Reviews

Abigail Williams is a poignant and electrifying theatrical piece that held the audience from the moment the lights dimmed. Set against an eerie black stage (Salem in 1692, Broadway in 1953 and Sydney in 2025), this scintillating production reimagines the infamous tale of Abigail Williams in a one-woman performance that leaves one questioning the very nature of villainy, truth, and survival.

A woman visits her scientist sister in Geneva. Alice, the Swiss-based sibling, is focused entirely on her work at the Large Hadron Collider, ignoring her teenage son. Jenny is dealing with the grief of losing a child to a disease preventable by a vaccine she didn’t trust.

Neither woman has their child’s father in their lives – nor has their ageing mother, Karen, who is long divorced from their father and needing increasing care, has accompanied Jenny to Geneva.

It’s fortuitous that Blackpill comes along at the same time as the widespread, anxious discussion about the BBC television series sensation, Adolescence.  The central issue is the same – and that is the reach and influence via the internet of the so-called ‘manosphere’ and ‘incel culture’.  But Chris Partrick Hansen’s presentation is very different from the quiet, disturbing naturalism of Adolescence: it is fast moving, black, funny and entertaining even while being chilling at the same time.

“Face the oncoming apocalypse with a drink in your hand. If we’re going down, then let’s go down swinging.” This is the invitation extended by Kaye who is renowned for his sharp, witty and often provocative humour. Kaye is not afraid to touch on political issues, in fact, he unabashedly addresses the absence of genuine and visionary leadership and the current tendency to resort to spreading fear and hatred. After a sweeping overview of the very sad and sorry state of global affairs he sets the stage for a very bleak future, especially for the LGBTQIA+ community.