Written & directed by Ebony Rattle & Ellen Wiltshire. Virtual Waiting Room. Theatre Works Glasshouse’s Fringe Replanted. Theatre Works, St Kilda. 5 – 9 January 2021
Set in 1963, the central question posed in Ring, Ring! appears to be ‘What is Truth?’ The play begins with a death – a murder?
Music: Franz Lehar. Libretto: Viktor Leon and Leo Stein. Translation: Justin Fleming. Opera Australia. Direction & Choreography: Graeme Murphy; Conductor: Brian Castles-Onion. Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House. 5 - 16 January 2021.
If ever there was an argument about how essential the Arts are in the time of Covid, then look no further than OA’s elegant and fun production of The Merry Widow. On the practical side I’d suggest that such productions keep in gainful employment far more people than sporting events, and therefore are better for the economy.
A Rose Tinted Enterprises production commissioned by Sydney Opera House, enabled by Taylor Construction Group and COMVISION® Security Solutions. The Studio, Sydney Opera House. January 6 – February 14, 2021
Opening night of the 2021 Sydney Festival and it doesn't feel very festive. Circular Quay is virtually deserted. The giant passenger terminal is all locked up. Ferries run near-empty services. The Opera House is in lockdown, with masks for everyone and all entrances tightly patrolled.
By Jonathan Larson. Sydney Opera House, in association with LPD and Sugary Rum Productions. Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House. Until January 31, 2021.
With its potent tale of love and diversity, amidst New York’s impoverished yet still vibrant arts community living with the HIV/AIDS epidemic, 1990s rock musical RENT resonates powerfully today.
Baring the Drama Theatre stage to a black box - with a split-level podium as the central playing area, flanked by the almost obligatory moveable skeletal staircases and bridge - Dan Barber’s set design evokes urban decay. Unmatched chairs are strewn like kerbside detritus.
Presented by QPAC’s Out of the Box in association with BBC Studios, Andrew Kay and Windmill Theatre Co. Playhouse, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), Brisbane. 22 December 2020 to 10 January 2021
Beth Keehn and young theatre fan Archie Humphries report on how family favourite, Bluey, translates from small screens to ‘real-life’ in a theatre world premiere.
Short plays by Belinda Campbell, Louise Hopewell, Alison Knight, Lois Maskiell, Michael Olsen, Mazz Ryan and Gregory Vines. Season 2020, Melbourne Writers’ Theatre. The MC Showroom, 48 Clifton Street, Prahran. 17-22 December 2020
Melbourne Writers’ Theatre present a double bill of eleven short plays. The first half is the six monologues of The Metropolis Monologues, directed and designed by Elizabeth Walley, and produced by Clare Mendes. Staging is stripped to the bare minimum but that is no drawback here. There is no clear theme uniting the six – except perhaps the aftermath of disaster in four of them, or a pressing problem in the present in the other two. The monologues range from Michael Olsen’s alien (Marli van der Bijl) reporting defiantly to ‘Control&rs
Josh Piterman, Amy Lehpamer, Renee Jones, Miles Le Goullon, Danielle Remulta, Liam J. Kirkpatrick, Major Scott Allen, Tom Cooney and Sofie Formica. QPAC Chamber Choir. Qld Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Dane Lam. Director: Paul Dellit. Concert Hall, QPAC. 18-19 December 2020
With A Christmas Carol playing at the theatre next door, and the Spirit of Christmas back at its home in the Concert Hall, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at QPAC. That is a ‘normal’ Christmas before the pandemic. This year’s Spirit of Christmas concert was slightly different to other years, being shorter at 80-mins (no interval), a smaller in numbers choir, and no audience interaction, which the littlies always enjoy.
Music & Lyric: Cyndi Lauper. Book: Harvey Fierstein. Director & Choreographer: Jerry Mitchell. Musical Director: Stephen Oremus. The Shows Must Go On - Streaming 18-19 December 2020
Like Disney’s Newsies, this video of Kinky Boots is one of the best around because it captures the euphoria of a live performance. Recorded in London, the show, based on the movie, which in turn was based on a real story, has Charlie Price inheriting his father’s shoe factory and turning the business around by making shoes (or boots) for drag queens. The video springs from the London production of the show, a carbon-copy of Broadway, which opened at the Adelphi Theatre in 2016.
Created by Yaron Lifschitz and the Circa Ensemble. Directed by Yaron Lifschitz. Presented by Circa and QPAC's Out of the Box Festival. Playhouse Theatre. 16 – 20 December, 2020
Spot-lit on an empty stage is a stack of mismatched, old-fashioned, hard suitcases. The audience assembled in the Playhouse at QPAC is bubbling with anticipation. “Wow, that is one BIIIIIGGGG TV,” a little voice pipes up in the row behind.
“That’s no TV, Victoria,” says a slightly older sounding little voice.
By Charles Dickens. Adapted and created by Shake & Stir. Director: Michael Futcher. Shake & Stir Theatre Co and QPAC. Lyric Theatre, QPAC. 16-24 December 2020
Shake & Stir’s acclaimed production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is the perfect show to welcome audiences back into QPAC’s largest theater, the Lyric. Previously seen at the Playhouse, this grand little show has now been blown up to fit onto the Lyric stage. As it turns out, it has just been opened up a bit and sits quite comfortably on it. That means that Craig Wilkinson’s brilliant state-of-the-art video projections now play an even bigger role in the production, as does Jason Glenright’s moody and appropriate lighting.
