Reviews

Monkey Baa consistently brings fun and fantasy to the school holidays – and this production has come all the way from the Edinburgh Festival via London and Chicago. Puppeteers Ailie and Sam have literally flown their set of lights and multiple suitcases through the sky and across the sea just like their puppet hero Larry is in this quirky and beautifully contrived performance about taking a little time to dream …

Though I was aware of Urinetown, this was my first encounter with this alternative musical. It was certainly different! The whole concept of a drought forcing a town to close all private toilets and make people pay to pee was smack bang in the theatre of the absurd. At the start the narrator spoke about the fact that it was a musical and foreshadowed what was to happen.

I found the production thoroughly enjoyable. It was fast moving. The direction was good and the choreography amazing and tight. The lighting was exciting.

Back when it premiered How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying was The Book of Mormon of its day. Wall-to-wall satire that hadn’t been seen since the Gershwin’s Of Thee I Sing in 1931, which also, like Succeed, won the Pulitzer Prize.

This play has thoughtful reflections on politics, morals, and the malaise of mediated existences that saturate contemporary society.  The seemingly eclectic mix of genres makes perfect sense and has direct bearing on the themes that are the central concern of the rich text.  The centuries old art of spin and ruthless power games is exposed with wry humour and wit. The performance is edifying without being clichéd and is injected with a healthy dose of antics and buffoonery.