Motherhood the Musical

From the team that brought the amusing Menopause the Musical, here is a journey through the travails and joys of motherhood. Sure, there may be many heartaches, annoyances, irritations and moments of madness to these four funny mothers, but there are also times of great love and tenderness towards their partners and their little darlings. (Not sure there’s much love towards mother-in-laws, though, given the hilarious grandmother song!)

Trisha, played by Sophie Carter, is a divorced soccer mum whose calm, kind nature is a great help to Amy (Sophie Weiss), due to give birth in three weeks and full of plans, hopes, and a never-ending list.  Brooke, played by Ziggy Clements, is a supercharged, super-organised career woman who loves her kids (and her phone!) and is juggling her responsibilities. Barbara, played by Lara Thew, tugs at the heartstrings with her explanation of how she’s “just a stay-at-home-mum”, while showing how important her love and actions are in “Daniel’s Mum”, a hymn to motherhood.

The three experienced mothers, while kind towards mother-to-be Amy, also allow reality to rudely interrupt Amy’s rose-coloured dreams with the hysterical song “Mummy Mummy Mummy!”  The musical features zingy, toe-tapping tunes sung with aplomb, heart andhumour. These ladies are not afraid of close harmonies, or of bringing the audience into a world of heartfelt emotion.  The choreography by Sue-Ellen Shook shows the women’s different personalities.  Brooke admits to being “The Costco Queen” complete with a chorus of shopping trolleys, and you’ll find yourself wanting to dance with joy watching “The Kids are Finally Asleep”.

The set designed by ShaunGurton is simple but effective and shows how versatile it is in adapting to moods with the lighting design by Jason Bovaird.

Rachel McGrath-Kerr

**

Written by Sue Fabisch, this is definitely a show that delivers what is promised: a musical all about being a mum. The audience are introduced to four women, each a different ‘type’ of mother. The majority of the action takes place at a baby shower, where the women cover every topic under the sun- as long as it’s about motherhood. The dialogue and lyrics explore every aspect of a mother’s journey, covering everything from single parenthood, epidurals and losing the baby weight to the never-ending formula versus breastfeeding debate.

Songs punctuate every turn in conversation and give huge insights into the characters. The songs themselves are brilliant: each is reminiscent of a recognisable style of music, whether it is a show tune or pop song. With twenty songs to punch out in ninety minutes, there is not much respite in between for either the audience or the performers. Every succeeding chorus is more catchy than the last, leaving you with only the finale to go home humming!

The set is beautiful in its simplicity and the stage is well used. Props are skilfully concealed and the use of real-world objects lends a realism to the story that wouldn’t be present otherwise. Some spotlights were slightly too low, but in general the lighting enhanced the mood effectively.

The casting of the four women is excellent and each voice is unique. One of the characters, Amy, is heavily pregnant and it must be said that she dances with surprising lightness at times.

Costuming was thoroughly believable: clothing that a real woman wears. All the actresses are quite slim, and some of the ‘baby weight’ is quite obviously padding, but it serves its purpose. A small ‘cameo’ appearance from Amy’s mother is slightly detracted from by an ill-fitting jacket, though on the whole is hilarious.
Very current, very Australian humour is present throughout, ensuring that the audience roar with laughter- an audience that is dominated by women, of course. This one-act show should include a second act/sequel titled Fatherhood. There is a fear that many of the ‘horrors’ presented would severely turn a male audience off.

Likewise, younger women who are yet to have children may find it difficult to reconcile the joy of childbirth and unconditional love with the ever-present mortification, apprehension and near-panic.

Overall, Motherhood the Musical is well produced, well written and tightly executed. It gives you a small slice of life, summing up what it is to be a mother in mostly happy and hilarious way, with occasional poignant, gut-wrenching moments.

Lilli Paul