Reviews

Australian set designer Eamon D’Arcy captured the feel of Russia, from the lake scenes, to the interior of the Royal Palace, in his superb designs for Swan Lake on Ice. Swan Lake on Ice had elements of the classic ballet, except this time two dancers played Odette and Odille, there was a different ending, and, it was done on ice. The movements, while based on normal competition skating moves, fitted the story line of Swan Lake, gave a feeling of continuity and added to the spectacular.

Playwright Jeffrey Hatcher brings Robert Louis Stephenson’s classic tale to life with a fiendishly clever, imaginative, innovative new adaptation, with four actors playing Hyde, including one female. Although unexpected, this worked very successfully and added to the horror of the story. 1812 Theatre’s designer and construction crew assembled an amazing set which adapted very quickly to a drawing room, offices, laboratory, private surgery, morgue, lecture theatre, Hyde’s room, hotel room, various streets and alleys.

The ornate beauty of the State Theatre conjures up elegance, tradition and opulence. However, on entering the auditorium for the opening night of Tango Inferno - The Fire Within I was a bit taken aback by the performers onstage, who were all shapes and sizes and wildly varying in talent. Was I in the right place? Or was this the local dance studio dance off? Ah no, it is the ‘social’ at the start of the show! Anyone from the audience is invited to come up onstage and take part in the communal ‘Milonga’, for half an hour prior to the show.

It began like a Lucille Ball style sitcom. Gwen, aged 90 (played elegantly by Melissa Jaffer) is alone in her new home with all the appliances still to be unpacked, but just can’t quite make it in time to pick up the telephone. The rings always stop just before her creaky bones get to the hand held phone on the kitchen bench top.