Reviews

Closer

By Patrick Marber. Presented by La Boite Theatre. Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane. 4 - 20 April 2024

"I see love as being a combination of lust and trust" is a comment I once heard on a documentary on the subject many years ago and certainly sprang to mind whilst viewing this new version of Patrick Marber's searing play which first premiered at London's National Theatre 27 years ago.

Endling

Conceived & performed by Barking Spider Creative, Penelope Bartlau Artistic Director. Art Play’s New Ideas Lab. ArtPlay, Birrarung Marr, Melbourne. 6 & 7 April 2024

An ‘endling’ is the last living creature of its kind.  What are its needs?  In what sort of environment could it thrive?  Here is another show from Barking Spider Creative that invites children from four to eight, to imagine themselves first, as other beings, and then as participants in saving a threatened creature in a threatened environment.  

Hopelessly Devoted: A celebration of Olivia Newton-John

Queensland Symphony Orchestra. Concert Hall, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). 6 April 2024

Olivia Newton-John’s musical legacy certainly deserves to be remembered and celebrated: first for being one of the first Australian performers to achieve major international musical and Hollywood success, blazing a trail for the wonderful artists we enjoy today; and second for the absolute pleasure that her recordings still bring to thousands of people. Who can't help but groove and smile when ‘Physical’ is played on the shopping centre PA system?

Annie

By Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin. HAMA Productions. Directed by Olivia Jade The Regal Theatre, Subiaco, WA. Apr 6-14, 2024

Nearly 50 years after it first hit the stage, and despite frequent school and community productions, this musical about a red-headed orphan can still fill a large venue like the Regal, and this production from HAMA Productions was received with great enthusiasm. A sumptuous production with high production values.

Duck Duck Goose

By Caitríona Daly. THAT Production Company. Theatre Works. 3 – 13 April 2024

In Duck Duck Goose, the victim of a rape, and the accuser, Jane (Rachel Nutchey) appears on stage only for a few minutes, just enough for us to know who she is.  She is not the subject; she is a functional character; but she is a fact; her rape is a fact.  And in this play, that’s the catalyst for what Caitríona Daly wishes to reveal: complicity. 

Charley’s Aunt

Adapted by Paul Thain from Brandon Thomas. Tea Tree Players (SA). 3 - 13 April 2024

Brandon Thomas’ 1892 farce Charley’s Aunt has been performed countless times and is still charming and delightful. It makes for a fun night at the theatre and is one of the best shows I have seen by Tea Tree Players.

Barry Hill, the director, has assembled an excellent cast, tutored well in physical farce and sharp line delivery. The pace of this show is perfect and the laughter throughout from the audience demonstrated its timeless appeal.

The Dog/The Cat

By Brendan Cowell and Lally Katz. Fremantle Theatre Company in conjunction with JackRabbit Productions. Directed by Michael Abercromby. Victoria Hall, Fremantle. Apr 5-21, 2024

The Dog/The Cat features two short plays written respectively by Brendan Cowell  and Lally Katz, and presented by Fremantle Theatre Company in conjunction with JackRabbit Productions. Performed on the same set and featuring the same three performers, these yin and yang plays fit nicely together as an evening’s entertainment.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

By Simon Stephens from the book by Mark Haddon. Presented by The Flying Elephant Company & Limelight Theatrics. Goodwood Theatre & Studios. 5-13 April 2024

Christopher Boone is fifteen years old, likes maths, outer space, looking after Toby, his rat, and he sees everything. In the multi-award-winning adaptation of Mark Haddon’s famous novel, Simon Stephens places an autistic boy in the midst of what he sees only as a murder mystery, but quickly reveals that despite knowing every colour of the cars he passed on his way to school, he is unaware of the neighbourhood secrets and the human capacity to lie and deceive.

Reuben Kaye: Apocalipstik

Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Merlyn Theatre, The Malthouse, 113 Sturt St, Southbank Victoria. 28 March – 21 April 2024.

Apocalipstik may be inspired by the pessimism of a nihilistic view of the current condition of the world but there is absolutely no sense of resignation in this show. There is only fiery and emphatic rebellion and refusal to acquiesce to any notions of normal or the inevitable. The show is a phenomenal extravaganza of a range of Kaye’s many talents. Kaye is first and foremost an exceptional and skillful raconteur. This is demonstrated via the ability to tell the complex tale of the very colourful life of his Uncle Helmut.

Time After Time

By Fiona Blakely. FiFi Productions. Directed by Fiona Blakely and Fiona Wildsmith. Byford Secondary College, WA. April 5-13, 2024

FiFi Productions present another home-grown World Premiere, with a bitter-sweet historical setting and distinctive local flavour. Set on Platform 3 at Perth Train Station, Time After Time follows a succession of couples who meet on the platform, against the background of two world wars, then the war in Vietnam, leading up to a meeting in the present day.

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