Reviews

Jeremiah’s Tuesday

Written and directed by Stefan Mrowinski and performed by Steven Kennedy. The Butterfly Club, Carson Place, Melbourne. 8, 10 & 11 October, 2015.

This is a piece of drama that was first written in Polish in 1990, however, its ability to be redrafted with more contemporary events and themes shows how its fundamental concerns are issues that will never be outdated. The wavering moral compass that guides the musings of the characters ranges from delusions of grandeur to touching and disturbing insight into the flawed and often rapacious character of humanity.

Benjamin and Me

Written and directed by Mark Storen. Whiskey and Boots. The Blue Room Theatre, Perth. October 6-11, 2015

Benjamin and Me is presented by Whiskey and Boots as part of the Awesome International Festival for bright young things. Essentially really good storytelling, this low tech (apart from some cool lighting and smoke effects), theatre production is very simple theatre with a reliance on a good story and a dynamic actor.

Writer/Director/Performer Mark Storen tells a wonderfully complex story about a boy and his dog, that combines science fiction with steam-punk, boys’ own adventure and a touch of international espionage.

NaGL – Not A Good Look

By Lech Mackiewicz. Metanoia Theatre at the Mechanics Institute Brunswick, 270 Sydney Road, 8-17 October, 2015.

NaGL references many of the iconic elements of absurdist theatre; the zany language, the representation of mundane domestic existences, and the futile and repetitive nature of daily routines that reinforce a sense of a lifeless existence. This play goes further with its criticism of, and cynicism towards, a multicultural Australia – a reality that is more difficult to live than to conjure up culturally.

A Flower of the Lips (Un Fior di Labbra)

By Valentino Musico. Produced by Valentino Musico & EMU Productions. King Street Theatre. Newtown (NSW). Oct 6 – 24, 2015

A Flower of the Lips (Un Fior di Labbra) may be a new play by Sydneysider Valentino Musico, but it’s also a love letter. It’s a biographical story about his great-grandfather, Bruno Aloi and is a love letter to this legendary man as well as Musico’s relatives, Calabria and Italy as a whole. This stark and bold play, which has its Australian premiere at the King Street Theatre raises many questions about divided loyalties and offers no easy answers.

The Agreement

By Clare Mendes. Melbourne Writers’ Theatre, Page to Stage & The Deluxe Bus Company. La Mama Courthouse, Carlton (VIC). 7 – 18 October, 2015

The ‘agreement’ of the title is the almost always unspoken understanding of the hierarchy that underlies a friendship.  As in ‘You’re the pretty one, but I’m the smart one’, or it’s Master and Apprentice, Teacher and Pupil, Mentor and Mentee.  Forget an association of equals!  ‘Unspoken’ because to spell it out would be just too stark or cruel.  But not all parties to these arrangements are necessarily aware of them… This turns out to be the state of play between Mathilda (Emma Cox) – the ‘smart one

Alfie

By Bill Naughton. Matt Byrne Media. Holden Street Theatres (SA). October 7-24, 2015

I would like to say that sexist, arrogant and egotistical men such as ‘Alfie’ are a dying breed; however I think many still lurk beneath the surface of a thankfully progressive society. Set in the 1960s, man about town Alfie Elkins portrayed by Marc Clement is charismatic and carries with him a hedonistic outlook on life.

This is undoubtedly Bill Naughton’s most famous work. When you think of his leading man, Michael Caine springs to mind or for the younger folk perhaps Jude Law. Both movies fared well, with Caine’s portrayal most remembered.

The Grumpiest Boy in the World

Victorian Opera. Director: Cameron Menzies. Conductor: Simon Bruckard. Malthouse Theatre. October 2 – 4, 2015.

Victorian Opera does some amazing work. They appear to have many streams, all running concurrently. This opera involved their Youth Opera performers. It was also a world premiere.

All the performers were between fifteen and twenty-five and full of the exuberance of youth. They were also well drilled. The venue worked well, as younger members of the audience could observe the orchestra in the open pit as well as the action on stage.

Swan Lake

National Russian Ballet. The Concourse Theatre Chatswood, October 2, 2015 and touring nationally

There is often a sense of anticipation about a production from an international ballet company, and, while it may not be fair to our own Australian ballet, productions from overseas attract, it seems, a wider audience. So much so, that many of the houses for the Russian Ballet Tour are booked out, as was the opening night of Swan Lake.

Miss Revolutionary Idol Berserker

Rehearsal Room, Adelaide Festival Centre. OzAsia Festival. 30 September - 3 October, 2015.

The title may suggest social satire, or even a wild parody of some kind - but Miss Revolutionary Idol Berserker is almost beyond categories. Beyond words, perhaps...

Upon entry into the arena of the 'Berserker', socks and shoes are required to be cast off, ponchos are deployed for our own protection and preservation, and earplugs are ominously provided...

As it turns out, a sensible precaution. Spinal Tap's amplifiers may go to eleven, but for this particular troupe, 'eleventyleven' would barely begin to describe the din they create!

Romeo and Juliet

By William Shakespeare. Directed by Emma Sproule. Dionysus Theatre (Vic). McClelland College Performing Arts Centre. Oct 2nd to 10th, 2015

Emma Sproule is one of the most innovative directors in the world of community theatre, and nowhere is this more apparent than in Dionysus’ new production of arguably the Bard’s greatest tragedy.

Subscribe to our E-Newsletter, buy our latest print edition or find a Performing Arts book at Book Nook.