How do you know when it is best to end a relationship? That question is highlighted and spotlighted in the compelling and highly creative new work Cutting Onions. A young couple has just moved into fresh digs. Their home is quite spacious, with a good size kitchen and a large, if overgrown, backyard. There are still unpacked boxes…
There is something wicked and subversive about storybook villains rising and trying to rewrite their fate. That’s the premise of the world premiere musical Villainy. Druzilla (Olivia Charalambous), one of Cinderella’s ugly stepsisters, who bemoans the fact that she is always walked over, is hosting a party. Mind you, the atmosphere is hardly festive. In the house are several…
The girls are out for a night on the tiles at a club, but not all is going according to plan. In fact, there is no shortage of sad and mad faces amidst the snorting and vomiting in the ladies’ toilets, where the action takes place. The four filthy cubicles are full. Tiff (Amelia Nemet) is inconsolable after…
In the vein of the TV sitcom Seinfeld (1989-1998) and perhaps best summed up as “much ado about nothing”, Untitled Three-Hander deals with several inconsequential issues. Mind you, at the heart of this new work by Hayden Hayes is human connection and a desire to be wanted and needed. The title is a deliberate misnomer. Untitled Three-Hander…
A dysfunctional family gathers for the first time in a decade two months after the passing of the three adult daughters’ mother. Suffice to say, the “girls” are not looking forward to the experience. In fact, they are approaching it with dread. They have been brought together by their father, Terry (Anthony Edward), who left his wife…
A couple of bumbling, small time crims luck out in the farcical comedy The Wrong Horse. I speak of best mates Noddy (Darren Mort) and Big Ears (Dom Phelan). Big Ears – who has a “wind” issue – is forever sponging off Noddy … dropping in at his place all hours of the day and night, drinking…
The sense of touch is put under the microscope in the Victorian premiere of Suzie Miller’s searing drama Caress/Ache. Five actors play out a series of scenarios, all but one filling multiple roles. Mark (Sorab Kaikobad) is a skilled surgeon operating on an infant girl when things go horribly wrong. There is no way for him…
A cleverly conceived and executed song cycle about the vicissitudes of life, Songs of the Northern River features six talented women who weave 12 graphic melodic tales. Some are harrowing, others amusing. They deal with pain, cruelty, kindness and achievement. Book, music and lyrics are by Alex J. Ridefelt. First up, a long-term worker has…
