Reviews

Crimes Of The Heart

By Beth Henley. Adelaide Repertory Theatre, The Arts Theatre. April 8 – 17, 2021

In Crimes Of The Heart, three sisters from Mississippi are thrust together after a decade of separation. Their reunion is one of angst, as they remind themselves and each other of things they had chosen to forget.

Beth Henley’s play is dark in places, with moments of humour amongst continuous tragedy. Although initially slow to find acclaim, the 1981 Pulitzer Prize winning drama found its audience and has enjoyed high regard for more than four decades.

Always a Bridesmaid

By Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten. Castle Hill Players. Director: Meredith Jacobs. Pavilion Theatre, Castle Hill. 9th April – 1st May, 2021

Being a bridesmaid is pretty special! It doesn’t happen often. Once - or maybe twice at the most – but these gals get to do it even more often! Sometimes for the same bride! At the same reception house! Four bridesmaids, four brides, and a flamboyant meddlesome “mistress of the house”!

It’s a recipe for fun, and that’s just what director Meredith Jacobs has cooked up! With lots of colour and pace, she has developed this happy little play into a slick, entertaining piece of theatre.

The Trappe Family

By Seamus O’Rourke. Irish Theatre Players. Directed by Seán Byrne. Townshend Theatre, Irish Club of WA, Subiaco, WA. Apr 8-17, 2021.

Set on the roof of a garage in County Leithim, the Trappe Family gather above a small town on the anniversary of their father and husband’s death to commemorate and remember him. Nicely presented by the Irish Theatre Players, The Trappe Family is a darkish slice of life drama that deals with loss, life, family relationships and differing memories.  

Songs for a New World

Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. Wyong Musical Theatre Company. The Grove Theatre. April 9th to 17th 2021.

It’s almost become cliché, but we live in a new world, so it’s extremely apt that Wyong Musical Theatre Company has staged this superb piece of theatre as their first show post-pandemic. And what a triumph it is!

Cosi

By Louis Nowra. Canberra Repertory Society. Directed by Sophie Benassi. 8 to 24 April 2021.

Lewis (Martin Fatmaja Hoggart), a budding stage director, through advocacy by earnest social worker Justin (John Lombard), contracts to work with a group of asylum inpatients suffering a variety of mental health issues, in producing a play. He envisages a quiet one-act play, but,

The Realistic Joneses

By Will Eno. Ad Astra, Brisbane. 25 March to 17 April, 2021

Brisbane’s adventurous Ad Astra team does not shy away from tackling difficult works, and once again, they bring a taste of off-Broadway to the city with The Realistic Joneses. Award-winning New York playwright, Will Eno, has been compared to Samuel Beckett for his mutual love of wordplay and “avoidance of traditional narrative” in exploring the human condition.

The Producers

By Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan. Alexandra Theatre. Directed by Stephen Carr. The Regal Theatre, Hay St, Subiaco, WA. April 8-10, 2021

New community theatre group Alexandra Theatre have burst onto the Perth theatre scene with this big, bold and bright production of The Producers, performed at The Regal, a perfect venue for this larger-than-life production. Filling the stage with people, The Producers features a cast of 38, and an orchestra of 19, as well as pit singers, a large production team and a plethora of crew - meaning there would be nary a regular theatre participant in Perth that does not have a close contact in this production.

You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown

Music and Lyrics by Clark Gesner. Book by John Gordon, based on Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. Uniting Productions (Gosford, Central Coast NSW). 9th – 17th April 2021.

The phrase “the show must go on” is incredibly apt for Uniting Productions latest offering of You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown. Originally scheduled for April 2020, the company has had run the gauntlet that most theatre companies have faced since the pandemic began, but when the COVID plans were finally settled and signed off, and the new dates booked the company then had to face cancelled rehearsals due to major storms and a last-minute withdrawal of a major lead.

The Midnight Gang

A play by Maryam Master based on the bestselling novel by David Walliams. CDP Kids. Director: Susanna Dowling. Associate Director: Nigel Turner-Carroll. Designer: Isla Shaw. Lighting Designer: Matthew Marshall. Sound Designer: James Brown. Costume Supervisor: Marg Howell. 2021 Australian Tour including Regent Theatre, Melbourne - April 9 – 11, 2021.

Ironically, after a year of COVID lockdown in Melbourne, one of the first theatre productions to hit the boards is set in a hospital and deals with sickness. But in contrast to the past twelve months of mask wearing, this production is a breath of fresh air. The Midnight Gang is perfect for the first-time young theatre goer. From lights up the audience fell silent and remained transfixed, hanging off every word throughout the hour-long performance. This wasn’t due to boredom either.

Dumtectives in Cirque Noir

Dummies Corp. Directed by Jamie Bretman and Clare Bartholomew. Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The Famous Spiegeltent, Arts Centre Melbourne. 6 - 18 April 2021.

Amy Nightingale-Olsen, Thomas McDonald and Leigh Rhodes are a wonderfully frivolous circus trio who bring sheer delight to the stage, along with great support from puppeteer David Splatt. Their show draws on a variety of styles and traditions which are beautifully fused to create a highly visual and hilarious performance. Dumtectives is a spoof of the detective genre and this is exploited to draw out all its comic potential. The three detectives are on a mission to solve a murder mystery only to find themselves at the centre of a criminal underworld. 

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