Reviews

big the musical

Book by John Weidman. Music by David Shire. Lyrics by Richard Maltby jr. MLOC. Directed by Trish Carr. Phoenix Theatre Elwood (Vic). June 14th – 22nd, 2013.

Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas! Yes I know it is six months away but big – The Musical is such a joyous Christmas offering that I couldn’t help feeling it was December. And judging by the reaction to this production from kids of all ages at the Sunday matinee, there were plenty of others sharing the Christmas spirit.

Thoroughly Modern Millie

Book by Richard Morris and Dick Scanlan.Lyrics: Dick Scanlan. Music: Jeanine Tesori. WAAPA. Director: Crispin Taylor. Music Director: David King. The Regal Theatre, Subiaco (WA). 15-22 June, 2013.

In the last few years, it has become a tradition for the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts to present a major musical mid year at Subiaco's Regal Theatre. I believe that Thoroughly Modern Millie, is the best so far.

Showcasing the talents of WAAPA students both on and off stage, in design and in the pit, the show augers well for the future of music theatre Australia wide.

King Kong

Written by Craig Lucas. Directed by Daniel Kramer. Music and lyrics by – Various. Regent Theatre Melbourne only. Opening Night. June 15th, 2013.

First the positives:- King Kong is a marvellous spectacle with fabulous costumes. It is a triumph of engineering and technology with an astonishing set (Peter England) and a brilliant lighting plot. Sonny Tilders and his team at Global Creatures deserve a million accolades for his creation of Kong, whose appearance out of the mists of Skull Island brings gasps and deserved applause from the audience. The cast do the best with what they are given and are uniformly good even when wasted.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

By Oscar Wilde. Fingal O’Flahertie Productions, Bordello Theatre Kings Cross. Wed 12th - Sat 29th June, 2013

Bordello Burlesque

TRUE COLOURS

QPAC Choir. QPAC Production. Concert Hall, QPAC. Choirmaster: Tim Sherlock. Accompanist: Tina Liu. 18 June 2013

Choirmaster Tim Sherlock last night conducted QPAC’s much-travelled contemporary community choir in a program of audience-pleasing choral works. Traditional works by Francis Poulenc, Salve Regina and Ave Maria were mixed with the Mamas and the Papas Monday Monday and Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors. It was an eclectic but elegant selection of music.

Tale of Two Cities

Sydney Chamber Choir and the Adelaide Chamber Singers. The Great Hall in the University of Sydney. June 16, 2013.

What a rare privilege it was to hear the forty seven combined voices of these two wonderful Choirs in the setting of Great Hall in the University of Sydney! Edmund Thomas Blacket’s high, sandstone vaulted ceiling provides the perfect acoustics for the highly trained, carefully rehearsed and beautifully controlled voices of both choirs – and the repertoire chosen for this particular concert.

Kristin Chenoweth In Concert

GWB Entertainment Production. Musical Director: Mary-Mitchell Campbell. Concert Hall, QPAC, 14 June 2013

Undoubtedly Kristin Chenoweth is ‘popular’ and last night’s sold-out concert showed just how ‘popular’ she is. Playing Brisbane on the third date of her Australian tour, the original Glinda in Wicked brought her own brand of quirky to a show that mixed Broadway, pop, audience participation and video clips.

It was a love fest from start to finish, and when she sang her signature tune “Popular”in English and several foreign languages, the response was thunderous.

Fiddler On The Roof

Book by Jospeh Stein. Music by Jerry Bock. Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Directed by Paul Watson. Mountain Districts Musical Society (Vic). Karralyka Theatre, Ringwood 14th - 23rd June, 2013.

Wonder of Wonder, Miracle of Miracles is a line from one of the songs in the iconic musical Fiddler On The Roof. It could also be the logline for this stunning production by MDMS.  Set in the Jewish village of Anatevka in Russia during the time of the pogroms, this much loved show encapsulates the bigger questions of anti-semitism, persecution and the struggle to survive, told through one man and his family.

Slava’s Snowshow

Created and staged by Slava Polunin. Theatre Royal Sydney – June 11 – 23, 2013, then touring to Lyric Theatre, QPAC – June 26 – 30, Canberra Theatre Centre – July 3 – 7, Comedy Theatre Melbourne - July 17 – 28 and Regal Theatre, Perth – July 31 – Aug 4.

One of the worst jobs in theatre might just be having to clean up at the end of the season of Slava’s Snowshow. Imagine vacuuming up millions of pieces of plastic fake snow glued to every nook and cranny of a carpeted auditorium. I was told they don’t bother until it’s ankle deep at the end of the season.  A bit like cleaning up after a thousand children have had a free for all with feathered pillows.