Reviews

Uncle Vanya

By Anton Chekhov (new translation by Richard Nelson, Richard Pevear & Larissa Volokhonsky). Anthropocene Play Company. Theatre Works, St Kilda. 7 – 17 June 2023

In Uncle Vanya – first produced in 1899 - Chekhov gives us a familiar cast of characters.  They are stuck in a country house, stewing in thwarted hopes, burning resentments, complacent privilege, misdirected desires, and loquacious evasions.  That’s not to say, ‘we’ve seen all this before’ – and in this production, it’s too individual, dynamic, incisive, and too funny for that.  Apart from the old nurse, Maria (Clare Larman), the only honest character is Dr Astrov (Catherine Morvell), a medical doctor (like Chekhov himself) a

Crocodile Fever

By Meghan Tyler. Presented by Tart Theatre Collective. Directed by Em Tambree. The Motley Bauhaus, 118 Elgin Street, Carlton. 7-17 June 2023.

Crocodile Fever is both a charming and confronting play that presents various challenges in terms of staging and the sensitivity of the content. Set in their farmhouse in Camlough, Northern Ireland in 1989 the play is a psychological study of the Devlin sisters, Alannah (Maeve Hook) and Fianna (Juliet Hindmarsh). The women are victims of family violence, and their abusive father, Peter 'Da' Devlin (Aram Geleris), is at the centre of the demons that plague their life and their respective psyches.

It’s a Sin - Songs of Love and Shame

Michael Griffiths. Adelaide Cabaret Festival. The Space Theatre – Adelaide Festival Centre. June 10, 2023

Michael Griffiths is the quintessential cabaret performer! Born and raised in Adelaide, it is only fitting he return here to premiere his new show It’s a Sin.

Griffiths takes us on his journey of his development as a queer performer (he prefers queer to gay), punctuated with the songs of the Pet Shop Boys. He is joined on stage by Julian Ferraretto on violin and Dylan Paul on double bass. Ferraretto and Paul are not simply accompaniment, they form an integral part of the performance. Their playing is sympathetic and adds another level to the production.

The Waltz

By David Cole. Directed by Jock McLean (replacing the late Dave Letch). Presented by Q The Locals. 9 – 10 June, 2023

Irene likes to walk up a hill overlooking Bondi to escape her overprotective daughter (and swig from a hipflask of whiskey.) Alf likes to sit at the top of the same hill, drawing faces he can no longer recognise after a stroke damaged his memory. When Irene recognises some of the people in Alf’s paintings, they begin to realise that they have a shared past in the bohemian, free-spirited Sydney of the 1960s.

Carrie The Musical

Based on novel by Stephen King. Music by Michael Gore. Lyrics by Dean Pitchford. Book by Laurence D Cohen. The Regals Musical Society. Rockdale Town Hall. June 9 – 18, 2023

If The Regals Musical Society wanted something to contrast their last adult show, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, they have made an excellent choice by now giving us Carrie.  The feathers, falsies and fishnets have all been put away and in their place we have every day, American high school clothing most of the time, with noticeably less costume changes.  An even greater difference, however, is that the three male leads in Priscilla have been replaced by a trio of powerful ladies:  a compassionate peer, a deranged mother and a leading lady w

The Addams Family

Music and Lyrics by Andrew Lippa. Book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. Miranda Musical Theatre Company. Sutherland Arts Theatre. June 9 – 18, 2023

Miranda Musical Theatre Company’s production of The Addams Family - A New Musical is a comedy that tells the story of the creepy and kooky Addams family facing the challenges of change and acceptance.

Company

Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, from a book by George Furth. Presented by Therry. Arts Theatre, Adelaide. 8-17 June 2023

‘How many times do you get to be 35? Eleven?’ says Robert before his friends ‘surprise’ him for his birthday. Company reached that age in 2005, so we’re up to the eighteenth celebration in Therry’s production of Sondheim’s classic.

The Woman with a Tomahawk

By Ruth Kateralos. Directed & produced by Sarah Vickery. La Mama HQ, Carlton. 7 – 18 June 2023

The image of a woman brandishing a small tomahawk, hurling abuse and demanding the police ‘Kill me now!’ is central to this moving compilation piece by Ruth Kateralos. 

Tick, Tick … Boom!

By Johnathan Larson. Produced by Curtain Bounce. The Art House Wyong June 8 – 18, 2023.

Jonathan Larson’s story is as compelling as it is tragic, weaving together elements of Bohemia and Shakespeare. The artist, tragically destined to pass before fully embracing his success, is known for his global sensation, RENT. However, Larson's masterwork, Tick, Tick … Boom!, a semi-autobiographical, semi-fantastical, and completely soul-baring narrative, remained largely unproduced until the smash hit film adaptation released in late 2021.

Death of a Salesman

By Arthur Miller. A Hearth Theatre Production. Chapel off Chapel, Prahran. 7 – 11 June 2023, and touring.

Arthur Miller’s subject is America – or the common man versus America.  Apart from a few details (automobiles and other product names, wages and prices) Death of a Salesman is as accurate, insightful and pertinent as it was when first performed in 1949.  We don’t have the same crippling foundation myths as the USA (we have our own), but since we seem eager always to follow, imitate and enmesh with the USA, Miller’s play is just as relevant and timely for us.

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