Reviews

Poopie Tum Tums

Created & Performed by Patrick Durnan Silva & Honour Wolff. Presented by Hot Department. Melbourne Fringe Festival online. 30 September – 17 October 2021.

Patrick Durnan Silva and Honour Wolff are clearly a talented duo; they bounce off each other with energy, skill, and great timing.  He is big and solid – a great contrast to the occasional delicacy of his work – and his ability to use silence and immobility.  She is cute as a button, bursting with vitality, and has a smile that adds acid to the jokes.  The childish title of the show suggests ‘naughty’ and ‘rude’ straight off – and, sure enough, there are plenty of ‘filthy’ and explicit numbers. 

Diana: The Musical

Music & Lyrics: David Bryan. Book and Lyrics: Joe DiPietro. Director: Christopher Ashley. Choreographer: Kelly Devine. Musical Director: Ian Eisendrath. Streaming now on Netflix

You would think there would be nothing left to say about Diana, Princess of Wales, and this by-the-numbers musical doesn’t offer us anything new. It simply rehashes what we already know: she was a shy 18-year-old nursery teacher’s assistant when she met Charles, although they married quickly and had two sons, he did not end his affair with Camilla, Diana became lonely and a committed humanitarian, a fashion icon, and died a prematurely young death at 36 in a Parisian tunnel being pursued by paparazzi.

Disney Moana Jr.

By Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foa’i, Mark Mancina, Susan Soon He Stanton and Ian Weinberger. Roleystone Theatre. Directed by Matt Arnold and Stephen Carr. Roleystone Hall, WA. Oct 1-10, 2021

Disney Moana Jr. is a beautifully presented ensemble production, performed by 12-18 year-olds as part of Roleystone Theatre’s Junior Workshop Program. It is being performed in conjunction with its “little sister” production Disney Lion King Kids. 

While based on the film of the same name, Moana as a stage show has a very different vibe, and is presented in a slightly presentational style, with lots of moments of physical theatre.

Radium Girls

Play by D.W. Gregory. Centenary Theatre Group. Director: Jason Nash. Community Centre, Chelmer, Qld. 2-30 Oct 2021.

After being in rehearsal and postponed in 2020, Centenary’s production of Radium Girls is finally on the boards. Written by female playwright D.W. Gregory, it’s another in those stories of the ‘little man’ (although in this case a girl) and their fight for justice against corporate America, personified by the movie Erin Brockovich, with a touch of Norma Rae thrown in.

The Shitshow Cabaret

The Grand PooBah. Sophie Ambler (Stage Manager/Producer). Pussày Poppins (host). Hugh Foley (DJ). September 30 ,2021

The Shitshow is deceptively ‘shit’, for it is tightly curated and providing employment for performers at a time when performance opportunities are rare. During this particularly shitty time for the arts, all acts are remunerated and any profit from the show is also distributed to the performers.

Sophie Ambler is the visionary behind the initiative. Ambler is young but has gained significant experience in festival organisation on the mainland and at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Truth to Power Café

Written & performed by Jeremy Goldstein with Henry Wolf. Digital Theatre Adaptation & direction Jen Heyes. Melbourne Fringe Festival 2021 & British Council UK/AU Season, Digital Fringe. On demand October 2 – 17, 2021.

Truth to Power Café began as a live show, but now, thanks to COVID-19, comes to us online.  It is essentially agit-prop, but in employing archival film, memoir, poetry, and images it is a moving and sincere piece.  In its earnestness and radical switches of style it can seem somewhat naff at times, but as a live show, it has received glowing reviews in numerous venues.

A View from the Bridge

By Arthur Miller. Acting True and Huon Valley Theatre INC. Huonville Hall. Lisa Gormley (Director). Gareth Dawson (Composer/Sound design). George Snow (Lighting Design). Louise Stubs (Stage Manager). 1-3 October 2021 at Huonville and 8-9 October 2021 at Cygnet, Tasmania.

A classic work is one which still speaks. A View from the Bridge screams. This 66-year-old play is still powerful and relevant, especially in the hands of Lisa Gormley and such strong performers. 

This production arose to fruition from an online course in American theatre; what was achieved in that space was deemed too good to abandon, felicitously with the ideal cast.

Disney The Lion King Kids

By Elton John, Tim Rice, Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Hans Zimmer, Roger Allers and Irene Mancini. Roleystone Theatre. Directed by Madison Laine Thomas. Roleystone Hall, WA. October 1-10, 2021

Roleystone Theatre’s production of Disney The Lion King Kids features a delightful young cast and is charming the socks off the audiences at Roleystone Theatre’s temporary venue, Roleystone Hall. It plays in conjunction with Disney’s Moana Jr, with most audience members choosing to partake in a very satisfying double bill.

Mythology of Naked Flesh

Brisbane Music Festival, online premiere. 3 October, 2021

'Mythology' is a collection of foundational tales, usually designed to help us navigate our humanity. To explore a mythology of naked flesh, you might first turn to the visual arts. In music, a lexicon might exist in rock music and, even though much classical music is sensual, the genre is probably not going to be your first port of call. Likewise, in dance, opera, dramatic and musical theatre, nudity on stage is nothing new, but it is quite unexpected in the classical music scene.

The Wizard of Oz

By L. Frank Baum, Harold Arlen, E. Y. Harburg and Herbert Stothart. Laughing Horse Productions. Directed by Rach Gilmour. City of Gosnells, Don Russell Performing Arts Centre. WA. Oct 1-9, 2021

Laughing Horse Productions’ The Wizard of Oz is a youth production with a lot of heart, that is playing to some enthusiastic and very excited young audiences at Don Russell Performing Arts Centre.

With a cast of forty, ranging in age from 7 to 18, there is also a great range of experience - from youthful ‘veteran’ performers to those in their first stage appearance. The Wizard of Oz also marks a directorial debut for Rach Gilmour, who has risen to a formidable task.

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