A musical for the littlies – I speak of preschoolers and primary school age children – Madagascar The Musical is based on the successful animated motion picture. It is colourful and fun, and involves live action and puppetry. The premise is that Marty the zebra was born in captivity in New York’s Central Park Zoo. Although he…
Told in flashback, Blueback is a feel-good story with a strong environmental message about protecting the reef. Abby Jackson (Mia Wasikowska) is a marine biologist researching coral bleaching. Unexpectedly, she learns that her mother Dora (Radha Mitchell) has just had a stroke and can’t speak. She quickly returns to her childhood home on the Western…
Vanya Polunin is to clowning what Sir Donald Bradman was to cricket – a genius. Honing his highly creative endeavour over decades, he is unique and ubiquitous. When he created Snowshow in 1993 he wanted to go beyond the regulation clown show. Taking a cue from the surrealist painters he admired so much, combining comedy with poignancy, Polunin…
A new Pharoah has stepped into Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. Trevor Ashley, who played Edna Turnblad in Hairspray more than a decade ago, is that performer, who mimics Elvis in Las Vegas. It is a role he will also play in the upcoming Sydney season at the Capitol Theatre. At the Regent Theatre in Melbourne he is…
The tumultuous life of the world’s most awarded female vocalist is put under the spotlight in I Wanna Dance with Somebody. Whitney Houston (Naomi Ackie) was the greatest voice of a generation, who enjoyed the highest of highs and succumbed to excess, indulgence and heartache. Tragically she died at 48. The fact that she had…
Puss in Boots (the voice of Antonio Banderas) first appeared in Shrek 2 in 2004, before showing up again in a couple of other Shrek sequels and then a standalone film in 2011. Now the swashbuckling adventurer returns in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. This time, he’s facing his biggest challenge – losing his…
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile is fanciful fun for the whole family. This lightweight fare will put a smile on the faces of littlies, their parents and grandparents. It’s a live action/CGI musical comedy – a bit of colour, song and silliness to soften even the hardest of hearts. Hector P. Valenti (Javier Bardem) is a wannabe…
The magnificent journey that is Avatar continues with awe-inspiring distinction in The Way of Water. The franchise has maintained its ability to mesmerise and excite. Seeing it in 3D on the biggest screen possible, with the most advanced sound, served to heighten an already captivating experience. Maestro James Cameron doesn’t do anything by halves and…
Sophia (Lou Wall) has been desperate to get into the property market for some time. So it is that (yet again) she puts the hard word on her father – Tony (Joe Petruzzi) – trying to guilt him into going 50/50 with her on an apartment she has found. He is far from impressed. It is small,…
Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen’s Little Eyolf (1894) is a searing portrait of angst. Rita (Elisa Armstrong) is deeply in love with Alfred (Damien Harrison). He’s a writer and they have been married for a decade, but she fears his feelings for her have shifted. He’s just returned from a fortnight walking in the mountains, a trip he has…
