Where’s the Dog?

Just a picture-perfect family. Mum, Dad, two kids, and the dog. It might look ideal, but it’s far from it in this new musical from Dr Erin McKellar and Jeremy Anderson, where the dysfunctional family are only held together by the shared affection for the dog, Billy.

So when Billy goes missing, the simmering aggression between husband and wife explodes, and the two sisters bitch about how much better they are than the other. It’s black comedy, with robust language and themes, but it is hilarious: in no small part because of the performance of co-writer Anderson as the dog, Billy. He’s mastered the disgusting habits of the family pet, and in his own dream sequences, converses with the audience as to how hard it is to have to listen to everyone constantly complain.

The rest of the cast are just as good: Michelle Kelsey is Jen, the mum, who is believably resentful of Adam Goodburn’s Derek, the dad. Kelsey and Goodburn bounce off each other brilliantly, though each get their own moments to shine, especially in the songs. Kelsey’s voice is more musical theatre and Goodburn’s has operatic tones, but this only strengthens the support of their ‘I-could-have-been’ dreams.

Amy Roff as the younger daughter Annabel, is wonderful as a young woman, trying to lose the ‘teenager’ title and make her way in the grown-up world, unlike her older sister, Daisy (McKellar), who think she knows it all, and isn’t afraid to tell everyone.

It’s quick sixty-minute musical that reveals the cracks of a family just trying to survive together, and the destruction is bleak, though caricatured. Its resolution is far too simple and predictable, and there’s scope for more inventive storytelling – this felt like a workshop for something bigger.

However, its focus here is entertainment, and in that, it’s an over-achiever. The performances are excellent, the music is brash, the lyrics hilariously rude, and songs like ‘Derek Do the Dishes’, ‘I Love the Dog More Than You’, and ‘The Favourite Child’ are clever in narrative and comedy.

To check out our round-up of Adelaide Fringe reviews, click here.