Reviews

The Wedding Singer

Book by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy. Lyrics by Chad Begulin and music by Matthew Sklar. Based on the New Line Cinema film written by Tim Herlihy. Directed by Pam Cooper with Musical Direction by Sean Fagan. Presented by Sunnybank Theatre Group (Qld). Sunnybank Theatre. 9 - 17 February, 2018

There are a lot of things to be impressed about when you see Sunnybank Theatre Group’s production of The Wedding Singer. The first notable positive is the substantial size of the ensemble cast including an eight-person-strong live band. Everyone on stage (and one can also assume offstage in the band pit) has enthusiasm and a cheerfully infectious joy. The cast are well-rehearsed, never appearing to miss a line or a beat. The show also benefits from great choreography by Jacquie Cullen to support the plentiful songs throughout.

Who We Were

By Jayden Masciulli, Caitlyn Staples, and Tiana Hogben. Hit By a Blimp (Vic). The Improv Conspiracy Theatre, Melbourne. February 2 - 23, 2018

In this homage to the most cringeworthy of the 1990s and the 2000s, I counted 23 era-specific references. I missed others.

The show opens with a dial-up modem screeching as it connects to the Internet. Three high school friends, Max (Jayden Masciulli), Katie (Tiana Hogben), and Amanda (Caitlyn Staples) indulge in some online chat infatuation.

From there, it's a fast-moving romp through the relics of the coming-of-age years of the comedy troupe.

Livvy and Pete: The Songs of Olivia Newton John and Peter Allen

Fringe World. De Parel Spiegeltent, The Pleasure Garden, Russell Square, Northbridge, WA. Feb 5-12, 2018

Livvy and Pete celebrates the songs of two of Australia’s most iconic singing exports, in a fun and vibrant show that has the audience thoroughly involved.

Performers Michael Griffiths and Amelia Ryan have excellent chemistry, have a gorgeously laconic and self-deprecating delivery and have an obvious passion for Olivia Newton John and Peter Allen. They both sing superbly and have charm in bucket-loads. 

MOLT: The Museum of Lost Things

Fringe World, Peaks and Never Alone Theatre Company. Directed by Alana Hoggart. Paper Mountain, William St, Northbridge, WA. Feb 12-17, 2018

The story of a museum, and its ­­­­curator, caught somewhere between "any possible anywhere. MOLT: The Museum of Lost Things is a one man show that sits on the edge of reality. Presented by Fringe World, Peaks and Never Alone Theatre Company, it is playing in the beautifully intimate common room at Paper Mountain.

Solo performer Rian Howlett welcomes you to the Museum of Lost Things, which is a repository of things lost, from the mundane, to the obtuse, from keys and iPhones through to a well-known politician’s humanity.

The View Upstairs

By Max Vernon. Invisible Wall Productions and Sugary Rum Productions in association with 
Hayes Theatre Co. Directed by Shaun Rennie. Hayes Theatre, Sydney. February 8 - March 11, 2018

Bars have long been central to gay life. In communities that were hidden for many years, they were often the only place to meet friends or a partner. But they’re much less pivotal than they were: in today’s world, where same-sex marriage is legal, and gay men meet online, the need for a gathering place based around sexuality has much diminished.

So has the community that went with it.

Metamorphoses

By Mary Zimmerman. Red Line Productions, in association with Apocalypse Theatre Company and Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Old Fitz Theatre. Feb 8 - Mar 10, 2018

Ovid compiled his famous collection of Greek legends two millennia ago, which Mary Zimmerman adapted for the American stage two decades ago.  True to the fashion of the 1990’s, she centred her theatre ofMetamorphoses around a pool of water.

Barmaids

By Katherine Thomson. Gold Coast Little Theatre, Southport. Director: Michael Sutton. Feb 10 - March 10, 2018

The language was ripe! No topic off limits! And the coarseness of everyday life was front and foremost!

Michael Sutton has recreated the bar of yesteryear with everything (so I’m told) that made the hub of the suburbs such a necessary part of life.

The Barmaids: Kate McNair – Nancy and Tara Page – Val, are both Gold Coast Area Palm Award winners for their leading actress performances in past shows.

These two “beer pullers” are the entire cast; except for some “dumb” pub patrons and some unsuspecting audience members.

Charlotte's Web

By Jason Robinette and Charles Strouse. Stirling Players. Directed by Fran Gordon. Stirling Theatre, Innaloo, WA. Feb 9-24, 2018

Charlotte’s Web is based on the favourite children’s book of the same name by E.B. White, about a runt pig rescued by a little girl, then saved from the butcher’s block by a loving and literate spider.

Old Actors Never Die - They Simply Lose the Plot

By Lynn Brittney. Tugun Theatre Co., Gold Coast Director: Cecile Campbell. Feb 8 - 24, 2018

This show is a complete contrast to Tugun’s last raunchy offering: not a dancing pole in sight!

Set in a stately home for retired entertainers, the scene is the tastefully decorated sitting room.

The plot involves a variety of former performers and the Russian Mafia and has a large cast of seasoned actors, too numerous to list all the performers.

19 Weeks

By Emily Steel. Directed by Nescha Jelk (original direction by Daisy Brown). The Pool at COMO - The Treasury, for the Blue Room Theatre Summer Nights, Emily Steel and Fringe World. Jan 30 - Feb 10, 2018

19 Weeks feels different from the outset. Played in the pool at COMO - The Treasury, the audience sit with their feet in the water, and are soon submerged in this fascinating, gripping and heartbreaking story. 

Subscribe to our E-Newsletter, buy our latest print edition or find a Performing Arts book at Book Nook.