In Nerve, the title refers to a popular on-line social media game in which competitors are set challenges, a bit like an internet version of Fear Factor. The more dangerous the challenge, the more money a person can make, but if you fail to complete the challenge you get nothing. All of the challenges have…
The world premiere of The Norman Mailer Anecdote by Big Scary Animal was an exciting night of firsts. It was the first production of the inaugural DOOR 3 program by Queensland Theatre, the first play written by screenwriter Anthony Mullins, the directorial debut of actor Julian Curtis and the professional stage debut of actor Hattie…
A cast of non-professional autistic actors does a mighty job breathing life into an unconventional love story in Keep the Change. We meet wealthy David (Brandon Polansky) on his first day at Connections, a community for adults with autism. The other attendees confirm he doesn’t belong there … at least that’s the way David feels…
Once upon a time, there was just music. Now the music scene has devolved into so many genres and sub-genres (avant-garde Norwegian deep trance, anyone?), it’s hard to keep up. Echo in the Canyon is a well-made but niche documentary about one of these sub-genres – specifically the Laurel Canyon sound of the 1960s. To…
It always mystifies me a bit when I hear the younger generation discussing early era British punk rock and rightfully so, groups like The Clash, Buzzcocks and the Sex Pistols are blurted out quickly but I hardly ever hear anyone talk about The Jam. Led by Paul Weller, this trio is very British but there…
Treachery and subterfuge abound in the Australian premiere of a new production of Richard Wagner’s otherworldly romance Lohengrin. It is a big and bold work – a spectacle – headlined by arguably the world’s most in-demand tenor, Jonas Kaufmann, in a lead role he makes his own. We are introduced to the war-torn environment in which…
Apparently, Joseph Stalin was an enthusiastic reader and loved the theatre. Of course, he was also acutely paranoid and one of the most evil dictators in history. In Collaborators, writer John Hodge portrays an almost-likable Stalin (or ‘JS’ as he was affectionately known by the secret police) as a contrast to the monster he is…
Oh my. What would lauded Russian playwright Anton Chekhov think if he came back to life and saw Pony Cam’s hilarious reimagining of The Cherry Orchard. Written in 1903, the original concerns an aristocratic landowner returning to her family estate and sanctioning its sale to pay the mortgage. As the orchard literally faces the chop,…
A mildly interesting, D-grade creature feature, Black Water: Abyss concerns a marauding crocodile in an Australian cave system. Five people set out on an adventure to explore the caves, which aren’t on any tourist map. Outside, a tropical storm is closing in. Once the group have rappelled into the depths, they’re caught in a torrent….
Denver 1978. 13-year-old Finney (Mason Thames) is a school kid who is a decent baseball pitcher. It looks like he is about to strike out big hitter Bruce (Tristan Pravong), but after two strikes Bruce goes all the way. Clearly happy with himself, while riding his bike home a black van looms ominously and Bruce…
