A whip smart dramatic and comedic script and a couple of stellar performances characterise a seedy story set in Singapore. Singaporean Chinese Girl (Merlynn Tong) is 14 and her brother Boy (Charles Wu) is 21. Boy moved out of home seven years ago and became a gang member, which he regards as a badge of…
Outstanding performances distinguish an extraordinarily insightful, Pulitzer Prize-winning script about the human condition in Cost of Living. Unfolding with heart, humour and pathos, it is a bravura production in every regard – simply stunning. Eddie (Aaron Pedersen) is lonely and desperately missing his wife Ani (Rachel Edmonds) who has passed away. A former truck driver…
Acclaimed actor Bert LaBonté makes his directorial debut with the Pulitzer Prize winning comedic drama Topdog/Underdog. It is a two-hander, involving African-American brothers. Lincoln (Damon Manns) has (temporarily) moved into his younger brother Booth’s (Ras-Samuel) small, rented apartment, which has no toilet or running water. That follows Link’s break up with his wife, Cookie (who…
Identity. Being comfortable in our own skin. It is integral to who we are and what we stand for. English is about that. It is about love and loathing, aspiration and fear. It deals with learning to speak a language that is not your native tongue and, in so doing, fitting in, not standing out….
One of the great plays of the 20th century retains its vibrancy and bite in a stunning MTC production, headlined by a bravura showing from Nikki Shiels. Written by Tennessee Williams in 1945, A Streetcar Named Desire was first performed on Broadway two years later. Now, here I am, coming up to 80 years on,…
It was 9th October 2012 when Prime Minister Julia Gillard drew a line in the sand … when she refused to stay silent any longer. To that point she had effectively put up with personal attacks and insults from her political adversaries and the media. Those related to her spartan home environment, her looks, her choice of…
Memories – personal, intimate, global … over time and space … on Earth and beyond. A monologue that is vivid and humorous and, at times, matter of fact, a kaleidoscope of disparate thoughts that come together to form a time capsule. That is what writer Emma May Hall pulled together seven years ago and revised slightly earlier…
At age eight, Anna (Max McKenna) was writing brilliant, highly creative, if dark stories. She was a very bright little girl. Upon reflection, a decade on, she regards that as indicative of being a child prodigy. Her mother Renee (Nadine Garner) though had real concerns. When Anna was on a high, her energy and enthusiasm lit up a…
A Premiership at what cost? Indeed, is snaring the feted trophy the be all and end all? The Cutting Cove Football Club, located in a small coastal town, has never won a flag, but it hired a coach known as The General (Syd Brisbane) who has. He took on the job three years ago and maintained that…
Grief. How to deal with it. How to cope when you have lost a beloved one. That difficult subject has been turned on its head in the MTC production of Meet Me at Dawn. British playwright Zinnie Harris has written an intriguing mystery, in which clarity is sought, but not readily provided … deliberately. Even though the truth…
