{"id":4705,"date":"2018-03-03T10:45:51","date_gmt":"2018-03-03T00:45:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/?p=4705"},"modified":"2018-03-03T10:38:09","modified_gmt":"2018-03-03T00:38:09","slug":"little-night-music-theatre-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/little-night-music-theatre-review\/","title":{"rendered":"A Little Night Music &#8211; theatre review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The sophisticated operatic farce, <em>A Little Night Music<\/em>, is set in 19th Century Sweden. It follows the misadventures of a set of illicit lovers and their spouses who come together for an idyllic weekend in the country. The show deals with issues of forbidden love and infidelity, sexuality, gender, class, lost love and regrets.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4718\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-01.jpg?resize=560%2C319\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-01.jpg?w=560&amp;ssl=1 560w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-01.jpg?resize=300%2C171&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/>Lawyer Frederick Egerman (John O\u2019May) is a successful lawyer. He&#8217;s recently married his second wife, na\u00efve 18-year-old Anne (Carina Waye). Frederick\u2019s 20-year old son Henrik (Nelson Gardner), an aspiring and sexually repressed seminary student, is madly and secretly in love with Anne. But he&#8217;s unable and unwilling to act on his passion. One night while attending the theatre with Anne, Frederick watches his former lover actress Desiree Armfeldt (Nadine Garner) perform on the stage. She catches his eye, causing Anne to abruptly storm out of the theatre. Later that night, Frederick visits Anne but is discovered by her current lover, the jealous and formidable Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm (Eddie Muliamaseal\u2019i). Things grow more complicated when Malcolm\u2019s wife Charlotte (Johanna Allen) and Anne conspire to bring down their cheating husbands during a weekend at the Armfedlt\u2019s country home.<\/p>\n<p>Inspired by Ingmar Bergman\u2019s 1955 film <em>Smiles of a Summer Night<\/em>, <em>A Little Night Music<\/em> was written by Hugh Wheeler, with music and lyrics from Stephen Sondheim. The play premiered in February 1973 on Broadway, directed by the legendary Harold Prince, and won four Tony awards, including Best Musical. It has been a staple of repertory theatre companies since then. The first international production was staged in Sydney in November 1973. <em>A Little Night Music<\/em> was also filmed in 1977 by Prince himself, and starred Elizabeth Taylor. This production has been staged by Watch This, an independent Melbourne theatre company that specialises in performing Sondheim\u2019s work.<\/p>\n<p>Nick Cannon, who has had extensive experience in Europe and Australia, provides the direction. He brings a subtle eroticism to the material here and he accentuates the differences and tensions between the public faces of the flawed characters and realities of their lives. Christina Logan Bell&#8217;s set design is quite simple, with props being moved on and off by the actors themselves as they enter or leave. The six-piece orchestra is settled in the orchestra pit at the back of the stage. Emily Collett\u2019s costumes capture the period well.\u00a0The ensemble features a cast of fourteen.<\/p>\n<p>Garner brings plenty of sarcastic wit to her performance. She also delivers a poignant rendition of the hit tune &#8220;Send in the Clowns&#8221;, filled with pain and regret.\u00a0O\u2019May, who has played the role previously, brings gravitas to his performance as Frederick. Muliamaseal\u2019i has an imposing presence as the heroic but hypocritical Count. His powerful baritone adds to the strength of his performance. Gardner brings some physical humour to his role as Henrik. Waye is delightful as the young and impressionable Anne, who finds her own strength and confidence during the weekend in the country. Jackie Rees brings a hint of condescension to her performance as Desiree\u2019s elderly mother.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4719\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-02.jpg?resize=560%2C400\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-02.jpg?w=560&amp;ssl=1 560w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-02.jpg?resize=300%2C214&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/>Sondheim\u2019s witty lyrics are typically intricate, with complex meters, pitch changes, polyphony, and high notes. Recurring themes and motifs run through the musical numbers. The orchestra consists mainly of strings and woodwinds, with piano accompaniment. The lush &#8220;Weekend in the Country&#8221; fittingly brings Act 1 to a close.<\/p>\n<p><em>A Little Night Music<\/em> is performed at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nationaltheatre.org.au\/a-little-night-music.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">National Theatre in St Kilda<\/a>, in a short season that runs from 28 February through until 3 March. It will also be performed at the Whitehorse Centre from 8 &#8211; 10 March 2018.<\/p>\n<h4>Greg King<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The sophisticated operatic farce, A Little Night Music, is set in 19th Century Sweden. It follows the misadventures of a set of illicit lovers and their spouses who come together for an idyllic weekend in the country. The show deals with issues of forbidden love and infidelity, sexuality, gender, class, lost love and regrets. Lawyer&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4720,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[801],"tags":[21,203,37,124,1230,1861,535,38,590,1860],"class_list":["post-4705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theatre","tag-comedy","tag-farce","tag-melbourne","tag-musical","tag-nadine-garner","tag-national-theatre","tag-opera","tag-theatre","tag-theatre-review","tag-watch-this"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>A Little Night Music - theatre review -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/little-night-music-theatre-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Little Night Music - theatre review -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The sophisticated operatic farce, A Little Night Music, is set in 19th Century Sweden. 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Lawyer...