I can’t think of a play I have seen that I have detested more than the 40 minutes of garbled nonsense I sat through before walking out of The Anarchy (1138-53). The title refers to a civil war in England and Normandy at that time, which resulted in a widespread breakdown of law and order….
Written by James Elazzi, the two protagonists at the heart of Son of Byblos – Lebanese Australian cousins – are living a lie. They are not comfortable in their own skin and are afraid to share the truth with their nearest and dearest. Claire (Anna Khaleeda Rasheed), 26, has just returned from Lebanon with big…
Musicals about serial killers may be thin on the ground because the subject matter is odious, but like Sweeney Todd, American Psycho: A Musical Thriller packs punch. Reflecting on the materialistic and unchecked male power, See You Sunday’s darkly comedic production is strikingly good. Conor Beaumont is a standout in the lead, bringing arrogance, entitlement…
In a bravura showing, Noni Hazlehurst delivers a world class performance as the ageing proprietor of a small, old-style, inner city Melbourne pub that she inherited from her father. No public bar. No Ladies’ Lounge. Just one room, something she describes as “never much of a place”. Metaphorically, it is last drinks for Rose Grey,…
If you are into slapstick humour, you are going to have a ball. This riotous theatrical disaster is stumbling its way around Australia and has just opened in Melbourne. The premise is straight forward enough, but its execution something else entirely. The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society is attempting to stage a 1920s Agatha Christie-style murder…
The Aussies and the Irish get along like a house on fire. Shared values, a love of sport and Guinness aren’t a half bad starting point. But, let me cut to the chase – the adoration for what Michael Flatley achieved with his invigorating take of Irish step dancing hits it out of the ballpark….
Our worst fears about artificial intelligence are realised in The Machine Stops, which is an adaptation of the 1909 novella by former English author E.M. Forster. It shares a common conceit with Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World (1932) and George Orwell’s 1984 (1949). “The Machine” has sent humans underground and subjugated freedom of thought. Technology…
No matter your view of Australia’s first female Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, there’s no denying the power of Justine Clarke’s performance in Joanna Murray-Smith’s Julia. The actor is on stage speaking for all the work’s 90-minute running time, with no interval. She is uncanny in her portrayal of a leader who divided opinion when elevated…
Fear and activism sit alongside one another in a deeply felt, personal story about apartheid, set in South Africa in January 1976. In this world premiere production, the focus is on a “coloured” family, which has lost its matriarch. After several years away studying, 24-year-old Ezra Jones (Barry Conrad) returns to his hometown in Natal….
What is the highest compliment you can pay a tribute band, in this case one that looks at the life and times of the most successful folk rock duo in history? Simon & Garfunkel sold more than 100 million records. The answer is simple: shut your eyes and they sound just like the real deal….
