The Shark is Broken, at Athenaeum Theatre – theatre review
You may well have heard that shooting the movie Jaws (1975) was hardly a walk…
The Nutcracker (The Australian Ballet), at the Ian Potter State Theatre and Joan Sutherland Theatre – ballet review
What a pleasure it was to be in the audience to see such a spectacular production of the first ballet to be performed at the newly refurbished State Theatre three years on. Composed by Tchaikovsky, with choreography by Peter Wright, Lev Ivanov and Vincent Redmon, complete with additional choreography by the Birmingham Royal Ballet, The…
Klara and the Sun (M) – 116 minutes – movie review
Quirky and bittersweet comes this dystopian, AI, science fantasy about an obsolete, empathetic companion robot. Her name is Klara (Jenna Ortega) and she is happy, smiling and enthusiastic. She has a predilection to bend one knee while standing. Klara is obsessed by the sun, convinced it is all powerful – God-like, if you will –…
Bad Apples (MA) – 100 minutes – movie review
There is teaching a troublesome kid and then there is TEACHING a troublesome kid. Maria Spencer’s (Saoirse Ronan) life would be so much more satisfying without having to allow for Danny’s (Eddie Waller) violent and disruptive ways. Seemingly permanently angry and uncooperative, he is the ultimate primary school horror child. As the film opens, on…
The Gospel According to Paul, at Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne – theatre review
Witty, acerbic and insightful, Jonathan Biggins gloriously captures the essence of former Prime Minister and Treasurer Paul Keating. It is a 90-minute tour de force performance, during which you dare not avert your eyes for a moment. He parades around a stylish, maroon coloured set, complete with paintings, mantelpiece clocks, ceramic vases, a bankers’ desk…
Just an Illusion – 114 minutes – movie review
A feel good, comedic, period drama, Just an Illusion concerns the trials and tribulations of a French family of four. The year is 1985 and we are in suburban Paris Navigating first love can be challenging, especially when you are 12 years old and part of a family that rarely agrees on anything. That is…
The Shark is Broken, at Athenaeum Theatre – theatre review
You may well have heard that shooting the movie Jaws (1975) was hardly a walk in the park. In fact, then 26-year-old director Steven Spielberg ran into all sorts of problems. He insisted it be shot in the ocean – the first picture filmed in that environment, rather than in a tank – making it…
Songs from the Canyon, at Hamer Hall and touring – concert review
Such a special sound at an unforgettable concert that is well worth travelling far and wide to see and hear. Mellifluous vocals reach deep into your soul. In short, it feels like a warm embrace of gentler times – of yesteryear. Every one of the 24 songs is simply so enticing in the hands of…
Mayfair: A New Musical, at Chapel Off Chapel – musical theatre review
The voiceover at the start of the show speaks volumes. “How old were you when you stopped playing?” The reference is to imaginative and unstructured play, to make believe, if you will. Young children, in particular, have it in spades. It happens automatically, intrinsically. In short, it takes very little effort. But as one grows…
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…
