The historical drama Chevalier pulls no punches. Director Stephen Williams sets out to push buttons – and push buttons he does. Set in France, it is the story of Joseph Bologne, who was born in 1745 on the island of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean. He was the son of 16-year-old Sengalese slave Nanon and a…
The sophomore feature from Spanish filmmaker Carla Simon (Summer 1993) Alcarras is a lyrical, leisurely paced, beautifully observed slice-of-life drama. The plot concerns a family of peach farmers whose livelihood is under threat from developers. The film was Spain’s official submission for the Best International Film at the 2023 Oscars. The film is set in…
Morality and money are at the heart of the acerbic Telethon Kid. Inspired by his own medical experiences, Melbourne-based writer Alistair Baldwin’s play has two interconnecting threads. One concerns overstepping the mark in a doctor/patient relationship and the other Big Pharma’s bluff and bluster. We’re at the annual global healthcare conference held by fictious pharmaceutical company Geneuris. Each year,…
Based on a true story, injustice and antisemitism are at the core of the powerful musical Parade. It is 1913 and we are in Atlanta, Georgia. That is where Leo Frank (Aaron Robuck) has moved from Brooklyn to be with his wife Lucille (Montana Sharp) after her uncle offered him a good job. Leo is a hard-working, conservative…
The seemingly inexplicably-named Capricorn sees its action play out in the metaphoric fishbowl of a couple’s home…. or perhaps it is that we are in the water with them, as is suggested by teal-toned chair covers of audience seating at its world premiere in La Boite’s Roundhouse Theatre. It’s a confusion the perhaps sums up…
A blood curdling scream at 2:22am sets the scene for a ghost story with a twist. Eleven months ago Jenny (Gemma Ward) gave birth to daughter, Phoebe. She and her astronomer husband Sam (Remy Hii) have also moved into a large, old home, which they bought from an Italian widow. They are in the throes of painting the…
Loosely inspired by Bizet’s 1875 opera Carmen, this melodrama updates the timeless story to a more contemporary setting along the US/Mexican border. The film centres around Carmen (Melissa Barrera) who is on the run from a ruthless Mexican cartel that killed her mother. While attempting to cross the border into the US Carmen is caught…
Bloodlust features prominently in Sisu, an anarchic actioner, set towards the end of WWII. It is 1944. Finland has signed an armistice with the Soviet Union and the Germans are in full retreat. However, the Nazis have adopted a scorched-Earth policy, destroying everything in their wake. A legendary Finnish warrior – Aatami (Jorma Tommila) –…
Caroline Lee takes the stage as June, a woman of a certain age who hasn’t spoken to another person in more than a year. So, over that period – apart from accidentally speaking out aloud – she has lived in silence. Now June is taking us, the audience, into her confidence to break the drought and explain…
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…
