IN A NUTSHELL: The Poetry of VIOLENCE. Bell Shakespeare. Canberra Theatre Centre Playhouse.

 

Peter Evans presenting "In A Nutshell: The Poetry of Violence"

Directed by Peter Evans – Set and Costume Design by Anna Tregloan.

Lighting Design by Benjamin Cisterne – Composer and Sound Design by Max Lyandvert.

Canberra Theatre Centre Playhouse – 13^th -14^th September, 2024.

Performance on 13^th September reviewed by BILL STEPHENS

Despite its rather off-putting title In A Nutshell: The Poetry of Violence is in fact an entertaining and enlightening ramble through the words and world of William Shakespeare.

Part illustrated lecture and part performance the production is helmed by Peter Evans who riffs on his assertion that most people associate the plays of William Shakespeare with violence.

Nigel Poulton -Jessica Tovey - James Evans (replaced for the Canberra performances by James Lugden) - Peter Evans - Darius Williams - Lucy Bell - Madeline Li.

He does this with the assistance of six skilled actors, Lucy Bell, James Lugden, Madeline Li, Nigel Poulton, Jessica Tovey and Darius Williams, who dressed in practice gear, enact excerpts from speeches and short scenes to illustrate the points he is making.

Anna Tregloan’s set is simple, a collection of multi-level box-like rostra, which, with the addition of atmospheric lighting and sound by Benjamin Cisterne and Max Lyandvert respectively, assist the actors in creating a sympathetic ambiance for the speech or scene they are delivering.

For his carefully researched presentation, Evans draws on moments from just about the entire Shakespearean canon of terrible but great scenes to support his arguments. Indeed many of the references are terrible, but there is also a surprising amount of humour both in his clever narration, as well as the witty performances to compensate those with weak stomachs.

Nigel Poulton demonstrating how to stage a sword fight - Jessica Tovey in background

There’s also some practical advice on understanding unfamiliar words, ( don’t worry about them), lots of fascinating statistics (who would have guessed?), and even a demonstration by fight master Nigel Poulton on how to stage a great sword fight, sprinkled through the narration.

Not a little of the fascination is from watching the skilled actors slip into a variety of characters, despite the fact that the casting is gender-blind. This presents no problem because Evans makes it clear which character each is playing and the name of the play being enacted is flashed onto the screen behind them.

Unsurprisingly Evans reveals himself as a dab hand at narration, lightening the atmosphere when it threatens to become heavy, with witty off-the-cuff quips, and while the presentation aims at appearing casual, with occasional banter between the actors, it’s obvious that it has been carefully rehearsed as the six actors, who are onstage throughout the entire presentation, quickly and efficiently change position to create attractive visual interest for each segment.

Darius Williams - Lucy Bell - Madeline Li - Jessica Tovey in "In a Nutshell: The Poetry of Violence"

A wonderful introduction to the world of Shakespeare for the uninitiated, and a great revisionary tool for the devotees who will find much of interest in the excerpts from Shakespeare’s less produced plays, In a Nutshell: The Poetry of Violence is an engrossing presentation which should not be missed by anyone with even the slightest interest in exploring the world of William Shakespeare.

                                                              Photographs by Brett Boardman.

                       This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW.

  

CHICAGO - Canberra

 

Anthony Warlow (Billy Flynn) and friends in CHICAGO

Lyrics by Fred Ebb – Music by John Kander – Book by Fred Ebb & Bob Fosse

Original Direction: Walter Bobbie recreated by Tania Nardini - 

Australian Assoc. Director:  Karen Johnson Mortimer - Musical Director:  Anthony Barnhill

Scenic Design: John Lee Beatty – Costume Design: William Ivey Long

Lighting Design: Ken Billington – Sound Design: Julian Spink

Canberra Theatre 11^th to 29^th September 2024.

Opening night Performance on 11^th September reviewed by BILL STEPHENS

Produced by John Frost for Crossroads Live this slick new production of CHICAGO arrives in Canberra for its final season following an extensive tour of Australia’s Capital Cities.

