Reviews

Everything in Suzie Miller’s new play is not what’s expected. For example, it’s title. Sunset Strip, the name of the holiday spot where Ray brought up his two girls, Phoebe and Caroline, is now a dust bowl, the lake completely dried up. Audiences should approach the action, the characters and everything they say with utmost caution.

Like many in the arts, I don’t care for sport and I live in the city. So I wasn’t expecting to connect with a show about an AFL final in a small town. Yet there I was on opening night, enthralled by the energetic, entertaining and electrifying story of the ‘Pintoon Parrots’ and their struggle to attain grand final glory. At first, the story appears lighthearted, but like all country towns, you just have to scratch the surface to find the tragedy bubbling beneath.

On their 10th anniversary, the Chooky Dancers from NE Arnhem Land, now renamed Djuki Mala, are back after a run of national and overseas touring. They started off with that infectiously funny spoof of Zorba, created apparently as a sincere indigenous thank you to a Greek woman up in their country of Elcho Island – it then went viral to millions on YouTube.  

This production of Greenwicks is the second incarnation of a script written by James Marzec and John McPherson, first performed at the University of Western Australia in 2009. Filled with vibrant music, this is a show that is a lot of fun.

Set in a supermarket, the plot is a little unlikely, some jokes remain a little too “student humour” and others don’t quite land, but overall this is funny, the characters are very nicely created and the songs are outstanding.