Reviews

Bell Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar touched down in Perth, a month into its Australian tour which concludes in Sydney in November. A modern dress production, simply staged, it is very much focused on the language, fascinating characters and Shakespeare’s exploration of leadership.

Born out of Circus Oz’s BLAKflip, a program that nurtures and actively increases the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander circus artists on stages in Australia and across the globe, Chasing Smoke is Australia’s first all-First Nations contemporary circus show. And as Samoan-Australian director Natano Fa’anana writes, this fact is “… both a travesty and a celebration. The travesty being that it’s taken so long. The celebration – we finally have one.

History cannot be repeated!

Hallowed Ground - Woman Doctors In War chronologically shifts to and fro through a century of wars, with vivid and strong accounts of Australian medical women who have worked in the armed forces.

Carolyn Bock and Helen Hopkins from The Shift Theatre - writers and two of the four performers - have recreated an explorative meshing of female characters that project an ongoing concern over the male dominated hierarchical divisions in the military/medical establishment. The actors give powerful and honest performances.

Jessica Swale’s Nell Gwynn has the sort of knockabout, physical style you’d expect to see in Shakespeare’s Globe – it’s where this London hit began a few years ago.  

It’s a witty and bawdy travel through Restoration England when women were finally allowed on the stages and the Merry Monarch was chasing the best of them.