Although, after such a tour it could be forgiven for looking a tad tired, as is the trademark of all Frost productions, CHICAGO arrives in the city for its last Hurrah with its original cast intact and looking as shiny as a new pin.

“Chicago” is one of the longest running shows in Broadway history, though not always in the version that has now become the ‘official’ version. 

The first version of “Chicago” premiered on Broadway in 1975. It was directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse as a showcase vehicle for his wife, Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera, who had appeared with Verdon previously in another Fosse musical Sweet Charity.

CHICAGO was an immediate hit enjoying 936 performances on Broadway and another 600 performances on London’s West End. Australia got to see its first production of Chicago in 1981 when Richard Wherret directed a now-legendary production starring Nancye Hayes and Geraldine Turner.

The production we’re seeing in Canberra is the version, originally directed as a concert version by Walter Bobbie in 1996. Ann Reinking choreographed this stripped back production ‘in the style of Bob Fosse”, incorporating all his signature moves. So popular was this version that it is now the ‘official version’.

John Frost introduced this version to Australian audiences in 1998 in a production starring Caroline O’Connor and Chelsea Gibb. Since then Frosty has continued to tour this show regularly, showcasing a succession of the country’s most accomplished, triple threat leading ladies in the coveted roles of the merry murderesses, Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart.

Zoe Ventoura (Velma Kelly) - Lucy Maunder (Roxie Hart) in CHICAGO

For this 2024 tour, and its first season in Canberra, those roles are played to perfection by Lucy Maunder (Roxie Hart) and Zoe Ventoura (Velma Kelly), both of whom have interesting Canberra connections.

Lucy Maunder’s father, director Stuart Maunder, currently the Artistic Director of Victorian  Opera,  previously directed productions for the Canberra Philharmonic Society, while Zoe Ventoura’s mother, Ruth Osborne, is on the verge of retiring from her long-held role as  the  Artistic Director and CEO of QL2 Dance in Canberra.

One of the fascinations which keep audiences returning to this production year in and year out is to see what nuances each combination of leading ladies brings to the roles of the murderous pair, without straying from the confines of the original choreography and direction.

That they will be superb dancers is a given, after-all both Verdon and Rivera, who created Fosse’s template, were exemplary Broadway dancers, and so too are Maunder and Ventoura. 

Roxie Hart (Lucy Maunder) and her boys in CHICAGO

Lucy Maunder has received numerous Helpmann Award and Green Room Award nominations for her performances in leading roles in a succession of major musicals including Mary Poppins, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Pippin, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and In to the Woods as well as creating the role of Lara in the world premiere of Doctor Zhivago opposite Anthony Warlow.  

None of these roles provided her with as much opportunity to display her considerable comedic and dance skills as does the role of Roxie Hart in this production. Her Roxie Hart is zany, calculating and adorable.

Velma Kelly (Zoe Ventoura) and friends in CHICAGO

Zoe Ventoura’s fame has been earned as an actress in high-profile television roles. She won a TV Week Silver Logie for her role in Packed to the Rafters, and nominations for her role in Kick. Other television shows in which she’s appeared include Hyde and Seek, Underbelly: Chopper, Summer Bay, Love Child and Doctor Doctor.

However, she’s also toured nationally in musicals such as Grease, Footloose, We Will Rock You and most recently La Cage aux Folles. Again, none of these roles prepared audiences for the level of singing, dancing and acting pizazz that she displays in her stunning turn as the hilariously viperous Velma Kelly.

Together they’re a superb team challenging and supporting each other to reveal previously unsuspected nuances like Velma’s subtle look of triumph when the pair launch into “Hot Honey Rag” towards the end of the show. It’s the routine Roxie rejected when Velma pitched it to her in “I Can’t Do It Alone”. Now Roxie needs Velma and that routine. Velma can’t resist giving Roxie sly triumphant glances as they go on to perform it brilliantly.

No need to sing the praises of Anthony Warlow, a genuine Australian musical theatre superstar who these days divides his time between Australian and Broadway stages. Warlow’s performance as the shifty lawyer, Billy Flynn, is pure class. Even at his most despicable this Billy Flynn is the epitome of style and sophistication, particularly when surrounded by a bevy of ostrich feathered showgirls and declaring unconvincingly, “All I Care About is Love”.

