A 110-minute set from James Blunt had the capacity crowd at Rod Laver Arena totally sold from the get go, as his distinctive tone rang out across the stadium. For a born entertainer who has been touring for the past year and three quarters, his passion and enthusiasm remain surprisingly fresh and infectious. That, in…
I saw the feel good, comedic, part musical, part play, part concert Here You Come Again when it was first in Melbourne for a brief run in July and I enjoyed it. I appreciated it even more second time around. It is a lot of fun and carries a relatable message that resonates. The legendary,…
The creativity and excellence in diverse forms of movement and the emotion it generated in Week 1 of Dance X continues with aplomb into Week 2. The major program has four companies each performing a short work over a total of two hours including interval, at Playhouse in Arts Centre Melbourne. Stephanie Lake Company’s Auto…
Author Donald Horne coined the expression “the lucky country” in his 1964 book titled “The Lucky Country: Australia in the Sixties”. But whether you see us as a lucky country now (or in the past) depends upon your experiences and perceptions. And now to a musical of the same name, tackled with humour and heartache,…
There are apologies and then there are apologies. Some are genuinely heartfelt, while others are confected. In other words, the latter aren’t real apologies. Still, all get a workout in the highly interactive and engaging show, Sincere Apologies. Positioned alongside a standing microphone in the middle of a few rows of wooden seating in the…
What a glorious production of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s choreographed Manon, which showcases all that is great about ballet. Featuring artists of The Australian Ballet with Orchestra Victoria, under the baton of Charles Barker, the staging is inspired, the costuming magnificent and the dancing sublime. Based on Abbé Prévost’s 1731 novel, love is pitted against money,…
Companionship, care and fluidity of movement distinguish a compelling new work by choreographers and dancers Jayden Lewis Wall and Melissa Yvonne Pham. Flesh Vessel is an appropriate title, as three bodies align and intersect throughout the 45-minute piece, which is an impactful, physical expression of self. Against a stark background, a body covered in black…
What distinguishes Dance X is creativity and excellence in diverse forms of movement and the emotion it generates. Make no mistake, feelings surface and explode – that is certainly true in my case. There is a primal connection to the art form. In a special fortnight of dance at Arts Centre Melbourne, I started with…
Imagine falling in love with a man many years your senior whose wife passed a year earlier, then quickly marrying him and moving to his stunning, sprawling estate. But far from the world being your oyster, you are shut off from his thoughts, isolated and lonely, very much living in the shadow of his beautiful…
From cabaret to comedy, music to dance, theatre to the visual arts and a lot more, diversity is the key to the 2025 Melbourne Fringe Festival. That was on display at the opening night gala at the Capitol Theatre, which gave us a taste of the almost 500-strong show lineup in this, the festival’s 43rd…
