Be they flocking or fleeing, birds are always a sign of impending danger. Hell, if you grew up in Brisbane, the clicking sound of a magpie’s beak and the beat of black wings are a certain sign of danger. The Bluebird Mechanicals is no less than this. A neat artist’s palate of danger organised, devised…
Plunge is innovative theatre at its best. What an extraordinary experience to be able to be a part of a production where you follow the actors across various locations of The Gold Coast Aquatic Centre, soon to be centre pieced for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The audience are provided with headphones where a mixture of…
Khon is a genre of dance drama from Thailand that combines several forms – dance, music, painting and crafts. Traditionally performed exclusively at the court and for royal functions, the masked dance is created for the Devine King with scenes from the Ramakien. On this night at the Sydney Opera House, KHON: Exquisite Masked Dance…
In 2016, My Fair Lady celebrated its Diamond Jubilee with a series of stunning shows around Australia, including a run at the Sydney Opera House. An encore season at the Capitol Theatre with most of the same principal cast and crew returns in 2017 and it still dazzles like a rare diamond. It is a reminder…
Modern Jesus is an intriguing new play that reminds us that you only need a tiny spark to start a raging inferno. It is thought-provoking look at what it means to be 20-something in Australia today, although the themes would resonate with audiences anywhere in the West. But a couple of things hold it back…
Dementia is a truly terrifying condition, one that attacks the very sense of self. It affects not only the sufferer but also those closest to them in the most distressing of ways. In Sydney Theatre Company’s production of The Father this distress is both portrayed and felt keenly, even when the play itself deliberately makes…
From little things big things grow. Paul Kelly could have sung this about Australia’s very own, Dame Nellie Melba. This famous soprano grew up with rather modest beginnings before she forged her own fabulous career. She eventually took the world by storm and become a renowned opera diva. The Hayes Theatre are playing host to…
Jonathan Harker has been sent to deepest, darkest Transylvania, to do business with the mysterious Count Dracula, who wishes to move to England. But the Count has goals far more sinister than merely purchasing property in Victorian London. Trapping Jonathan in his castle, he reveals himself to be a vampire, plotting to make England his…
The characters in Terence Rattigan’s After the Dance spend a lot of the play complaining about people they consider boring. But sadly for the New Theatre, the biggest bore in this production is the play itself. Despite some commendable performances by key members of the cast, this play just doesn’t seem to have anything to…
The world is ending. On the eve of the apocalypse, seven actors come together to stage Shakespeare’s Hamlet, that infamous tale of crippling indecision, madness real and feigned, and murder most foul. Over the course of the production, the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur, as the cast try to come to terms…
As you enter the Beckett Theatre, ‘Rebel Yell’ by Billy Idol is blasting through the speakers and various Google searches are being projected onto the big screen at the back of the stage. Ever wondered how much a horse costs, or how much a blow job costs, or if you can take a dead squirrel…
Prior to the commencement of the Second World War, Britain took in over 10,000 Jewish refugee children from Europe. This was known as Kindertransport, with the majority of the children never seeing their families again. Diane Samuels play, Kindertransport, follows the story of Eva who is sent from Hamburg to England in 1938 when she…
We all know the story about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the undeniable suffering he endured in his last hours. Well, this musical – Jesus Christ Superstar – chronicles the days leading up to Jesus’ last, and does so through song and dance. With Andrew Lloyd Webber as the almighty creator of this work, it’s understandable…
Hello, Goodbye & Happy Birthday explores the fears and hopes of those looking for direction at the start of their lives and those searching for peace at the end. The cast is made up of three young performers (Aileen Huynh, Izabella Yena and Matthew Connell) and three older performers (Jim Daly, Roger Oakley and Evelyn…
The Space Theatre stage setting is sparse; a central console and an outer ring of lights are the only props. The three performers, Black, White and Grey enter the stage to the sound of pulsing music and start to circle around the space, slowly at first then picking up the pace. The effect is one…
