Drew Forsythe - Jonathan Biggins - David Whitney - Mandy Bishop in "Pride in Prejudice"
Written by
Jonathan Biggins, Drew Forsythe and Philip Scott
Co-Directed
by Jonathan Biggins and Drew Forsythe
Musical
Direction by Andrew Worboys – Costumes designed by Hazel and Scott Fisher
Lighting
Design by Matt Cox - Video Design by Todd Decker -
Performed by
Jonathan Biggins, Mandy Bishop, Drew Forsythe and David Whitney with Andrew Worboys.
Canberra
Theatre Centre Playhouse 26 October – 5th November 2023.
Opening
night performance reviewed by BILL STEPHENS
David Whitney (Peter Dutton) - Drew Forsythe (Stephen Miles) - Mandy Bishop (Tanya Plibersek - Jonathan Biggins (Anthony Albanese)
Over the
years The Wharf Revue team have transformed political cabaret into an art form.
This latest edition is an excellent example.
Once again their barbs are sharp, skewering their targets with pin-point
accuracy. Their impersonations are masterful and their victims immediately recognisable.
The laughs
come non-stop, regardless of your political persuasion. This year they commence
with the first line of the opening sketch, a re-imagining of “Pride and
Prejudice”, for which gender-blind casting is taken to a whole new extreme. Jonathan
Biggins plays the dowager, Mrs Bingley, Drew Forsythe and David Whitney are the
two sisters, and the remarkable Mandy Bishop is Mr. Darcy. It works a treat,
not only because the lines are clever, but because of the finesse the performers
bring to their
Each of the
cast is a highly skilled performer with the ability to quickly conjure up the essential
characteristics of their targets as deftly as any cartoonist. Whether he’s
being King Charles communing with his late mother, Anthony Albanese leading his
band of merry men, or “public enema No.1”, Donald Trump, Jonathan Biggins is
immediately, hilariously present as his target.
 |
| Drew Forsythe (Rudy Guliani) - Jonathan Biggins (Donald Trump) |
Similarly
Drew Forsythe, whether morphing between a heavenly Queen Elizabeth bemoaning
having to meet up with people she hoped never to see again; Rudy Juliani
escaping prison and heading for Mar-A-Lago with Biggins’ Donald Trump; a sleepy
President Biden conferring with Mandy Bishop’s Caroline Kennedy, or a besotted
Gina Rinehart duetting at the bow of Clive Palmer’s sinking Titanic, fascinates
with his ability to invest his characters with a hint of Chaplinesque
poignancy.
 |
| Drew Forsythe (Queen Elizabeth 11) - Jonathan Biggins (King Charles) Mandy Bishop (Queen Elizabeth 1st) |
Woman of a
thousand voices, Mandy Bishop continues to amaze with her remarkable dramatic and
vocal talents. While her “Ladies who Lunch” in the Sondheim segment, and her
classy jazz rendition of “Toughen Up and Fly Right” sung as Sussan Ley in the
Basement, would be the envy of any cabaret diva; her extraordinary versatility is
showcased in her performances as a coy Princess Di, her Sarah Hanson-Young, and
her all singing/dancing AI robot opposite Jonathan Biggins’ Stuart Roberts. But
it is her not-so-coy turn as Jackqui Lambie presenting Playschool with David
Whitney’s David Pocock that is likely to have ABC executives reaching for the Alka-Seltzer.
 |
| Mandy Bishop (Jacqui Lambie) - David Whitney (David Pocock) |
In this year’s
edition, David Whitney is replacing Phil Scott, who’s on sabbatical. However, Scott
was spotted in the first night audience, and even makes a guest appearance via
video as a voluble Kevin Rudd.
Whitney fits
the team like a glove, especially when portraying Prince Phillip or a Russian
General. But it is his turn as a petulant Peter Dutton, who finds himself in
the wrong musical as “The Guy who must say No”, that will linger in your
memory.
 |
| Drew Forsythe (President Biden) - Mandy Bishop (Caroline Kennedy) |
Also making
an invaluable contribution to this year’s edition is another newbie, Musical
Director Andrew Worboys, whose versatility on keyboards allows him to tackle
any musical genre with panache.
Brilliant videoed
segments by Todd Decker mask the lightning fast costume changes, allowing the
show to flow so quickly that there is barely time to catch breathe between segments
or to dwell on the fact that the real brilliance of the Wharf Revues lies in their
ability to make us laugh about topics which might otherwise cause us to weep.
Images by Vishal Pandey
This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. www.artsreview.com.au