Billy Flynn (Anthony Warlow) gives Amos Hart (Peter Rowsthorn) some free advice in CHICAGO

And who could not love Peter Rowsthorn, outstanding as Roxie’s cuckolded husband, Amos Hart,  effortlessly breaking hearts with his plaintive rendition of “Mister Cellophane”; or thrill to the powerhouse voice of Asabi Goodman as Matron ‘Mama” Morton laying down the law with “When You’re Good to Mama” ?

A feature of this production is that it is played out in a single setting; a large bandstand occupied by 15 onstage musicians conducted by Anthony Barnhill and a large ensemble of trim, taut and terrific dancers who remain seated on either side of the stage throughout the show when not executing Fosse’s iconic choreography with fastidious attention to detail or doubling as reporters, jurors or townsfolk whenever required.

Whether you’ve never seen a production of CHICAGO or seen them all, it would be a crime to miss the opportunity to experience this brilliant production before it is put to bed.  

                                                    Production photos by Jeff Busby

                         This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW.

 

 

IN A NUTSHELL: THE POETRY OF VIOLENCE

 

Directed by Peter Evans

Bell Shakespeare

The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre to 14 September

 

Reviewed by Len Power 13 September 2024

 

At the beginning of “In A Nutshell: The Poetry Of Violence”, Bell Shakespeare’s Artistic Director, Peter Evans, describes the violence in Shakespeare’s plays as “acts of bastardry and lots of death”.  He admits that the violence is terrible, of course, but, rubbing his hands together with glee, he tells us it’s great, too, setting the scene for a fascinating, enlightening and entertaining trawl through the violence in many of Shakespeare’s plays.

On a stage set with raised rostra and a backdrop on which the titles of the plays are projected, Evans narrates and six performers show how violence is portrayed across various plays. The tone of the evening is relaxed and casual. Evans speaks to us as if we are part of a rehearsal and the house lights stay on for most of the show, bringing us closer to those on stage. Music and lighting add subtle touches, enhancing certain scenes.

Most of the performers have been seen in past Bell Shakespeare productions, including Jessica Tovey, Lucy Bell, Darius Williams and James Lugton. Madeline Li is a recent NIDA graduate making her debut with the company and Nigel Poulton is also Bell Shakespeare’s fight director. Poulton’s description of fighting implements and the method and code of conduct of their use was particularly enlightening and enjoyably presented.

Evans and the actors move quickly from one scene to the next. There is Brutus offering justification for the murder in Julius Caesar, the guilt of Claudius in Hamlet, Juliet’s delightful “yet I would kill thee with much cherishing” in the balcony scene in Romeo & Juliet and examples from many other plays.

Evans discusses how Shakespeare questions our relationship with violence. He enlightens us about the words Shakespeare uses to describe the emotions of violence, whether provoked by rashness, love, hate, politics or even if it’s just a gratuitous act.

For many of the well-known plays, Evans enhanced our appreciation of them with clarifications that were not apparent before. With the lesser-known plays, it was a fascinating journey through the many colourful characters and scenes, making us eager to further our experience with Shakespeare’s works.

Regardless of the level of our knowledge, Evans and the performers showed that there is still so much more to find and enjoy in Shakespeare’s plays. It was also a delight to listen to expert presentations of the words and poetry in the plays.

 

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

 

CHICAGO

Book by John Kander & Bob Fosse

Music by John Kander

Lyrics by Fred Ebb

Re-creation of Original New York Production Direction by Tania Mardini

John Frost for Crossroads Live and Jones Theatrical Group

Canberra Theatre, Canberra Theatre Centre to 29 September

 

Reviewed by Len Power 11 September 2024

The original production of “Chicago” opened on Broadway back in 1975 and had a good run of over 900 performances. The Broadway revival that opened in 1996 is still running and is now the second longest running show ever on Broadway. The production currently playing here in Canberra is an Australian re-creation of that 1996 revival.