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/little-night-music-theatre-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-03-03T00:45:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1024%2C600&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Edwards\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Edwards\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/little-night-music-theatre-review\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/little-night-music-theatre-review\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"David Edwards\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da\"},\"headline\":\"A Little Night Music &#8211; 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With music and lyrics by Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler, the musical was inspired by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Theatre&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Little-Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1140%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Little-Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1140%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Little-Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1140%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Little-Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1140%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Little-Night-Music-03.jpg?fit=1140%2C600&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":170003,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/pride-and-prejudice-bloomshed-at-merlyn-theatre-at-malthouse-theatre-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4705,"position":1},"title":"Pride and Prejudice (Bloomshed), at Merlyn Theatre, at Malthouse Theatre &#8211; theatre review","author":"Alex First","date":"May 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"What a weapon invective is in Bloomshed\u2019s delightful, fun-filled, hilarious take on Pride and Prejudice. The basic ingredients are there, but the twists are delicious and enormously satisfying in what is a social satire dressed as a period drama. For starters, Mr Bennet is a withering plant (a potted monstera)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Theatre&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/rsz_malthouse_pride_and_prejudice__photo_simon_fazio5.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/rsz_malthouse_pride_and_prejudice__photo_simon_fazio5.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/rsz_malthouse_pride_and_prejudice__photo_simon_fazio5.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/rsz_malthouse_pride_and_prejudice__photo_simon_fazio5.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":151249,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/miss-saigon-her-majestys-theatre-musical-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4705,"position":2},"title":"Miss Saigon (Her Majesty&#8217;s Theatre) &#8211; musical theatre review","author":"Alex First","date":"November 4, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Cameron Mackintosh\u2019s spectacular new production of Miss Saigon has stormed onto the Her Majesty\u2019s Theatre stage, captivating an enthusiastic audience anew.\u00a0It last played at the same theatre 16 years ago.\u00a0Miss Saigon is a deeply emotional work, featuring soaring vocals and exemplary production values \u2013 sound, lighting, choreography and visual effects.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/rsz_15_abigail_adriano_kim_and_nigel_huckle_chris_in_the_australian_production_of_miss_saigon_-_photo_by_daniel_boud.png?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/rsz_15_abigail_adriano_kim_and_nigel_huckle_chris_in_the_australian_production_of_miss_saigon_-_photo_by_daniel_boud.png?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/rsz_15_abigail_adriano_kim_and_nigel_huckle_chris_in_the_australian_production_of_miss_saigon_-_photo_by_daniel_boud.png?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/rsz_15_abigail_adriano_kim_and_nigel_huckle_chris_in_the_australian_production_of_miss_saigon_-_photo_by_daniel_boud.png?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":112553,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/single-ladies-red-stitch-theatre-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4705,"position":3},"title":"Single Ladies (Red Stitch Theatre) &#8211; theatre review","author":"Alex First","date":"February 10, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"As I see it, Single Ladies is a variant of a shaggy dog story ... in more ways than one.\u00a0This world premiere production marks the return in this COVID-19 era of Red Stitch Theatre.\u00a0Set in the inner city Melbourne suburb of Collingwood, three disparate women with issues connect over a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Theatre&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/rsz_1caroline_lee__andrea_swifte_photo_credit_jodie_hutchinson.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/rsz_1caroline_lee__andrea_swifte_photo_credit_jodie_hutchinson.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/rsz_1caroline_lee__andrea_swifte_photo_credit_jodie_hutchinson.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/rsz_1caroline_lee__andrea_swifte_photo_credit_jodie_hutchinson.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":145402,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/as-you-like-it-queensland-theatre-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4705,"position":4},"title":"As You Like It (Queensland Theatre) &#8211; theatre review","author":"Meredith Walker","date":"April 29, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"William Shakespeare\u2019s light-hearted comedy As You Like It is one of the playwright\u2019s most regarded pastoral plays. Before we get to the simple forest life of Queensland Theatre\u2019s lively production, however, we are first opened to its treacherous duchy court, for all the world is, of course, a stage. The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Theatre&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/AYLI-02.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/AYLI-02.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/AYLI-02.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/AYLI-02.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":169236,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/the-diary-of-anne-frank-at-the-athenaeum-theatre-melbourne-and-state-theatre-sydney-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4705,"position":5},"title":"The Diary of Anne Frank, at the Athenaeum Theatre (Melbourne)  and State Theatre (Sydney) &#8211; theatre review","author":"Alex First","date":"March 6, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Anne Frank\u2019s story is a tragic but inspiring one and it is played out in dramatic fashion on stage. As Jews, when her Dutch family was forced to go into hiding during the Holocaust, she was gifted a diary, which she wrote in religiously. It contained her innermost thoughts about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Theatre&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/TDOAF_Hi_res.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/TDOAF_Hi_res.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/TDOAF_Hi_res.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/TDOAF_Hi_res.jpg?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}