Reviews

Yank!

Music: Jospeh Zellnik, Book & Lyrics: David Zellnik. Understudy Productions. Director: Ian Good. Musical Director: Trevor Jones. Choreographer: Dan Venz. Brisbane Powerhouse, 4-14 July 2019

Independent musical theatre company Understudy Productions keep gloriously punching above their weight. Their Men of Sondheim collected kudos for its look at the songwriter’s work through gay eyes, Edges introduced the songs of Pasek & Paul long before they became flavour-of-the-month, earlier in the year Naomi Price was electric in a well-reviewed revival of Sweet Charity, and now they’re showcasing the first Australian production of Yank!, a gay love story of two soldiers during World War II.

Muriel’s Wedding the Musical

Book by PJ Hogan. Music and Lyrics by Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall. Based on the Movie with additional songs by ABBA. Global Creatures and Sydney Theatre Company. Directed by Simon Phillips. Set and costumes by Gabriella Tylesova. Lyric Theatre Sydney. Opening Night: July 4, 2019

With an almost new cast, Sydney welcomed back Muriel’s Wedding the Musical like beloved relatives at a family reunion. According to PJ Hogan, who wrote and directed the original film, the story of ‘terrible’ Muriel Heslop no longer belongs to him but to everyone who loves the story. Updated to bring Muriel into the social media age, the tale has been refreshed and makes more sense in age when someone can become famous for being famous.

The Cabin

Created by Joseph O’Farrell. Darebin Arts Speakeasy. Main Hall, Northcote Town Hall Arts Centre. 3 – 13 July 2019.

The Cabinreceived a really positive accolade from the audience and the foyer was abuzz with enthusiasm on opening night.  The kids are exhilarating and energetic and the performance is funny and fun.  My plus one and I had an enjoyable time.

Giantess

Cassie Workman. MELT Festival. Brisbane Powerhouse. 4 – 6 July 2019

After a journey to Brisbane’s Powerhouse catching post-work-commute conversations about spreadsheets and kitchen renovations, Cassie Workman’s performance in Giantess is like a lifeline to a fresh stratosphere. More multi-layered than mere mash-up, Giantess is a finely honed performance piece. Like all excellent comedy, it has an underlying sorrow that nails life truths that we can all relate to.

The Boxties: A net of souls. Songs of dislocation and common ground

Presented by QPAC. Directed by Steph McCaw. Cremorne Theatre, QPAC, South Bank, June 27 – 29, 2019

Do we succumb to all fears or do we tell stories of the ‘kindness, courage and kinship’ amongst people who stood up against forces that sought to grind them down?

This is the question Ben Burrows leaves with the audience after more than an hour of insatiable music-making by a Brisbane ensemble whose collective voice strikes at the heart and the head.

Twigs That Never Took

Written & performed by Donna de Palma. Directed by Carmel Hyland. La Mama Courthouse, Carlton VIC. 3 – 7 July 2019

A woman, ‘Bianca’, in a wedding dress, talks about her life from flower girl to First Communion to her own first and then second weddings…  Bianca loves weddings, loves the euphoria of them, the ceremony, the music.  It’s afterwards, when real life resumes, that is the problem.

Anna Bolena

By Donizetti. Opera Australia. Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House. July 2 – 26, 2019.

Gaetano Donizetti’s operatic interpretation of Henry VIII’s scheming ‘removal’ of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, in order to marry his third queen, Jane Seymour, presents the disreputable English king in a scandalous drama. In the recently renovated Joan Sutherland Theatre, past and present meet in an explosion of digitally enhanced sets, sumptuous costumes and formidable voices.

Once

Book by Edna Walsh. Music and Lyrics by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. Based on the film by John Carney. Darlinghurst Theatre Company. Directed by Richard Carroll. Eternity Playhouse. June 26 – July 21, 2019.

Melbourne beat Sydney to the punch to present this Tony Award winning musical by four years, but Harbour city patrons got the better deal in being able to see it up close and personal in the Eternity Playhouse.  

The venue – with a narrow wide stage and no backstage space is not always an easy space to present intimate drama.

Once, a big hearted juicy musical, feels like it is home at the Darlinghurst Theatre. Such was the resonance of being so close to the action that patrons found it hard to imagine seeing it inside a larger venue.

What’s Love Got to Do With It?

Written & performed by ‘Nefertiti La Negra’ (Mark Brown II). Melbourne Cabaret Festival. Chapel off Chapel. 28 – 29 June 2019

As we take our seats Tina Turner is on the PA, belting out the song with the same title as this show – and I wonder, ‘Is that setting the bar a little high?’  Then Nefertiti LaNegra appears – a tall, very well-built man – in ‘outrageous’ drag queen attire – a cascade of crimped, honey-blonde hair, dramatic silver, black and green eye shadow, heavy jewellery, white cloak with fur collar over a sparkly fabric cutaway frock exposing midriff and a lot of leg – and a nicely trimmed goatee beard.  The ensemble says, or tries

Much Ado About Nothing

By William Shakespeare (The Shakesbeer Sessions). Presented by Bar’d Works. The King Of Tonga, 164A Tennyson Street, Elwood. 7 - 30 June, 2019 (various locations).

The opportunity to experience Shakespeare in a pub setting is truly rare. Bar’d works, highlights the bawdy and raucous nature of the Shakespeare’s work in order to recreate the atmosphere of the original performances. The show is adapted for a contemporary context, however, the same fundamental principles of a direct and interactive approach are applied. The result is a refreshing and energetic take on this canonical text.

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