Stage Briefs

THE FACTORY: NEW ZEALAND’S PACIFIC HIT MUSICAL TOURS AUSTRALIA

After becoming a hot ticket at the Auckland Arts Festival in 2013, New Zealand theatre company, Kila Kokonut Krew, are bringing their soulful musical about the Samoan migrant experience, The Factory, to Australia, premiering at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, with seasons at Riverside Theatres, Parramatta, Canberra Theatre Centre, Merrigong Theatre Wollongong and Gold Coast Arts Centre to follow during June and July.

Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake Returns

One of the most audacious and internationally successful dance shows ever produced, Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, will return to Australia in October 2014, playing a Melbourne season at the Regent Theatre, from 16 - 26 October, followed by a Sydney season at the Theatre Royal from October 28 to November 2.

MIRACLE CITY: New Production at Hayes Theatre Co.

Luckiest Productions in association with Hayes Theatre Co will present a brand new production of Nick Enright and Max Lambert’s musical Miracle City at Hayes Theatre Co in Sydney from October 17 – November 16, 2014.

Set in real time during a live-to-air American evangelical television show, Miracle City tells the story of the Truswells, a family with a dream to build a religious theme park, and the extreme lengths the patriarch Ricky Truswell will go to in order to make their dream a reality.

AIM Musical Theatre Alumni Feature in Spelling Bee

Have those dictionaries at the ready, because The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is set to be the debut production from new Sydney theatre company, Exclaim, made up of AIM alumni students.

Six performances will see alumni students from AIM front the production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

From the costume and set design, to direction, choreography, the actors and the musicians, the alumni group are all part of the working theatre industry, and have come together to build Exclaim from the ground up.

West Side Story at WAAPA

The Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) presents the multi-award-winning West Side Story from Saturday 14 to Saturday 21 June, 2014 at the Regal Theatre, Subiaco.

Love transcends language, time, and place in the immortal story of star-crossed lovers caught in a turf war of rival ethnic gangs. While Manhattan’s west side rumbles with the clash of Jets and Sharks, Maria and Tony seek a “Somewhere” their romance can thrive.

A CONVERSATION WITH PATRICIA ROUTLEDGE

The Actors Benevolent Fund (Qld) and QPAC will present a special Fundraising Morning Tea with the star of Admission: One Shilling – English stage and screen veteran Patricia Routledge.

In the intimate surrounds of the Lyrebird Restaurant, 100 guests only will be able to enjoy a delicious Morning Tea – including sweet and savoury treats (gluten free option) - which will be followed by an in-depth conversation with actress Patricia Routledge – concluding with a brief Question & Answer period.

SIBLING REVELRY: Ann Hampton Callaway and Liz Callaway

Cabaret and Broadway stars Ann Hampton Callaway and Liz Callaway are set to bring their acclaimed cabaret show, Sibling Revelry to Sydney and Melbourne this June. The dynamic sisters first performed Sibling Revelry at New York’s Rainbow and Stars in 1995 and have been performing it ever since. 2014 sees Sibling Revelry spread to Sydney on June 23 at The Basement and to Melbourne Recital Centre on June 25 after their appearance at The Adelaide Cabaret Festival.

Hayes Theatre Co. Cabaret Season

For six weeks this winter, from June 2 to July 13, 2014, Sydney’s Hayes Theatre Co is turning into an exclusively cabaret venue.

Experienced cabaret artists including Mark Nadler, David Campbell and John Bucchino, Rhonda Burchmore and Donna Lee will share the Hayes with up-and-coming stars like Tom Sharah, Gillian Cosgriff, Brendan Hay, Matt Gilbertson, and Hilary Cole; and even a show where the two worlds meet – Phil Scott’s collaboration with Blake Bowden, Mario.

Australian Musical (Off) Broadway Bound

It’s a long way to go from the suburbs of Melbourne to Broadway, but the two Australian creators of The Mapmaker’s Opera hope to do just that after securing a spot as an Official Selection of the 2014 New York Musical Theatre Festival’s Next Link Project.

Composer and Musical Director, Kevin Purcell 54, and Bookwriter/Lyricist, Victor Kazan 66, both based in Melbourne, are the creative partnership behind this new stage musical, which is a love story set against the backdrop of the Mexican revolution.

The Magic Chicken

Without doubt, there’ll be some fantastic school holiday fun in April when the Adelaide Festival Centre presents the culinary chaos of The Magic Chicken, produced by New Zealand’s Theatre Beating.