Reviews

Kuah Jenhan – Noted With Thanks

Written & performed by Kuah Jenhan. Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Trades Hall, Meeting Room. 8 – 21 April 2024

Popular across Asia – and MICF stalwart - comedian Kuah Jenhan finally got himself a ‘real job’.  At thirty-five.  In advertising.  For the same reasons anyone gets a real job.  His comedian mates accused him of selling out.  Kuah admits that’s true; he did sell out – for a regular wage, health care, paid holidays, superannuation…  For him, the lot of comedians who don’t sell out, who keep their integrity, is ‘crying in the streets’ – Kuah sees them as he rides past in his car.  Mean, huh?

For the Love of Paper

By Almitra Mavalvala. KXT on Broadway, Sydney, produced by BCD Theatre and Cultural Shock Theatrical. Directed by Kersherka Sivakumaran. April 5 – 20, 2024

The first thing of note about this world premiere of Almitra Mavalvala’s 3-hander is the excellent setting, designed by Paris Bell and contributed to by many. On the small traverse Broadway stage it displays many, many aspects of the Sydney flat shared by Kaveh, a Muslim doctor from Afganistan, and Amaliah, a Christian singer from Pakistan.

Joan Must Die - I Never Really Liked Her Anyway

By Daniel Evans. Curtin Theatre Arts and the Hayman Theatre Company. Directed by Leah Mercer. Hayman Theatre, Curtin University, Bentley, WA. Apr 9-13, 2024

Pop culture meets reality TV to retell the story of Joan of Arc and her cult of personality, with a contemporary lens, in a highly theatrical style. Curtin Theatre Arts and the Hayman Theatre Company present Joan Must Die - I Never Really Liked Her Anyway, in only its second ever production.

Josh Thomas – Let’s Tidy Up

Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The Playhouse, Arts Centre Melbourne. 9th – 21st April, 2024.

 

Grit

Perseverance Street Theatre Company. Gympie. March 2024

In their mission statement, Gympie based Perseverance Street Theatre Company state they want to create theatre with an “authentic connection to people and place”. Grit fulfils this mission statement. This theatre company has struck a rich seam of gold in a town that allegedly ran out years ago. This particular nugget of culture is like a rock in the river of time. It fixes both in time and place our hopes and dreams. 

Mother and Son

By Geoffrey Atherden. Rockingham Theatre Company. Directed by Helen Brown. The Castle, Rockingham WA. Apr 5-20, 2024

Rockingham Theatre Company is currently presenting Mother and Son, a new play based on the original 1980s Australian TV series. Unlike most TV to stage adaptations, this one is written specifically for stage performance, and explores new ideas as the beloved Maggie comes to terms with today’s challenges including telephone scammers, FaceTime, and mobile phones.

Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein

Book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan. Music and Lyrics by Mel Brooks. Directed by Taylor Andrews. Presented by Millennial Productions. Ron Hurley Theatre. 5 – 13 April, 2024.

Mel Brooks’ international musical theatre favourite Young Frankenstein is back from the dead, thanks to Millennial Productions. Known for their exceptional musical theatre productions, this not-for-profit company has garnered significant attention among Brisbane's theatre enthusiasts, and their latest production lives up to expectations. Everyone on stage, from the smallest roles to the core cast, exudes dedication, resulting in a polished and well-rehearsed show.

Cirque Nouvelle

Produced by Cameo Rascale. Mandurah Performing Arts Centre, WA. Apr 7, 2024

Cirque Nouvelle somersaulted into Mandurah Performing Arts Centre for a sold-out single performance as part of a four-city regional tour. Somewhat of a homecoming, co-producer James Capener hails from Mandurah, the capacity crowd were rapt from start to finish during this action filled show.

Closer

By Patrick Marber. Presented by La Boite Theatre. Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove, Brisbane. 4 - 20 April 2024

"I see love as being a combination of lust and trust" is a comment I once heard on a documentary on the subject many years ago and certainly sprang to mind whilst viewing this new version of Patrick Marber's searing play which first premiered at London's National Theatre 27 years ago.

Endling

Conceived & performed by Barking Spider Creative, Penelope Bartlau Artistic Director. Art Play’s New Ideas Lab. ArtPlay, Birrarung Marr, Melbourne. 6 & 7 April 2024

An ‘endling’ is the last living creature of its kind.  What are its needs?  In what sort of environment could it thrive?  Here is another show from Barking Spider Creative that invites children from four to eight, to imagine themselves first, as other beings, and then as participants in saving a threatened creature in a threatened environment.  

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