William Shakespeare. WAAPA 2018 Graduating Acting Students. Directed by Stefanos Rassios. The Edith Spiegeltent, WAAPA, Edith Cowan University, Mt Lawley, WA. 12-18 October, 2018
For the first time, a major acting production is being performed in WAAPA’s Spiegeltent (The Edith), with the 2018 Graduating Acting students presenting A Midsummer Night’s Dream in the round.
By Alana Valentine. Sport for Jove. Seymour Centre. October 11 – 27, 2018
Set in the world of astronomical research, Alana Valentine’s compelling play explores how sexual discrimination can lurk within the traditional team ethic of science.
Astrophysicist Professor Jocelyn Burnbell , interviewed by Valentine, denied being cheated when her male supervisor won the 1974 Nobel Prize for what were her discoveries: accepting the team leader, usually a bloke, collects the gong.