Have you ever said to yourself, “this weekend I want an uber-cheesy, sparkly glittery, overly accented, pyrotechnic spectacular?” Well then maybe The Bodyguard – which just kicked off its four week run in Brisbane – is for you. Whether or not you’ve seen the movie is not in the criteria to enjoy this show. It’s…
Language warning: if the title makes you uneasy you probably won’t enjoy this show. It slaps you across the face with vulgarity, ugliness and brutality. But if you love innovative, challenging theatre, you must see SHIT at the Seymour Centre this July. SHIT is not so much a narrative as it is a profile of…
In a theatre hidden in the back of a pub in the depths of Wolloomooloo gather a motley cast of characters who look to have stepped straight onto the stage from the street outside. Throw in a hefty dose of humour, a smattering of nostalgia and a generous amount of alcohol and you have This…
After the death of their Mother, two estranged half-sisters enter into a heated debate over which one of them owns a coveted stamp collection. Jackie (Kitty Hopwood) is the younger of the two and she sees the sale of the stamp collection as her ticket to a better life. Standing in her way is Mary…
If you feel like your current workout regime is just not doing it for you anymore, and you need a little something extra, a little bit of inspiration to get that summer body back on track, might I suggest a night out at the theatre. Noises Off is quite literally the funniest show you will ever see,…
In a bleak midwinter comes forth STC’s Cloud Nine– surprising, hilarious, shocking and magnificent. The staging bespokes a Kip Williams production in its minimal design, allowing focus to solely rest upon its carefully selected cast. A layer of dirt covers the ground, upon it a glass box to which the actors retire occasionally to be…
If you’re looking for a good time, call Belvoir! The iconic Sydney theatre’s latest production, The Rover, will have you doubling over your doublets with laughter. A delightful classical script, paired with comedically-gifted actors and a theatre company who knows how to have fun, make this show a must-see. Written in 1677 by Aphra Behn,…
Even though it is billed as a cabaret, Vigil is something that is far from that label. This one-person show – commissioned by the Adelaide Cabaret Festival – is filled with songs and interludes that weave through its story. While cabaret is traditionally seen as something jovial, Vigil cannot lay claim to this. It is…
Front is a new theatre production whose name could mean lots of different things. The band could all be a “front” for something else, a group often has a “front” man and being an artist means you have to perform on-stage “front” and centre. The play is a rocking one that takes a walk on…
I’ve never had a hero like Tamblyn Lord. Well, unless Ash Ketchum, the protagonist of the 1990s animated children’s television show Pokémon, counts. Lord’s latest theatrical exploration, ‘Call of The Ice’, chronicles the voyage he painstakingly took in January 2016 to recreate the journey of his childhood (and lifelong) hero Sir Douglas Mawson. Now, as…
Do you enjoy watching scantily clad men and woman perform tantalising tasks, whilst sashaying across a stage enclosed in the famed Speigeltent? Well do I have a treat for you, Blanc de Blanc has just landed in Melbourne! So come one come all to St Kilda’s Winter Garden where things are about to get just…
By definition, revolt means to “take violent action against an established government or ruler”, so the fact it is in the title of the show holds great weight in the tellings of this story. This original work by Alice Birch explores the notion of what being a woman means in the 21st century, and how our…
Outstanding performances from four extremely talented Australian actors make Sunset Strip worthy of the (relatively small) price of admission. The Uncertainty Principle and Griffin Independent Theatre have delivered a beautiful piece of theatre. Just don’t expect sunshine and laughter. By a dried up lake somewhere in regional Australia is a once-thriving holiday town called Sunset…
Most people would be familiar with the story of Cyrano De Bergerac – doesn’t ring a bell? – perhaps you’re more familiar with the 1987 film adaptation Roxanne, with Steve Martin as the plays protagonist Cyrano. Written in 1897, the themes of Edmond Rostand’s play are as relevant today as when he wrote it. Questions…
According to the contestants on this year’s series of Masterchef, 30 minutes is not long enough to infuse a dish with the flavour punch the judges are looking for. But it’s more than enough time for the cast and crew of SLUT, on now at the Old Fitz theatre. This whirlwind of a play is…
