Reviews

Japan’s SIRO-A brings Techno Circus to Adelaide for this year’s OzAsia Festival. It’s an hour of human agility and ability interacting with state-of-the-art technology, all choreographed to a thumping techno soundtrack. Techno Circus in many ways defies classification despite the show’s title. It has elements of dance, acrobatics, physical theatre, puppetry, clowning, mime, shadow play, sleight of hand and magic, all combined with mind-boggling visual effects.

Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads monologues – written in the 1980s for BBC TV – put faces and names to Thoreau’s ‘lives of quiet desperation’. They are superbly written character pieces and, incredibley, are showing no signs of age. The two short and sharp pieces chosen by Brisbane’s Villanova Players give Jane Binstead and Jean Spencer a chance to polish and show off their comic skills.

To some degree history is the recollection and interpretation of individuals involved. Shakespeare claims “There is history in all men’s lives” and Voltaire says "History is only the register of crimes and misfortunes". Both of these themes are explored in the production Light by Thomas Henning and TerryandTheCuz.

My first reaction after leaving the theatre was that I must buy tickets for my 15 year old daughter (which I did this morning). One of the most striking aspects is the authenticity of the writing and how Yve Blake nails on the head the heady experiences of teenage girls and their passion, energy and search for love. Sitting next to me was the mother of a recent teenager, squealing with recognition. OMG!