Reviews

This reviewer has been involved in theatre for longer than I care to remember and the depth of talent both on and off the stage in Adelaide never ceases to amaze me. The latest offering from University of Adelaide Theatre Guild is no exception. Edward Albee’s Pulitzer Prize winning Three Tall Women was written shortly after the death of his mother in 1991 and is strongly autobiographical. Albee draws on his childhood that, while privileged, was devoid of a loving mother. He draws on memories of a mother who preferred horses to people and almost anyone to her adopted son.

Wagner may have been famous for synthesising all the arts into his operas, but with this concert version it’s a starker affair.  The singers stand in a row, the mighty chorus at the back and the Opera Australia Orchestra moves from pit to centre stage.  

Here the conductor, Pinchas Steinberg, is the star.

After a successful Tannhäuser in 2016, Melbourne Opera lifted the bar further with Wagner’s Lohengrin. We knew we were in for a special evening with an ethereal start to the overture, the sixty piece orchestra under the firm baton of David Kram. Having the brass in the boxes at the side of the auditorium added to the excitement.

Jekyll and Hyde is a musical written to reflect the duality of the human condition, and I was thrilled when I found out that Triple Threat Theatre Company in Mackay was taking it on for their first big performance in the Mackay Entertainment Convention Centre. Triple Threat have been making a name for themselves over the past few years hosting smaller productions, and in a town this size it’s brave to see a smaller company tackling such a large show and venue.