Reviews

When One Door Closes

Written and directed by Courtney Hough. Fringe World. Chemistry, The Girls School, East Perth, WA. Jan 25-30, 2022

When One Door Closes is a feel-good cabaret - written, directed, and performed by Courtney Hough - that played in Chemistry at the Girls School. A beautifully performed look at dating, the experiences of the last two years and modern life, it features Courtney’s outstanding singing and a smattering of clever comedy.

Conversations With a Fish

Written and Directed by Helah Milroy. The Blue Room Studio, Perth Cultural Centre, WA. Jan 27 - Feb 3, 2022

Conversations With a Fish is an interesting concept. In five short vignettes, fish face a variety of dilemmas, and the audience are asked to decide their fate. A look at the human experience through the eyes of the fish.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

By Edward Albee. State Theatre Company South Australia. Dunstan Playhouse, Adelaide. 27 Jan – 6 Feb 2022.

Known for his challenging and controversial works, Edward Albee’s widely acclaimed Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, winner of a 1963 Tony Award,  first challenged audiences when it arrived on Broadway in 1962 and has been reinterpreted by director Margaret Harvey, through a new and unique Australian lens. Albee was a deeply political writer who commented that he liked plays to be “useful, not merely decorative”.

Alex and Evie and the Forever Falling Rain

By Sophie Minissale. Every Other Theatre Company / Fringe World. Directed by Anais Popoff-Asotoff and Julia Schwab. Studio Underground, State Theatre Centre of WA, Perth, WA. Jan 27-29, 2022

Alex and Evie and the Forever Falling Rain ran for a very short season as part of State and Play and Fringe World, in Studio Underground. Presented by Every Other Theatre Company, this sweet, beautifully presented show was a perfect treat for the last few days of school holidays.

On entering the auditorium, audiences were entertained and warmed up by actor Jeremy Hansen who plays Alex, seeking to make friends in the crowd. Lovely that this came back into the story later, but that families who entered at the last minute did not miss content.

Broad

By Geraldine Quin. Gasworks / Midsumma Festival. Jan 27 – 29, 2022

Out of lockdown, back on the performing circuit, the feisty ginger-headed Geraldine Quinn begins her musical cabaret show paying homage to the wonderful “red headed” women who caught her imagination when growing up, such as Agnes Moorehead, Vivienne Westwood and Carol Burnett. Her new show Broad has been lurking about; having been put on hold for the obvious reasons yet again, it has finally hit the boards to an applauding audience.

The Marriage of Figaro

Composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Opera Australia. Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House. January 27 - February 18, 2022.

The juvenile sense of humour which Mozart was famously depicted as having in the movie Amadeus, rings true when you watch his opera The Marriage of Figaro.

Straw Brain

Written and directed by Taylor Broadley. HoneyBomb. Fringe World. After Dark Pier St, Perth WA. 26-29 January 2022

Straw Brain is a brand-new musical from the author of The Kildeer and A Boy Wanted To. Presented by HoneyBomb, this sweet little production is very much a feel-good show that leaves the audience smiling. 

This is a one man and one bird show. Subtitled “The wonderful adventures of Straw Brain and a defiant little crow”, it is a scarecrow’s voyage of self-discovery and realisation.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical

Book by Douglas McGrath. Songs by Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Cynthia Weil, Barry Mann and others. Miranda Musical Society. Anita’s Theatre, Thirroul. January 26 – 30, 2022 2022

Is Carole King’s Tapestry LP part of the soundtrack of your life?

An indelible part of my youth, at 17 it was a must-have album.

That makes Beautiful one of those musicals where I didn’t just hum the tunes as I left the theatre. I was humming them as I entered, and constraining myself from singing along during the show.

Time Capsule

Written and directed by Megan Rundle. Runaway Balloon / Fringe World. Subiaco Arts Centre, WA. January 25-29, 2022

Runaway Balloon’s first musical is a World Premiere production that keeps its audience laughing throughout. Funny and relatable, it features well-performed pop-rock music and a strong cast. 

Everyone is invited to Dunaneen High School’s ten-year reunion, and the class of 2012 are invited back for sausage rolls, free drinks, and the chance to see how much everyone has changed in ten years. The trouble is, that for Bridget, nothing has changed, so she decides to stretch the truth a little…

The Museum of Modern Love

Adapted by Tom Holloway from the novel by Heather Rose. Seymour Centre / Sydney Festival. January 22 – 30, 2022

This adaptation of Heather Rose’s celebrated novel begins in the atrium of New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Performance artist Marina Abramovic is staging her legendary 2010 feat of sitting silently staring at museum visitors for 75 days. 

Throughout the play, we never see Abramovic (real or otherwise), but constantly projected behind Stephen Curtis’ stark museum space are her visitors, each taking their turn to stare back at her (and us).

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