Imagine a well-spoken woman of a certain age describing the sex life of slugs, before transitioning to elaborate upon a swap and trade social media platform. That is what you get at Theatre Works’ Explosives Factory with Rough Trade, which happens to be the moniker for a quirky, private Facebook group. Unlike Marketplace, the exchange of money…
What a superb visual and aural feast Walanbaa Yulu-Gi is and how it has metamorphosised since Burn the Floor first burst onto the scene 25 years ago. Featuring the incredibly talented First Nations’ performer Mitch Tambo, the production has no shortage of sizzle. The deft footwork … the singing … the showmanship is top shelf all the…
A new Australian musical, Bloom hits the right notes. The delivery of effective aged care remains a contentious issue that has brought great consternation to many, before, during and after the COVID-19 lockdowns. Writer Tom Gleisner has taken that and run with it to create a humour-filled portrait of a facility for the third generation in desperate…
A tension-filled head scratcher, unease is apparent from the get-go in Far Away. A young girl, Joan (played by Noray Hosny, who alternates in the role with Darcy Sterling-Cox), is spending the night at her aunt Harper’s (Alison Whyte) place. It is the wee small hours and both are still up. Joan tells Harper she heard shrieking. Her…
The hype has been enormous, but does Barbie, the movie, live up to expectations? Well, some elements do and others not so much. The film is populated by the Barbies and Kens of Barbieland, where women rule the roost and men trail in their wake. The chief Ken (bleach blonde Ryan Gosling, with a six-pack…
The genius, the arrogance and the madness of Spanish artist Salvador Dali (played by Ben Kingsley) is front and centre in Daliland. Mary Harron’s (American Psycho) film presents a picture of a 70-year-old man obsessed with sexual creativity, but who doesn’t actually have sex. Dali deeply loves his volatile wife, Gala (Barbara Sukowa), who controls…
The Tokyo Ballet’s romantic, tragic and haunting Giselle is spectacular. It looks and sounds magnificent. It is the story of a charming and naïve peasant girl with a weak heart, who attracts the attention of a woodsman, Hilarian and a count in disguise, Albrecht. Giselle falls for the latter, but humiliated, the former vows revenge. That comes when…
Love and friendship are tested in the comedic drama This is Living. Hugh (Marcus McKenzie) and his partner Will (Wil King), both in their 30s, are taking a short break to Hepburn Springs to see in the New Year. It was costume designer Hugh’s idea and Will, who works in a theatre restaurant, couldn’t talk him out…
It is the summer of 1967 and the Vietnam War remains troubling. Young Australians are being drafted to serve. Back home, life continues. Tom (Rupert Bevan) and Meg (Cait Spiker) are in a high school production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Tom takes a fancy to Meg and engages her in awkward conversation. When their respective parents…
Director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell began the Insidious franchise in 2010. The first Insidious featured Patrick Wilson as Josh Lambert, Rose Byrne as his wife Renai, Ty Simpkins as their son Dalton and Lin Shaye as the medium Elise Rainier. It concerned a family looking to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose…