Set in Chicago in the jazz age, the story satirises corruption in the justice system in America when two women on trial for murder attempt to gather as much newspaper celebrity as possible to gain an acquittal. They then hope to use their notoriety to launch a variety stage career.

Beginning with the song, “All That Jazz”, the musical score presents one hot number after another with clever lyrics and music reminiscent of fast and furious jazz age America. The songs are presented by an expert cast who really know how to put these numbers over to great effect and the music is well-played by the orchestra.

Zoё Ventoura (Velma Kelly) and Lucy Maunder (Roxie Hart)

The two “merry” murderesses, Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly, are played by Lucy Maunder and Zoё Ventoura respectively. Both women give fabulous singing and dancing performances, endearing their characters to the audience in spite of the horrific crimes they have clearly committed.

Their cynical and smooth lawyer, Billy Flynn, is played by Anthony Warlow who shines in his songs, “All I Care About Is Love” and ‘Razzle Dazzle”. He also gives and gives a superbly comic performance of the ventriloquist number, “We Both Reached For The Gun”.

 

Anthony Warlow (Billy Flynn) and female ensemble

Asabi Goodman is excellent as the formidable gaoler, Matron “Mama” Morton and Peter Rowsthorn is Roxie’s hapless husband, Amos Hart, who performs his song, ‘Mr Cellophane”, appealingly. Devon Braithwaite as Fred Casely, the murdered lover of Roxie Hart, oozes a reptilian sex appeal that is both attractive and funny at the same time. S. Valeri gives a very good performance as the sympathetic tabloid columnist, Mary Sunshine.

Female ensemble of "Chicago"

One of the major attractions of this show is the choreography in the style of Bob Fosse, the original 1975 show’s director. His angular and sexy style of dance gives “Chicago” its characteristic atmosphere and purpose. The slinky and brief black costumes that originated in the 1996 revival ensure that the focus is on exposed parts of the body and their movement and positioning in dance. The large cast of dancers give an outstanding performance of this demanding style.

It’s a highly entertaining, sexy and colourful show that delivers on all levels and is a sheer delight from start to finish.

 

Photos by Jeff Busby

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

  

AWAY - Canberra Repertory Society.

 

Callum Doherty (Tom) - Elaine Noon (Vic) in "Away".

Written by Michael Gow – Directed by Lainie Hart

Choreographed by Caitlin Schilg – Lighting designed by Nathan Sciberras

Set designed by Andrew Kay - Costumes designed by Helen Drum

Sound designed by Neville Pye

Canberra Repertory Theatre - September 5 - 21^st   2024.   

Performance on September 7^th reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.

 

Michael Gow’s 1986 play Away depicts the lives of three internally conflicted Australian families who, during a 1967 Gold Coast holiday, find their lives becoming inexplicably entwined. It’s become a classic, and the most widely produced Australian play of all time, partly because of being included in the curriculum of high schools in states around Australia.

The play makes conscious nods to Shakespeare, beginning with a school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and concluding with a reading from King Lear. The characters embrace the gamut of Australian society of the time, or at least, what we like to think was Australian society at that time.

For her production for the Canberra Repertory Society, Director Lainie Hart has avoided the temptation to chase cheap laughs through her characters.  Instead she opts to concentrate on the humanity inherent in their situations, which results  in a production rich with laughs, but also deeply moving and on occasion, ethereal.

Jim Adamik (Roy) - Andrea Close (Coral) in "Away". 

Hart’s carefully chosen cast is outstanding, led by Jim Adamik as Roy, the school’s headmaster, and Andrea Close as his wife Coral whose severe bouts of depression and dementia cause strain on their marriage. Both actors offer fascinating multi-faceted performances that are laugh-out-loud while capturing the humanity and authenticity of their characters. 

Peter Fock (Harry) - Elaine Noon (Vic) in "Away"

 

Peter Fock and Elaine Noon play English migrants Harry and Vic who love everything about Australia, but particularly the performance of their son, Tom (Callum Doherty) who plays Puck in the local school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and who is attracted to Meg (Erin Blond), who is also in the play.

