Reviews

It’s fifteen years since Australian theatre lost one of its most popular and prolific theatrical creatives. Nick Enright was a real all-rounder – playwright, actor, director, screen writer, lyricist, translator, adaptor, dramaturg, teacher, mentor. Few could aspire to such a comprehensive CV; few could achieve so much and still stay a regular nice guy; few could reject the call of Broadway and Hollywood and come home to the country and people he loved and wrote about so prolifically.

For the first time the State Opera of South Australia has moved out of a theatre and into a central city venue, namely Victoria Square. Presumably this is based on Opera Australia’s successful ‘Opera on Sydney Harbour’.

The choice of Carmen for this first production was a wise one. Known by any opera fan, with hummable tunes (including a football team song) and a dramatic storyline, it has all the ingredients to be a sure-fire hit.

After a three-million dollar refurbishment, Toowoomba’s theatrical jewel, the Empire Theatre, is looking more glitzy than ever, and what better show to reopen the venue than this glitzy ‘ode to acceptance’ Kinky Boots. The story of a failing Northumberland shoe factory which is reborn making sexy leather boots for drag queens, comes vibrantly alive in Alison Vallette’s production, the Queensland community theatre premiere.

Pelican Productions continue their high standard of theatre entertainment with their first musical for 2019, The Little Mermaid Jnr. Adapted for a younger cast, it is based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

Jen Firth and Kylie Green founded Pelican Productions in 2004 and have done wonders in nurturing young talent. With such a large number of students they still manage to find a role for everyone.