Reviews

The year 2020 was supposed to be a 250th celebration worldwide of the work of Ludwig van Beethoven, but of course due to Covid most of the celebratory concerts were closed down. Whilst Queensland Symphony Orchestra had either cancelled or rescheduled most things this year, they still kept in place Beethoven’s Emperor as the last of their Maestro Series concerts, except replacing Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov with local virtuoso Daniel de Borah.

This theatrical piece employs the figure of the Kingfisher, a local Brunswick bird, as a way of looking at the wonderful kaleidoscope of culture in the area. A variety of individuals are conjured up who talk about their community bonds and how they are created through supportive and endearing exchanges around food, family and friends. 

‘Nothing defines a person more than their natural biscuit alignment’ – or so claims Betty and probably, if less dogmatically, the more stolid Bert Bircher too.  So, what is your biscuit?  Tim Tam?  Iced VoVo?  Ginger Snap?  How about a Florentine?  That’d be something.  To get an interactive reading from Betty and Bert, you’ll need to log on with Zoom, with a microphone, a camera and, all importantly, your face completely visible – so Betty and Bert can read you.  It only takes fifteen minutes, but you will

‘Lady Christina’, drag queen, completes her routine - with Hey, Big Spender’ – and wearily comes off a Wolverhampton stage to her dressing room.  The audience demands another encore, but they’d already had two.  The applause goes on and follows Lady Christina back to her dreary dressing room.  But the façade and the make-up come off – as they must .