Reviews

The Grinning Man

Book by Carl Grose. Music, arrangements & orchestration by Tim Phillips & Marc Teitler. Lyrics by Carl Grose, Tom Morris, Tim Phillips & Marc Teitler. Salty Theatre & Vass Productions. Alex Theatre, St Kilda. 25 April – 19 May 2024

The Grinning Man is a hugely entertaining music theatre show – a hybrid mix of melodrama, pathos, pantomime, and very black comedy – performed by a hugely talented cast who sing, play musical instruments, dance, cavort, mug – and bring people to tears.  The music is kaleidoscopic inventive pastiche, mixing pop with classical, and referencing many modern music theatre hits.  Music Director David Youings gets energy and clarity out of his ensemble of six.

WAY

Written, performed & produced by Sally McKenzie. Fortyfivedownstairs, Flinders Lane. 1 – 12 May 2024

Michael Brindley saw WAY at its premiere at La Mama Courthouse in March 2023.  Here is an edited version of what he wrote then – followed by his impressions on revisiting the play here in its second iteration at fortyfivedownstairs.

 

The Woman in Black

By Stephen Mallatratt. Original story by Susan Hill. Produced by Woodward Productions and Neil Gooding Productions. Directed by Robin Herford. Playhouse Theatre QPAC, April 30th to May 11th, 2024, then Touring (dates and venues at the end of this review.

Susan Hill’s ghost story from the late 19th Century is at the core of this play, cleverly adapted by Stephen Mallatratt. It’s been in the West End for more than three decades and yes it has played Australia before, a production that also saw the charismatic John Waters as Arthur Kipps, a role he is repeating, along with six or eight other characters.

Of Good Stock

By Melissa Ross. Galleon Theatre Group Inc. Domain Theatre – Marion Cultural Centre, Marion, SA. May 3 – 11, 2024

Community theatre is a strong force in SA, providing high quality entertainment outside the city precinct. Galleon Theatre Group is one of the shining gems of community theatre who have been entertaining patrons in the south-western suburbs of Adelaide since 1967, drawing their talent and audiences from all over the metropolitan area and beyond.

I Love You, You’re Perfect Now Change

Book and Lyrics by Joe Di Pietro. Music by Jimmy Roberts. Murray Music and Drama. Directed by Tammy Peckover. Pinjarra Civic Centre, WA. May 3-18, 2024

I Love You, You’re Perfect Now Change, is a vignette musical about the trials and tribulations of dating, love, marriage and coupledom. Fun and relatable, it is a show that sits well in Murray Music and Drama’s cabaret set-up at Pinjarra Civic Centre.

Kiss Me, Kate

Music & Lyrics: Cole Porter. Book: Sam & Bella Spewack. Director: Patrick Hill. Musical Director: Trevor Henley. Choreographer: Denique Adlam. Gilbert & Sullivan Opera Victoria. Alexander Theatre, Melbourne. May 2 - 5, 2024.

Kiss Me, Kate, the musical, is inspired by the real-life drama of actors Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.

Living Together

By Alan Ayckbourn. St Jude’s Players, SA. May 2nd – 11th, 2024

Playwright Sir Alan Ayckbourn has penned over eighty full-length plays in his long career. He wrote a trilogy of plays, called The Norman Conquests in 1973. Although designed to be watched together, the three plays stand alone, each taking place over the same weekend, in the same location, but from a different viewpoint. Living Together, the second play in the trilogy, takes place in an English living-room in the mid 1970s.

Esmé Quartet

Musica Viva. Adelaide Town Hall, Wednesday May 1st 2024, and touring nationally.

In the glorious acoustic surrounds of Adelaide’s Town Hall, the lauded Esmé Quartet astounded their audience on their first tour of Australia courtesy of Musica Viva.  The group’s name, meaning “beloved”, is taken from medieval French and I feel sure that in future they will be welcomed back here to showcase their prodigious talents.

The Other Side of Me

Choreographed by Gary Lang. Gary Lang Northern Territory Dance Company / Perth 2024 ISPA. Heath Ledger Theatre, State Theatre Centre of WA. Apr 30-May 2, 2024

Gary Lang Northern Territory Dance Company’s The Other Side of Me, played at the State Theatre Centre, was a stunning piece of dance/theatre. Opening Night was the first event of the Perth 2024 ISPA (international Society for the Performing Arts), and this indigenous dance work - part of an international collaboration, seems a perfect choice to open the conference.

Silence

By Thomas E. S. Kelly. Karul Projects and Blak Dance. Choreographed by Thomas E.S. Kelly. His Majesty’s Theatre, Perth, WA. May 1-2, 2024

Silence, presented by Karul Projects and Blak Dance, is a contemporary dance fusion of traditional dance and hip-hop. Openly political, it calls for a treaty with Australia’s Aboriginal people.

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