By Stephen Carleton. Playlab Theatre. New Benner Theatre, Metro Arts, Brisbane. 18 to 28 May 2022
When I see a new Australian play, personally this is exactly the sort of story I want to see: an engaging mix of political history, current events, personal relationships, family secrets and a generous dollop of warm and witty humour. And I think the full-house audience at the New Benner Theatre at Metro Arts agreed.
By Digi Youth Arts & The Good Room. Cremorne Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). 25 to 28 May 2022
I was very happy to start National Reconciliation Week with a wickedly witty show by some of our emerging young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander performers – a dynamic cast all trained in dance and movement, performing arts in theatre and film, music and poetry. I really hope we see them on stage again soon: Nic Currie-Inns, Lenesha Duncan, Ethan Enoch, Elijah Manis and Misteria Towler. Wow! All these young artists have a powerful stage presence and they worked together well as an ensemble.
By David Eldridge, adapted from Thomas Vinterborg's screenplay of the 1998 Danish Dogme film Festen. Red Phoenix Theatre. Holden Street Theatres, Hindmarsh May 26 – June 4, 2022
As the Margo Channing says in All About Eve, “Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night!’.
Festen is a British stage adaptation of the 1998 Danish film of the same name. It was first presented in 2004 in London and has been staged all over the world since.
By Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II. New book by Douglas Carter Beane. Presented by Opera Australia & John Frost for Crossroads Live. Directed by Mark Brokaw. Regent Theatre, 191 Collins St, Melbourne. 26 May -17 July 2022, then touring.
This Tony Award winning musical is undoubtedly a winner. The monumental scale of the set and costumes is a feast for the eyes and the music, singing and dancing are delivered with incredible precision and perfection. This flawless show takes a very classic approach to the story of Cinderella and, although there are some updated elements that portray Cinderella as more in charge of her own destiny, this musical retains all the classical elements of this timeless tale.
By Melissa Bubnic. Griffin Theatre Company. SBW Stables Theatre. May 20 – June 18, 2022
Melissa Bubnic’s dark new comedy begins with three generations of women folding washing and sharing the best ways to kill yourself.
But it seems Granny Grace, declining at 87, is serious. She wants to die now, much to the horror of her stubbornly optimistic, needy daughter, Dorothy, and Dot’s own daughter, the surly Suzie, just back from overseas for a family funeral.
By Damon Hill. Tea Tree Players. Tea Tree Players Theatre, Surrey Downs, SA. May 25 – June 4, 2022
How many theatre companies have their own resident playwright? The Socially Distanced Play had its genesis at the beginning of the infamous COVID outbreak when Damon Hill decided to write a play based on the premise of a local theatre company trying to rehearse a play with social distancing and all the other precautions that accompany COVID.
By Adam Bock. White Box Theatre. Directed by Kim Hardwick. Seymour Centre, NSW. 21 May – 11 June, 2022
Adam Bock is a Canadian playwright working in America. Before the Meeting is one of his most recent plays. First performed in 2019 at the Williamstown Festival in the United States, it is set in the basement of St Stephen’s church, where a branch of Alcoholics Anonymous meets regularly. Bock’s characters come together beforehand to make the coffee and ensure the chairs in the meeting room next door are set up. Gail is in charge. She’s a bit bossy but caring. Nicole is young, pregnant and collects jokes about addicts.
Devised & written by Daniel Schlusser & the cast: Katherine Tonkin, Mary-Helen Sassman & Edwina Wren. Daniel Schlusser Ensemble. Arts House, North Melbourne. 24 – 28 May 2022
We take our seats in the cavernous Arts House space and we have plenty of time to check out Romanie Harper’s and Bethany J Fellows’s brightly lit set before the show begins. It’s a spacious kindergarten, stocked with toys, blocks, little chairs and a dress-up box. Colourful cushions. Lots of kids’ art on the walls. There are big windows up stage. Then: blackout.
By David Williamson. PAANDA. Directed by Matthew Jones and Orla Poole. University of Notre Dame, Fremantle, WA. May 24 - Jun 4, 2022
The Performing Arts Society of WA (PAANDA) approaches the 1970s Australian classic, The Removalists, with a female perspective, in a strong and thought-provoking production.
The Removalists follows a rookie cop and his senior officer after they receive a domestic violence complaint.
By Arrigo Boito. Presented by Opera Australia. State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne. 25 & 27 May 2022.
There are significant advantages in producing concert versions of a major opera. The savings in production costs is enormous and it is possible to make such performances more feasible and accessible. There are more than just pragmatic considerations as the singing and the music become the entire focal point. This concentrates attention on the performers and the musicians in a rather different and unique way.
