Reviews

Reedy River

By Dick Diamond. Redland Museum and Theatre Redlands. Director: Jan Nary. Redland Museum, 60 Smith Street, Cleveland Qld. 3 – 12 June, 2022

Celebrating Redland Museum’s 50th Anniversary, Reedy River - the Queensland Day Play for 2022 presented by Theatre Redlands - is an Australian bush musical that is ‘as warm as a handshake’.

Songs of Hope & Healing

Featuring Mahalia Barnes. Concert Hall, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), Brisbane. 7June 2022

Now, that’s how to fill a Concert Hall! Wow! Songs of Hope & Healing was a benefit concert for the charity, HEAL, which supports young people from refugee backgrounds, and the talent showcased was astounding. After a warm welcome to country by Gaja Kerry Charlton, the opening number set the tone for the 90-minute show to follow with the beautiful Bill Withers song, ‘Lovely Day’ sung by the QPAC Chamber Choir, with Tina Liu accompanying, led by Choir Master Timothy Sherlock. What a treat to hear that piece sung by more than 20 voices.

Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes

By Hannah Moscovitch. Upstairs Theatre, Belvoir St Theatre. June 2 – July 10, 2022.

It’s an age-old story, now with more teeth thanks to MeToo alerts – an illicit sexual relationship between an esteemed academic and novelist and his awed teenage student.

Canadian writer Hannah Moscovitch however steps us back from predictable outrages by telling us her story through male eyes.  Jon even speaks to us in the third person, from his desk of power and celebrity, or pacing the stage in guilt and moral fence-sitting.

Les Misérables

Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg. Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer. Original French text by Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel. CentreStage Geelong. Director: Martin Croft. Producers: David Greenwood & Dara Karlusic. Music Director: Phil Kearney. Sound Design: Nick O’Connor. Lighting Design: Jason Bovaird. Costa Hall, Geelong. June 3 - 11, 2022.

Shows of such high calibre don’t happen by chance. The creative team and volunteers at CentreStage Geelong have gone above and beyond (the barricades) to bring Les Misérables to regional theatre starved audiences. During Covid, CentreStage’s previous production, West Side Story, had to be shutdown with enormous repercussions financially and otherwise.

Philip Quast and Anne-Maree McDonald

Concert Hall, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC), Brisbane. 5 June 2022

Celebrating a career of more than 40 years treading the boards, Philip Quast presented a relaxed evening of stage favourites – from Candide to Les Misérables, with plenty of surprises in between. As he is now semi-retired from musical theatre and stage performance, Philip now teaches at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) with accompanist Anne-Maree McDonald (or ‘AM’ as he affectionately calls her), who added cheeky cabaret chic to her virtuoso performance on the piano.

The Sound of Music

By Rodgers and Hammerstein. Queensland Musical Theatre (QMT). Twelfth Night Theatre, Brisbane. 3 to 12 June 2022

Some of the best anti-war stories are those with the horrors just out of sight but foreshadowing what is to come. That’s the strength of The Sound of Music, written by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, based on Maria von Trapp’s memoir of her family’s pre-war escape from their beloved Austria to Switzerland to escape the Nazis. The story lures you in with the singing children, spirited Maria and enigmatic Captain Von Trapp, and then the clouds of war loom.

The Sound of Murder

By William Fairchild. Directed by Peter Neaves. Old Mill Theatre, South Perth, WA. June 3-18, 2021

The Sound of Murder is a nicely produced murder play, with some unexpected twists, elements of a thriller and a touch of melodrama. A good-looking production that moves swiftly and keeps its audience interested throughout.

Centred around Charles Norbury, a children’s book author who dislikes children and refuses to grant his wife a divorce. His wife Anne and her lover Peter plot his murder, but plans go seriously awry. 

Four Seasons

Queensland Symphony Orchestra Maestro Series. QPAC Concert Hall, Brisbane. 3rd June, 2022

Concert-goers were treated last night to a unique blend of musical styles with Baroque composer Vivaldi's classic example of one of the earliest forms of 'program' music (music designed to evoke an image) being coupled with a selection of Argentinian composer Piazzolla's avant garde tangos, arranged for solo violin and string orchestra by Ukranian-born Leonid Desyatnikov.

Kunstkamer

The Australian Ballet. With Orchestra Victoria. State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne. 3rd – 11th June, 2022. Live stream 10th June

There isn’t much to say about Kunstkamer which hasn’t already been written. I went to the opening night expecting that this ambitious contemporary ballet may not actually be my cup of tea. I’m happy to admit that my fears were not realized. There has been much said about David Hallberg returning to the stage and the import of Jorge Nozal, on whom the ballet was choreographed. Unsurprisingly those two dancers were magnificent in their stage presence and performance.

Mother Courage and her Children

By Bertolt Brecht. Translated by Tony Kushner, directed by Damien Millar. Produced by Lara Week and Bagryana Popov. La Mama Courthouse, 349 Drummond Street, Carlton. 1-19 June, 2022.

The story of Mother Courage captures an incredibly bleak vision of humanity when operating purely on survival instinct. This production captures all the intricacies of the different ways that individuals must navigate the realities of the Thirty Year War and somehow keep their dignity intact, as well as eek out what ultimately turns out to be a miserable existence.

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