Doherty gives a luminous performance as the troubled teenager with a distressing secret. The difficult scene in which he presses Meg for sex is sensitively staged by Hart, and touchingly performed by both actors.

Callum Doherty (Tom) - Erin Blond (Meg) in "Away".

Meg’s father, Jim, portrayed by Peter Styles, is supportive of the budding romance, but her mother Gwen, in an excoriating portrayal by Christina Falsone of a woman who sucks every moment of pleasure out of any occasion, is fiercely discouraging.  

When these three disparate families find themselves unexpectedly holidaying together at the same Gold Coast resort, a series of compelling events involving shared secrets, unresolved dilemmas and deeply felt pain rapidly unfold.

Christina Falsone (Gwen) in "Away".

Gow’s brilliance in revealing the motives that drive his characters, and the adroitness with which Hart draws cleverly nuanced performances from her actors, who also include Andre Le, Claire Noack and Kara Taylor portraying the various subsidiary characters essential to the storytelling, are combined in an engrossing and entertaining evening of theatre.

However, in the telling of his story, Gow’s play requires many changes of locale.  Andrew Kay’s solutions for these scene-changes combined with Harts imaginative stagings which incorporate locally composed music and choreography, while interesting, are not entirely successful.  

The Rep Theatre, like many contemporary theatres, lacks a fly tower. This presents its designers and directors with significant challenges when producing plays written at a time when those features were de rigueur for most theatres.

For this play Kay’s designs work best when they were at their simplest, as for the second act beach scenes when it was almost possible to feel the heat of the sun and smell the salt spray. The staging of the storm sequence was particularly effective.

Michael Gow’s Away is an Australian theatre classic and is here given a memorable production by the Canberra Repertory Society. If you haven’t already seen this play, or a keen to refresh your memory of it, don’t miss this opportunity.

 

Aandre Le (Camper) - Jim Adamik (Roy) - Peter Stiles (Jim) - Helen Noonan (Camper)
 Claire Noak (Camper) in "Away"

                                                Photos by Kate Harris & Eve Murray 

AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY

Written by Tracy Letts

Directed by Cate Clelland

A Free-Rain Theatre Company production

ACT Hub Theatre, Kingston to 15 September

 

Reviewed by Len Power 7 September 2024

 

Tracy Letts’ play “August: Osage County” first opened in Chicago in 2007 and subsequently played on Broadway in 2008. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. A success internationally, it was also filmed in 2013.

The disappearance and apparent suicide of father, Beverley Weston, brings family members home outside Pawhuska, Oklahoma. Thrown together for several weeks, this volatile group explode with truths, lies, anger, disappointments and secrets. If you think your family had problems, wait until you see this bunch go into battle with each other!

For this play to succeed, it needs a highly skilled ensemble of actors. The thirteen performers in this production, under director, Cate Clelland, bring these characters colourfully to life. Moments of high drama mixed with flashes of unexpected humour are all played superbly.

Karen Vickery (Violet Weston)

Violet Weston, the matriarch, is played by Karen Vickery as a formidable force of nature. Get in her way and you’re asking for it! Vickery gives this role an impressive strength but also shows the sensitivity and deep neediness in this woman. Hers is an extraordinary performance.

The cast show their ensemble skills with a dinner at a round table. The pacing of this scene is especially exhilarating with its over-lapping dialogue handled brilliantly by the cast. This is acting of a standard rarely seen.

Karen Vickery (Violet Weston) with the cast

Of the other performers, it would be unfair to single out any of them for special praise. They all deserve mention – Louise Bennet (Barbara Weston), Michael Sparks (Charlie Aiken), Bruce Hardie (Bill Fordham), Tracy Noble (Mattie Fay Aiken), Crystal Mahon (Ivy Weston), Karina Hudson (Karen Weston), Ella Buckley (Jean Fordham), Steve Heidebrecht (Richard Manning), Lachlan Ruffy (Little Charles Aiken), David H. Bennett (Beverly Weston), Rob Drennan (Sheriff Dean Gilbeau) and Andrea Garcia (Johnna Monevata).

