Reviews

The Memory of Water

By Shelagh Stephenson. New Farm Nash Theatre Inc. Director: Sharon White. Merthyr Road Uniting Church. 8-29 Oct 2016

Sibling rivalry, familial guilt and black humour permeate the script of Shelagh Stephenson’s 1996 The Memory of Water as three sisters, who share little in common, reunite in the family home on the eve of their mother Vi’s, funeral. Childhood memories, remembered differently by each, come flooding back as they rummage through their mother’s belongings in her bedroom and come to terms with her death of Alzheimer’s disease.

War and Peace

Concept & direction Gob Squad. Devised by Niels Bormann, Katja Bürkle, Johanna Freiberg, Sean Patten, Damien Rebgetz, Tatiana Saphir, Sharon Smith, Berit Stumpf, Sarah Thom, Laura Tonke, Bastian Trost & Simon Will. Melbourne Festival, Malthouse Theatre, the Merlyn. 18 – 30 October 2016.

The cast – Sharon Smith, Tatiana Saphir, Sean Patten and Bastian Trost (or, on another evening, you might see Simon Will) – are charming, good-humoured, amusing, attractive, even endearing.

Sunshine

Written by Tom Holloway. Directed by Kirsten Von Bibra. Red Stitch. Oct 11th – Nov 5th, 2016

Red Stitch and playwright Tom Holloway have enjoyed a long symbiotic relationship, each playing a part in the growth of the other, so it’s fitting that Holloway’s new play should have its world premiere with the company that has played such a large role in the development of the work.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

By Rupert Holmes. Spotlight Theatre, Benowa, Gold Coast. Director: Andrew Cockcroft-Penman. October 21st – November 12th, 2016

This “Solve It Yourself” Musical is a piece that requires an “all star” cast and Andrew Cockcroft-Penman, Musical Director Shari Ward and Choreographers Jamie Watt, Clay English and Ebony Rose have assembled one of the best.

Secret Bridesmaid’s Business

By Elizabeth Coleman. Liverpool Performing Arts Ensemble. Directed by Johnathon Brown. Casula Powerhouse. 19 – 22 October, 2016.

It says something about how good a show is when you don’t feel like you’re watching actors on stage but instead watching real life. Such was the high calibre of LPAE’s Secret Bridesmaid’s Business.

A bride, her mum, and her bridesmaids are in a hotel room the night before the big day. Not everything goes to plan. What happens over the course of the night is at turns funny, sad, and heartfelt - but mostly funny, and even the groom pops in.

887

Written, designed, directed & performed by Robert Lepage. English translation Louisa Blair. Dramaturg Peder Bjurman. Ex Machina company. Melbourne Festival. Arts Centre Melbourne, Playhouse. 19 – 22 October 2016.

Robert Lepage is alone on stage for two hours – two hours that are never less than engrossing and absorbing – and also sometimes very funny and sometimes very angry and at other times very, very sad.  Although he talks us through his childhood memories and beyond, his show is, really, ‘about’ memory – that is, how our memories are shaped, formed and remain via context internal and external. 

The Wedding Singer

Music: Matthew Sklar, Book: Chad Beguelin (Lyrics) & Tim Herlihy. Hornsby Musical Society. Hornsby RSL. October 12 -22 2016.

Hornsby Musical Society’s The Wedding Singer is a cube of bright 80s-era romcom fluffiness. The bright set, costumes, and of-the-era pop score of original tunes make for a pleasing night.

A Streetcar Named Desire

By Tennessee Williams. La Boite. Director: Todd McDonald. Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane. 15 Oct – 12 Nov 2016

Theatre directors around the world continually look for new ways to interpret the classics and Tennessee Williams’s work is no exception. Over the years his Pulitzer-prize winning A Streetcar Named Desire has been pushed and pulled through all sorts of configurations; from being performed by an all black cast, a multi-racial cast, to drag troupes and even The Simpsons. Every major actress at some time in their career has had a stab at Blanche DuBoise, one of the theatre’s greatest tragic characters.

Always ... Patsy Cline

Created and originally directed by Ted Swindley. HIT Productions. Touring director: Denny Lawrence. Musical Director: Ross Sermons. Theatre Royal, Hobart 18 October; Princess Theatre, Launceston 20th October; Devonport Entertainment and Convention Centre, 21st October 2016

What is a legend, and why? Always ... Patsy Cline has been one of the most produced musicals in America and has also been enjoyed internationally by audiences in Canada, the UK and Australia. This new production directed by Denny Lawrence is completing an Australia-wide tour. The warmth of the polished production, starring Courtney Conway as Patsy Cline and Mandi Lodge as Louise Seger is immediate and all encompassing, but the secret must be the enduring music of Patsy Cline.

 

Othello

By William Shakespeare. Directed by Peter Evans. Bell Shakespeare Company. The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre. 14-22 October, 2016, then The Playhouse, Sydney Opera House, 25 October – 4 December.

This is a powerful Othello with three exceptional performances at the heart. Yalin Ozucelik’s Iago and Elizabeth Nabben’s Desdemona were excellent, but Ray Chong Nee was remarkable. His anger and anguish are utterly real, and he was visibly shaken at the curtain call.

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