Navigating the vicissitudes in a relationship can be tricky at the best of times, but cross-cultural unions more often than not face additional difficulties. So it is with Ella (Eleanor Barkla) and Hasseb (Oz Malik). The pair meets at a performance workshop. They are from opposite sides of the Thames. He is a poet and she is…
Rhonda Burchmore sizzles in Cabaret De Paris. With those golden tonsils of hers, she sings up a storm. It is great to see and hear her in such fine form. She looks like she hasn’t aged at all. How does she do it? She’s cheeky, cheery, sexy and seductive. It is her showcase and she delivers in spades,…
It has been said that the first casualty of war is the truth. Unfortunately, as human casualties escalate, the task of knowing what the truth is becomes murkier. All My Sons looks into this issue at a family level, where grief, hurt and anger is matched by lies and cover up. Written by Arthur Miller…
La Boite Theatre’s first mainstage presentation of 2023, the world premiere co-production of The Poison of Polygamy comes with an array of content advisories. The work, which is recommended for audiences aged 15+ contains descriptions of murder, violence, drug use, sexual activities and references to suicide. The production also contains loud noises and the use…
It is the 13th century and we are with German poet and singer Tannhäuser (Stefan Vinke). Having left the company of his fellow troubadours, he has given himself over to lust in another world inhabited by the goddess Venus (Anna-Louise Cole). But he longs for his old life and so he leaves, only to find himself…
Today, deteriorating mental health is spoken about far more often than it used to be, which is a good thing, but what does it look like up close and personal? Based on her own experiences, Chelsea Plumley’s insightful work takes us there. 41-year-old Shelley (Petra Glieson) is quite a handful. She always has been. She has…
Tony Burge, who assumes the role of lead FBI agent Carl Hanratty chasing boyish con man Frank Abagnale Jr. excels in Cloc’s production of Catch Me If You Can. He is strong vocally and as an actor, with a fine command of comic timing, which is a key ingredient in the musical. With book by Terrence McNally,…
The ‘50s and ‘60s continue to resonate as Shake Rattle ‘N’ Roll gives us a cavalcade of song, movement and colour. The fuse is re-lit and burns for more than two hours, thanks to a poised, polished and preened cast of four singers and 10 dancers. The pretence is the re-creation of famous, gravelly voiced American DJ…
A couple of bumbling, small time crims luck out in the farcical comedy The Wrong Horse. I speak of best mates Noddy (Darren Mort) and Big Ears (Dom Phelan). Big Ears – who has a “wind” issue – is forever sponging off Noddy … dropping in at his place all hours of the day and night, drinking…
Sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. That may well be the signature tune for 19-year-old unemployed, reckless, gay Australian Ari (Danny Ball), except that his “poison” is grunge and hip-hop. Ari is drawn to Melbourne’s gay clubs, unprotected sex, hard drugs (it is dead set easy to get hold of stuff) and thumping music. He distances and denounces…
