Reviews

Dubbed one of Shakespeare’s problem plays, people – when they bother at all – debate that Troilus and Cressida is some genre mash of tragedy and comedy, satire or history.

Sean O’Riordan and his epic cast of 19 come close to a better, more radical truth.  This is a nihilistic world with vain empty characters; whether Trojan or Greek, all whores to love or war. 

O’Riordan has Homer’s warrior stars all strutting out in a celebrity fashion parade, which nicely sums it up.

Director Adam Mitchell began his process with a conversation with Summer of the Seventeenth Doll author, Ray Lawler, who 65 years after creating this classic, is still refining this beloved text.

Former Gold Coast director Clem Halpin has opened his latest production in the seaside town of Ocean Shores, a couple of klms north of Brunswick Heads, and for this venture he has chosen the Neil Simon hit comedy The Last of the Red Hot Lovers.

This four hander has the luckless Barney Cashman desperately trying to score with three women from a variety of backgrounds with hysterical results.

Bliss is a fascinating ‘look back’ at the heady days of abundance and hedonism in Sydney of the 1980’s through the sharp incisive writing of Peter Carey - filtered by way of the perceptions and dramaturgical skills of Tom Wright.   It is presented by an eclectic ensemble of versatile actors on a surprising set by Marg Horwell, with exceptional lighting (Paul Jackson) and sound (Stefan Gregory) and highly polished by direction by Matthew Lutton.  It is a lengthy, ambitious, keenly conceptualized and executed, hypnotic work that spans three hours