Reviews

Set in war-torn Baghdad in 2003, interestingly, playwright Rajiv Joseph says that Bengal Tiger At The Baghdad Zoo is not necessarily about war and the conflict in Iraq. A short article in the New York Times in 2003 about bombs destroying the Baghdad Zoo, American soldiers guarding the zoo and a soldier who lost his hand feeding a Bengal tiger which was subsequently shot, inspired Joseph to write this complex, multi-faceted play. The style is known as a documentary drama, using imagined and real places and events.

Euphoria, written by Emily Steel, shines a light on the issues of mental health in ways that are both joyful and uncomfortable, all at the same time.

This production is one of the best pieces of theatre I have experienced in a very long time: exquisite acting, brilliant staging and direction, with a cleverly told story. This beautiful and, at times, hilariously funny piece, was written by Steel after research and conversations held with many people across towns in regional South Australia.

The two one-act plays that make up this double bill depict conditions or the cruel prejudices that afflict (almost exclusively) women.  In What Is the Matter with Mary Jane? it is anorexia nervosa and bulimia.  In Slut, it is the misogyny and double standards (and jealousy?) that get a woman labelled ‘slut’.  Both plays give rise to unfashionable emotions– in the current climate - since in both plays the persecutors on stage are other women.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a feel-good tale and a story of triumph over adversity, which seems a very great choice after a difficult couple of weeks, with masked audiences at its first couple of performance given lots of laughs.

Bright and uplifting, fun costuming (Linda Lowry, Kim Parker, Pat Francis and Karen Francis) and a set with some lovely surprises, designed by Bronwyn White and Karen Francis, are lit with lots of colour and verve by Clint Gerard and Karen Francis, to create a world of wonder.