Director, Cate Clelland, has kept tight control throughout this production, bringing together the right levels of intensity, character and pace, making this a highly memorable theatrical experience.

 

Photos by Janelle McMenamin

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

 

ORDINARY DAYS: Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre.

 

Vanessa Valios (Deb) - Joel Horwood (Warren) in "Ordinary Days". 

Composer & Lyrist: Adam Gwon - Designed and Directed by Chris Zuber

Musical Director: Matthew Webster – Lighting design by Zac Harvey

Sound Design by Telia Jansen – Stage Managed by Sophia Carlton

Presented by Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre:  5^th – 8^th September 2024.

Opening night performance on 5^th September reviewed by Bill Stephens.

An ordinary title for an extraordinary little gem of a musical, “Ordinary Days” received its first Canberra region performances at the Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre this week.

“Ordinary Days “was originally produced and performed by the Pennsylvania Centre Stage at Penn State University, being first developed by New York Theatre Barn in New York City in 2007.

Popular in Universities and small theatres overseas, before this Queanbeyan production, "Ordinary Days" had only received two short seasons in Australia previously; one in Sydney in 2012 and the other  at Chapel Off Chapel in Melbourne in 2017. 

A group of A.C.T. actor friends discovered this little gem of a show during lockdown and rehearsed it online as a means of keeping in touch.  When Jordan Best, the Artistic Director and CEO of the Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre, learned of  their endeavour she quickly snapped the show up for inclusion in her 2024, Q the Locals, series.

 A mini-musical in the style of Jason Robert Brown, or Maltby and Shire, a style beloved of cabaret performers because almost every song is a little story in itself that can be successfully integrated, out of context, into a cabaret, “Ordinary Days” tracks the stories of four young New Yorkers, two already in a relationship, the other pair who meet by chance when one of them loses her notes for her thesis.

Grant Pegg (Jason) - Kelly Roberts (Claire) in "Ordinary Days"

Kelly Roberts and Grant Pegg portray the couple whose relationship is tested when they move in together. Vanessa Valois and Joel Horwood play a mismatched couple who discover the power of the attraction of opposites.

Canberra readers will immediately recognise these names as four of the district’s most accomplished triple-threat musical theatre performers. To watch these four apply their individual talents to this wonderfully witty, wise, even touching material, was nothing short of thrilling.

Vanessa Valois (Deb) - Joel Horwodd (Warren) in "Ordinary Days).

Each provided a master-class in performing this style of material, investing it with subtle nuances and sub-text not apparent in the written script but critical to understanding the character they are portraying.

It was obvious that this production was a labour of love from all involved, because the performances were so nuanced, pitch perfect and beautifully delivered, that the thought and discussion that had gone into building each characterisation, was  there for all to see. 

Kelly Roberts (Claire) in "Ordinary Days".

This may be the first musical that Chris Zuber has directed, but he already enjoys an enviable reputation through his work as a drama teacher, designer and director of major productions around the city. His understanding of how a musical works is obvious and his attention to detail on every aspect of this production is extraordinary.

His imaginative set design utilising dozens of milk crates to create an evocative environment suggesting the New York skyline, museums, art galleries and apartments for his actors to inhabit, together with his unobtrusive choreography which allows his four actors to create the illusion of a busy city without drawing focus from each other, is masterly.

Subtle lighting and sound design by Zac Harvey and Telia Jansen respectively, were in perfect tune with his concept.

Vanessa Valois (Deb) - Grant Pegg (Jason) - Matthew Webster (Musical Director) in
 "Ordinary Days"

Then speaking of perfect tune; the single musician, seated centre stage at a grand piano, but somehow never drawing focus while virtually breathing with the actors as he brilliantly interpreted Adam Gwon’s intricate, fascinating score, was Matthew Webster, a Canberra based composer, pianist and teacher of international repute, making one of his rare, but always notable, appearances as musical director for a local production.

Such a shame therefore that this season was so brief, particularly in a week when no fewer than five other productions were vying for attention with openings for limited seasons in theatres around the city.

                                                           Images by Rhiannon Sabol. 

                      This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW.

