The emotional resonance of Les Misérables is massive in the Melbourne leg of The Arena Spectacular world tour. It is a production full of power, passion, poise and polish. It is a grand spectacle that starts with the anticipation of the audience that fills the vast space of Rod Laver Arena. Even before I enter…
Lovers Orpheus (Noah Mullins) and Eurydice (Eliza Soriano, filling in for regular Abigail Adriano) find out the hard way that if you deal with the devil, there will be hell to pay. In a nutshell, that is the conceit in the cautionary tale Hadestown, a most appealing musical. Orpheus, the son of a muse who…
The win at all costs mentality that underpins The Beep Test carries with it a high price. This is Year 7C, whose driven PE teacher channels his own unfulfilled ambitions into the captain of the football team, a standout player and reigning beep test champion. I speak of a multi-stage fitness test, in which participants…
Drag star Trevor Ashley et al slay it in a riotously funny show that derives its conceit from Baz Luhrmann’s jukebox musical Moulin Rouge! The setting has moved from the Parisian cabaret club to the Moulin Beige in Kings Cross, run by Astrid Zeneca (with legendary Carlotta in the role). Here, the star is not…
Seventy-five years on, Guys & Dolls continues to charm and delight. The Handa Opera production on Sydney Harbour is polished, memorable and so much fun. I attended on a fine, still night and it was a privilege to be in the audience. There was a sense of the magical about the evening. Specifically in that…
Here we have a new Australian musical that I wanted to embrace, but I struggled with. Most of it is set in a traditional Irish/American bar, called Flannigan’s, in Fresno, California. It is operated by Sam (Douglas Rintoul), who took it over from his dad. His only employee appears to be his best mate, JJ…
Few, if any, would question how revolutionary the preschool educational television program Sesame Street has been since it first aired in 1969. It has, of course, bred familiarity with the characters, leading to merchandising and campaign leadership. And then there is the acclaimed Sesame Street parody with adult themes, Avenue Q, which received gongs for…
The hero in Hadestown goes to hell and back in his quest to rescue the love of his life. This is a modern retelling of an ancient Greek myth, with the original character names retained. It is a tale of good versus evil, delivered with sass. With confidence and attitude, it is the narrator Hermes…
Fear of coming out and the judgment associated with doing so are the subject of a new musical, focusing on the LGBTQIA+ community. A cast of 21 sings and shimmies its way through 16 numbers, including a reprise, as the story surrounding the final days of a political campaign unfold. It is 2017, at the…
It’s lively. It’s cheery. It upends political correctness. In fact, it is the perfect holiday treat. I speak of School of Rock The Musical, featuring the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Glenn Slater and book by Julian Fellowes. Based on the 2003 film, which was a hit for Jack Black, who played…
