Reviews

Paper Doll

By Katy Warner. New Ghosts Theatre Company / Fringe World. Directed by Lucy Clements. The Blue Room Theatre, Perth Cultural Centre, WA. February 12-16, 2019

A man arrives at a woman’s door. He is familiar, but not expected. He is wet from the rain. He has been away a long time. She is older than he thought she would be. This gripping and intriguing play untangles their relationship, and how they have come to arrive at this point. Dark and moving, this thriller of sorts keeps the audience emotionally enmeshed throughout.

All Change

Adelaide Fringe 2019. Smokescreen Productions, supported by STARC Productions. Supporting Dementia Australia. Mainstage, Bakehouse Theatre. February 25 - March 2, 2019

Life can be at least as messy as elderly Ivor’s room. Whenever we think we’ve tidied it up, something else comes along to throw the cat among the pigeons…or in Ivor’s particular situation, to throw the clothes out of the suitcase and back on the floor.

Eddie Ifft - Walking on Eggshells

Adelaide Fringe 2019. The Factory, Garden of Unearthly Delights. February 19- March 17, 2019

Eddie Ifft’s Walking on Eggshells is not for the politically correct- the very title should prepare the audience for a precarious ride through difficult conversations and some funny situations.

A Doll’s House

By Henrik Ibsen. English translation by Simon Stephens. Canberra Repertory, directed by Aarne Neeme AM. Theatre 3, Canberra, 14 February – 2 March 2019.

Aarne Neeme’s direction of this play, written 140 years ago, keeps it relevant, realistic, and easy to relate to as it exposes the potentially catastrophic consequences of both misguided desperate actions and inescapable social strictures.

 

From Johnny to Jack

Original concept by Luke Kennedy. Developed by Adam Brunes, Naomi Price and Luke Kennedy. Directed by Naomi Price. Presented by The Little Red Company. Powerhouse Theatre, 15 – 16 February, 2019

Perfectly pitched power-ballads combined with excellent storytelling in this fascinating show covering the career ups and downs of John ‘Farnsie’ Farnham. The show gives fans and even those not too familiar with his work a whole new appreciation for John Farnham. His tenacity in the face of adversity is worthy of respect. As lead Luke Kennedy puts it, “He had nearly two decades to quit, but he didn’t”.

Rouge

Adelaide Fringe 2019. The Octagon @ Gluttony. February 20th – March 17th, 2019

If you are looking for a show to shock the senses, then look no further than Highwire’s production of Rouge. Performed in the sublime setting of The Octagon at Gluttony, you will find a talented troupe of performers mixing it up with circus, burlesque and cabaret.

Beautifully executed, Rouge delivers a high-energy circus that must be seen to be believed. Deliciously naughty, performers wow the audience with feats of strength. Highly-trained acrobats, Annalise Moore, Andre Augustus and Lyndon Johnson twist, turn and balance to the delight of the crowd.

Eurydice

Adelaide Fringe 2019. Joanne Harstone, The Flanagan Collective & Gobbledigook Theatre, and Holden Street Theatres. The Sunken Garden – Holden Street Theatres. 14 February - 16 March, 2019.

The story of Eurydice and her husband, Orpheus, is one of the most popular, influential, and enduring of the Greek classical myths. The story goes that Orpheus and Eurydice were very happily married, but when a man called Aristaeus desired and pursued her, Eurydice stepped on a viper, died instantly and went to Hades. The grief-stricken Orpheus descended into Hades to bring her back. With his music and ‘lyre’ he melted the hearts of Hades and Persephone and he was allowed to take Eurydice back to the land of the living – with one condition.

Tony Galati - The Musical

By Dan Debuf and Caleb Garfinkel. Fringe World. Directed by Nicole Stinton. Musical direction by Caleb Garfinkel . De Parel Spiegeltent, The Pleasure Gardens, Russell Square, Northbridge, WA. Feb 12-17, 2019

This show is a 70 minute commercial for Spud Shed, a fruit and supermarket chain. It would also be largely incomprehensible to anyone from outside Western Australia. It is therefore surprising that Tony Galati - The Musical is a brilliant little show, that was one of the hits of Fringe World.

Me. Asian?

By Urban Lights, The American School of Vietnam. Fringe World. Directed by Kate Soper. The Stevenson Theatre, Stafford St, Midland, WA. Feb 13-16, 2019

This was one of the very special events of Fringe World, a beautiful self-devised piece, created and performed by high schoolers from Vietnam, which should have been one of the most publicised and exciting aspects of Fringe World. Unfortunately this little treasure of a piece, flew under the radar, and did not get the full houses it deserved.

Another Night at the Musicals

Adelaide Fringe 2019. The Box at the Garden of Unearthly Delights February 15 - March 3, 2019

Fringe favourites Jonny Woo and Le Gateau Chocolat are back to bring us the next instalment in the Night at the Musicals series...the somewhat unimaginatively titled Another Night at the Musicals. Any lack of imagination ends with the title and the show is a magical, glittery, mystery tour through the back catalogue of diva songs from our favourite musical theatre.

Beginning the night, Chocolat asks who in the crowd is a fan of musical theatre, before informing all that this is where musical theatre comes to die.

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