 

AWAY

Written by Michael Gow

Directed by Lainie Hart

Canberra REP production

Canberra REP Theatre, Acton to September 21

 

Reviewed by Len Power 6 September 2024

 

Originally performed in 1986, Australian playwright, Michael Gow’s “Away”, has since become one of the most produced Australian plays and has been studied by school students in many States.

It tells the story of three families holidaying on the coast in summer 1967-68. The holidays should be a time of happiness and relaxation but are clouded by darker issues that the families are trying to cope with. Parts of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and King Lear underline the very human responses by the families to their problems. It is a play that resonates with Australians, but the issues presented are universal.

Andrea Close as Coral

Andrea Close as Coral and Jim Adamik as Roy, a couple trying to getting over the loss of a son in the Vietnam war, give outstanding performances. Adamik also shines in a very different second role as the ghastly, weak joke-telling MC of a holiday concert.

Jim Adamik as Roy

Christina Falsone achieves a strong characterization as Gwen, whose unhappiness and complaining affects all her family. Callum Doherty gives a heart-felt performance as the young Tom and everyone else in the large cast give fine, believable and recognizable performances of great depth.

Christina Falsone as Gwen

The show, with its multiple scene changes, is a challenge for a set designer. Andrew Kay’s abstract design for the beach scenes including the depiction of a storm and the Kodachrome slide projection of the locations worked particularly well. The set pieces of the families’ rooms in their homes, while realistic and detailed, seemed heavy and awkward to move. Costume designer, Helen Drum, has dressed the cast in costumes that reflect the period very well.

Callum Doherty as Tom

Director, Lainie Hart, has ensured that her entire cast have achieved fully developed characterizations. This is a fine and enjoyable production of this famous Australian play.

 

Photos by Eve Murray

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

 

ORDINARY DAYS

Music & Lyrics by Adam Gwon

Musical Director: Matthew Webster

Directed by Chris Zuber

Q The Locals production

Q Theatre, Queanbeyan to 7 September

 

Reviewed by Len Power 5 September 2024

 

“Ordinary Days”, was first developed by New York Theatre Barn in New York City in 2007. Since then, it has had numerous productions around the world, and this is the first chance for local audiences to see it.

It is a sung-through musical with a cast of four and a pianist. Adam Gwon’s music has the same challenging elements for singers that you find in the works of Stephen Sondheim and Jason Robert Brown, but it has its own unique voice that makes it tremendously appealing to audiences.

Set in New York City, the show follows the ordinary lives of four people and how they grow through their interactions with each other. It needs very capable performers who can develop strong characterizations while singing the challenging music.

The show has been cast with four experienced performers who between them have already proved their abilities with previous shows.

Vanessa Valois as Deb

Vanessa Valois plays Deb, a feisty, nervy student who is struggling as much with herself as with others. Joel Horwood is a young dreamer and optimist, Warren, who looks for the simple beauties of life. Kelly Roberts is Claire, a young woman finding it difficult to live with the new man, Jason, in her life. Grant Pegg is Jason, a romantic, who is puzzled by Claire’s responses to him.

Joel Horwood as Warren

All four performers give immensely appealing performances. Through their first songs, they skilfully bring their characters to life, making their stories very real to the audience. The sound, designed by Telia Jansen, is finely balanced so that the all-important lyrics can be heard clearly.

Kelly Roberts as Claire

Musical director, Matthew Webster, also plays the piano accompaniment to the show. There are about 20 songs, all with challenging music, and Webster plays them all with skill and sensitivity. While it is a sung-through musical, a couple of songs, “Life Story” and “I’ll Be Here” are particularly memorable.

Grant Pegg as Jason

The show, performed without interval, has been given a fine staging by director, Chris Zuber. The setting, evoking the atmosphere of crowded skyscrapers in New York City, is achieved with the director’s clever set design using hundreds of milk crates. It is enhanced with a thoughtful lighting design by Zac Harvey. Changes of scene are imaginatively handled, keeping the action flowing at a good pace.

