Reviews

Switzerland

By Joanna Murray-Smith. Ensemble Theatre, Sydney. Directed by Shaun Rennie. 3 May – 8 June, 2024

Did someone at the Ensemble know about the showing of the brilliant 8-part television version of ‘Ripley’ before scheduling this play? If so, then congratulations, for the audience seemed completely ready for this ‘spill the beans’ look at ageing writer Patricia Highsmith and her appalling creation. Australian playwright Joanna Murray-Smith wrote the play, which premiered in Sydney in November 2014 and has been seen in many international cities. It remains enthralling and repellent. 

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change

Book and lyrics by Joe Dipietro. Music by Jimmy Roberts. Griffith University’s Queensland Academy of Excellence in Musical Theatre (QAEMT). Cremorne Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). 2-4 May 2024

Griffith University’s Queensland Academy of Excellence in Musical Theatre chose a certain winner for their second production of this year. As directed by the versatile Jason Klarwein, this production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change is bracing, with plenty of fresh talent, perfectly showcased.

Asylum

By Ruth Fingret. Director: Olga Tamara. The Hellenic Art Theatre, Building 36, 146 Addison Rd, Marrickville. May 2 -12, 2024

Asylum begins with tension. Three scenes play out simultaneously and Craig, an immigration officer, a husband, and a father, is caught in all of them. Playwright Ruth Fingret places her protagonist in a series of dilemmas, where decision-making and dishonesty juxtapose and diverge in a script that is tight and demanding. Olga Tamara’s direction is just as tight and demanding.

The Val Machin Opera Scenes

Conducted by Peter Luff. Directed by Lois Redman. Presented by Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University. Conservatorium Theatre, QCGU, 3 – 4 May 2024

If you’re of the opinion that all opera is over the top dramatic histrionics, The Val Machin Opera Scenes performance would have certainly changed your mind. The annual event returned to Queensland Conservatorium for an unforgettable evening of hilarious opera and classical music. Yes, you read correctly, it was hilarious. The Classical Voice department treated us to comedic excerpts from three operatic works.

The Actress

By Peter Quilter. Canberra Repertory Society. Directed by Aarne Neeme AM. 2 – 18 May 2024

Tonight is the final performance of the great and celebrated actress Lydia Martin. Keenly aware that she is on the verge of the age when roles dry up, she’s made the decision to upend her life by throwing it all in and running off to live in Geneva with a Swiss banker. Funny, poignant, dripping with irony, Canberra Rep’s The Actress haughtily drapes itself over more than one boundary. Peter Quilter’s script offers directors leeway to emphasise different nuances to tweak the emotional tone.

Fourteen

Adapted by Shannon Molloy. Adapted by Nelle Lee, Nick Skubij with Shannon Molloy. Shake and Stir Theatre Co and QPAC. Director Nick Skubij. Riverside Theatre Parramatta. 3-4 May, 2024

This wonderful, troubling, but gentle story about a teenager growing up gay in a football mad catholic boys’ school in rural Queensland was only in Sydney for two short days before a four-month tour of the eastern states then a move to Adelaide. How lucky were those of us who braved the wild weather this weekend to see it!

Fourteen is yet another brilliant adaptation from the Shake and Stir team. Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij always find just the right way to stay steadfastly true to the original work yet make entertaining, thought-provoking theatre.

Death By Chocolate

By Paul Freed. Richmond Players, NSW. By arrangement with ORiGiN Theatrical, on behalf of Samuel French Inc. – A Concord Theatricals Company. Directed by Penelope Johnson. May 4, 11, 18, 25, 2024

Death by Chocolate is an ideal production for a community theatre group to present.  Mystery and mirth, a single setting with a clever design, OTT characters for actors of varying levels of experience to get their teeth into and a script jam packed with one-liners – corny and politically incorrect in equal measure – making for a fun and entertaining night at the theatre.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

By William Shakespeare. Directed by Nichy Whichelow. Brisbane Arts Theatre. Playing May 4 – June 1, 2024.

Written in about 1595, the play is set in Athens and consists of several sub-plots that revolve round the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. Thus, we have  four Athenian lovers = in conflict and six amateur actors preparing for a wedding show. Then Oberon, King of the fairies and Puck become involved in the forest one night. Ah, what a summer dream it was. It was complicated in many ways but was still easy to follow as it touched on many points relevant to today’s society.

A Musical Tempest

Sydney Symphony Orchestra and John Bell. Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House. May 2, 2024

Shakespeare’s presumed last play is a favourite with musicians and composers.  The Tempest, is suitably abstract and metaphorical – timeless and set on an island, with the old magician Prospero ruling over spirits of air and land in Ariel and Caliban. And it starts with an immense storm.

Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes (Parts 1 &2)

By Tony Kushner. University of Adelaide Theatre Guild. Little Theatre. 2 – 25th May 2024

The University of Adelaide Theatre Guild (UATG) has chosen a brave and substantial piece of theatre for their May season. Angels in America, by Tony Kushner, is a two-part play, presented in two halves over two separate performances. Part one debuted in 1991 and 18 months later, Part two premiered. Set in New York City in 1985, it takes us back to AIDS, the 20th century pandemic that introduced us to the pervasive, uncontrollable nature of pandemics and the havoc that they wreak.

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