By Tom Stoppard. Williamstown Little Theatre. Directed by Michelle Swann. Jun 26 – Jul 13, 2024
Accomplished community theatre director Michelle Swann made her Williamstown Little Theatre directorial debut these last weeks with the heavily accoladed Tom Stoppard play of bourgeois adultery, The Real Thing.
The play seems to be revived every 10-15 years for a new generation of theatre goers testing whether its acid bath of love and marriage marinated in old pop songs still resonates with audiences.
Written by Molière. Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble. Directed by Rebecca Murphy. Pip Theatre – Milton Qld. July12th – July 28th, 2024
When Molière’s ribald satirical play was first produced in the 17th century (then promptly banned) the playwright couldn’t possibly have foreseen that 400 years later, Brisbane audiences would be in hysterics at his scripted antics. The fact is Tartuffe – sometimes known as The Hypocrite – is an hilariously funny play written entirely in rhyming couplets that doesn’t get nearly as many productions as it should.
By Zinnie Harris after Shakespeare. Malthouse Theatre, the Merlyn. 5 – 28 July 2024
In this adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘Scottish play’ (familiarity with the original is not strictly necessary), Lady Macbeth (Bojana Novakovic) is the protagonist: the tale is told from her point of view. As in Shakespeare’s play, she urges, challenges, and emotionally blackmails Macbeth to murder King Duncan (Jim Daly).
Developed by Ash Jacks and Julieann Nugent. Choreographer: Julieann Nugent. Athenaeum Theatre, 188 Collins Street Melbourne. 11- 13 July 2024
Cirque Bon Bon is sparkly, slick, funny and entertaining and leaves the audience grateful for the extreme skills and mastery of the performers. What a range of skills are displayed!
By John O’Donovan. Old Nick Company, Tas. Natalie Venettacci (Director). David Keating (original music). Elise Bagorski (stage manager/desk). Wolfe McBride (lighting design). The Hidden Theatre. 10-20 July 2024
Flights’ Australian debut comes some four years after its premiere in Ennis, in the Republic of Ireland. Ennis does not even have its own airport, but the protagonists meet in a semi derelict shack-cum-clubhouse called “Pointers” which does imply that there are options for leaving, even if no-one ever does. The oft-mentioned road is a road that goes nowhere.
By Pony Cam at Bondi Pavillion, Theatre. Thursday 11 July to Saturday 13 July, 2024.
Burnout Paradise is a fantastic representation of how silly it feels to try to get everything one wants to get done when there are certain things that take longer to get done than others.
Created by Yaron Lifschitz and Circa. Coliseum Theatre, Rooty Hill. July 4 – 6, 2024
Duckpond is a mesmerising and enchanting theatre production that invites audiences into a whimsical world where the magic of nature comes to life on stage, unfolding in a captivating display of artistry and storytelling.
By Noëlle Janaczewska. The Loading Dock, Qtopia, Sydney. July 20 – 27, 2024
Qtopia, Sydney’s first queer museum opened recently in the old Darlinghurst police station on Taylor Square. During the violence of the first Mardi Gas, protesters were thrown here into the police cells, which you can now wander through reading this and other chapters of queer history. Or hear these stories voiced in a spanking new theatre space where once offenders were unloaded.
The Australian Ballet. Festival Theatre, Adelaide. July 12-18, 2024
The Australian Ballet’s latest production of Jewels is a departure from their usual ‘story ballets’ (e.g., Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty). It strips away any conventional trimmings of ballet and relies wholly on dance alone, and does it brilliantly!
Premiering in 1967 at the Lincoln Centre in New York, George Balanchine’s Jewels is a sparkling, shining and glittering example of classical ballet technique.
