The Social Reckoning (M) – 112 minutes – movie review
Inspired by fact, The Social Reckoning is one of my movies of the year. Based…
Macy Gray: Live, at Hamer Hall and touring – concert review
The distinctive rasp and soul are there in abundance, as is the rhythm. In fact, syncopation is very much in her wheelhouse. Macy Gray and her most attractive sounding “wigged” band mates and backing singer and warm up act, soul and R & B singer Emi Secrest, are as one. Gray, resplendent in orange, has…
Young Frankenstein (Stagebugs Productions), at Theatre Works – musical theatre review
It is so silly, so over the top and so funny. If slapstick and physical humour are your bent, this has it in spades. Nineteen years after the outrageous Mel Brooks musical comedy opened on Broadway, Young Frankenstein comes to St Kilda’s Theatre Works. It is based on Brooks’ and Gene Wilder’s 1974 film that…
The Sleeping Beauty (The Stuttgart Ballet), presented by The Australian Ballet, at Regent Theatre – ballet review
Balletic excellence and stunning beauty characterise The Stuttgart Ballet’s adaptation of the classic fairytale popularised by the Brothers Grimm. With choreography by Marcia Haydée, after Marius Petipa, she and artistic director Tamas Detrich have crafted something quite delightful. It premiered in Stuttgart in May 1987. Unfolding in three acts, with two intervals, the first involving…
Housewarming, at Ian Potter State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne – theatre review
What a grand way to reintroduce the magnificent, newly renovated Ian Potter State Theatre to those who appreciate theatrical excellence. In short, hold a housewarming, with a cavalcade of top shelf entertainment to be savoured FOR FREE. That was the offering from Friday, 9th October through to Sunday, 11th October 2026 in seven, hour-long performances….
Alcotraz, at 592 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne – immersive theatre review
Locked up, with no place to go. After all, you are in a jail, with ocean all around (think Alcatraz). And yet a horrible infection is spreading. Inmates are dying. Still, at least moonshine is on the menu, even though the screws tell you it ain’t. Welcome to the immersive experience that is Alcotraz. As…
Cry-Baby: The Musical (Saltpillar Theatre), at Phoenix Theatre, Elwood – musical theatre review
You have built a reputation as a bad boy, even though the moniker is untrue, but try as you do, you can’t break the tag until the truth finally outs. That, in a nutshell, is the plot of Cry-Baby: The Musical, which opened on Broadway in April 2008. Set in 1954, it is based on…
The Social Reckoning (M) – 112 minutes – movie review
Inspired by fact, The Social Reckoning is one of my movies of the year. Based on the 2021 Facebook Files leak by whistleblower Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison) and the reporting of Wall Street Journal investigative journalist Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White), it is intoxicating. In fact, it is mighty scary and thrilling at the same…
The Spare Room (Victorian Opera), at The Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne – opera review
Helen Garner’s semi-autobiographical 2008 novel about the hell of offering a spare room to a good friend with stage four cancer resonated strongly. It collected a series of gongs, including Victorian and Queensland Premiers’ Literary Awards and the Barbara Jefferis Award. And now, following five years of work, composer Dr Jane Hammond and librettist Theresa…
Am I Who? x 2, at Meat Market (part of Melbourne Fringe Festival) – theatre review
Her life story has hardly been straightforward but, dare I say, that is what makes it compelling. I speak of Iranian immigrant Sahra Davoudi, who arrived in Melbourne at age 25 and had to learn English. In fact, the first words she mastered were “sorry” and “hey, how you goin’?” She tells us about a…
Rhomboid, at fortyfivedownstairs – theatre review
What do you call a loving relationship that can’t readily be categorised? Rhomboid, according to the central character in Eric Jiang’s humorous and poignant play of that name. A dictionary definition of the term is also apt in terms of what unfolds, for it refers to a lopsided diamond. Filipino Xavier (Ken Paolo) and Caucasian…
