One of the most creative and engaging plays I have had the good fortune to see, the moment it finished I wanted to see it again. What better recommendation is there? Put succinctly, North by Northwest is a beauty. So was the Alfred Hitchcock-directed movie, mind you, so the issue became how best to translate…
Brisbane’s Kate Miller-Heidke brings her brand new, uniquely Australian opera, The Rabbits to her hometown with a limited season from 17 to 20 March 2016 at QPAC’s Playhouse. The Helpmann Award winning opera (based on the much loved book of the same name written by John Marsden and illustrated by Oscar winning Shaun Tan) has…
During my youth I spent many hours next door with the neighbor boy. Not just for having fun or horsing around, but also because in their veranda there was a disused closet with sliding doors where you could always find some old comics lying around. I suppose these were from the older brother who was…
The sophomore record from Rennes group, The Madcaps will be one of the more interesting listens you may hear this year. Upfront, the group is sold as a garage band which also fits in with the Howlin’ Banana label but as you dive into Hot Sauce more your opinion will shift as the group has…
A front cover endorsement recommending this to fans of Jack Reacher and Jason Bourne piqued my interest, and a review from Carol at Reading, Writing and Riesling piqued it further. I do enjoy reading thrillers, so these two things made sure I put Ben Sanders’ debut American Blood on my reading list. Was it a…
Flamenco dancing is like a drug: once it gets into your system, the pounding rhythms and body music hook you for life. I was 22 on my first visit to Spain when I sat in an open air club underneath the stars and watched and heard my first show. I could not believe how such…
The Golden Age, by Louis Nowra was published in 1985. The first production was given at the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne, Directed by Rex Cramphorn. I first saw the play in a NIDA production by Neil Armfield with Richard Roxburgh, as Francis – it was a truly memorable production. I have had, always, a ‘romance’…
Recently we had Bad Grandpa, in which Jackass star Johnny Knoxville disguised himself as an old man and embarked on a series of pranks that startled and shocked unexpecting onlookers. That film was tacky, but it had several laugh out loud moments. Unlike this dumb, tacky and tasteless comedy starring Oscar winning actor Robert De…
A searing portrait of depravity in the darkest of times, this debut feature for Hungarian director and co-writer László Nemes is a remarkable and evocative film. Son of Saul focuses upon a Jewish man, Saul Ausländer, a role filled by Géza Röhrig (a 48-year-old writer and poet), who is forced to aid the disposal of…
Golden Globe winner Brie Larson (Short Term 12) gives the performance of a lifetime in this dark, disturbing and emotionally affecting psychological drama that is also one of the films of the year. Larson plays Joy Newsome (though known to her son only as Ma), a woman who has been held prisoner for seven years…