This show has realistic and colourful characters whose lives become easy to identify with. It’s touching, sentimental, tuneful and very enjoyable. There are many fine musicals that get their start off-Broadway and this production with its fine cast is definitely one to see and enjoy.

 

Photos supplied by the production

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

  

SUNSET BOULEVARD - Sydney Opera House

 

Sarah Brightman in "Sunset Boulevard"

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber – Book & Lyrics by Don Black & Christopher Hampton

Directed by Paul Warwick Griffin – Musical Direction by Paul Christ

Set and Costumes Designed by Morgan Large – Choreographed by Ashley Wallen

Sound Design by David Greasley – Lighting Design by Mark Henderson

Presented by Opera Australia & GWB Entertainment – Sydney Opera House until Nov. I.

Opening Night Performance on 31^st August 2024 reviewed by BILL STEPHENS

 

The atmosphere was electric as glammed- up guests arrived at the Sydney Opera House for the Sydney premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard starring Webber’s ex-wife, Sarah Brightman. 

Brightman had received mixed reviews for her performance in Melbourne. An injury causing her to miss performances during the run resulted in a flood of social media comments from disgruntled patrons unhappy at not being given prior notification of her non-appearances. Factors that created doubt as to whether she would actually be onstage for the Sydney opening.

The thunderous ovation she received on her first entrance was no doubt as much an expression of relief that she was actually present, as it was a sincere welcome.

Although Brightman originated the role of Christine Daae in "Phantom of the Opera" on both the West End and Broadway it was a role especially written for her by Lloyd Webber to showcase her unique ethereal soprano voice.

Brightman’s fame as the world’s best-selling soprano is more the result of her subsequent career as a recording and concert artist, than as a musical theatre performer.

Her choice of this particular role for only her second Lloyd-Webber musical in 30 years, invests this production with an intriguing sense life imitating art déjà vu, that many musical theatre aficionados will find irresistible.

Norma Desmond is a tour de force role usually performed by musical theatre leading ladies of different voice types and dramatic abilities to Brightman’s.  Until this production, Brightman had never performed this role.

When she launches into her interpretation of With One Look, especially on the stage of the Sydney Opera House, the result comes as something of a surprise to those used to experiencing the world’s finest operatic sopranos on that very stage.

Brightman’s soprano is pretty rather than dramatic. She’s a performer more than an actress. Her skill is interpreting songs, not necessarily within a context, utilising a variety of idiosyncratic vocal techniques to embellish the lyrics so that they sound beautiful though not necessarily comprehensible.

Unfortunately, this creates a bit of a worry in situations where it is important to understand the lyrics for the information they contain to make sense of the storyline.

But this is Brightman’s version of Norma Desmond. It’s the one that’s attracted Brightman admirers happy to pay opera house prices for the intriguing prospect of seeing her tackle this demanding role. On those criteria, it is not without merit. 

From the moment Joe Gillis confronts Norma Desmond in her luxurious, crumbling mansion, Brightman makes obvious that Norma is already mentally unwell and delusional. Her Norma is needy rather than commanding.

Sarah Brightman as Norma Desmond  singing "As If We Never Said Goodbye"

Brightman’s interpretation of Norma’s response to Joe’s callous treatment of her after she has lavished him with gifts;  is to resort to self-harm when her attempts at seduction fail, then finally death threats when all else fails. Both are valid and ultimately moving. Her vocal highlight comes with the superbly staged, As If We Never Said Goodbye, where her aging voice provides a layer of pathos to the song which is quite moving.

But Brightman is not the only reason to see this production. She is showcased in a spectacularly conceived production, performed by a cast of some of the country’s best musical theatre artists, led by Tim Draxl who gives a  commanding performance as the down-on-his-luck screenwriter, Joe Gillis, who comes unstuck when he falls in love with his colleague, Betty Schaefer, stylishly performed by Ashleigh Rubenach.

Tim Draxl  as Joe Gillis singing the title song "Sunset Boulevard"

Although some might have wished for a little more charm in his characterisation, Draxl deservedly stops the show with his blistering rendition the title song; then again  later when he is joined by Rubenach for a delightfully giddy staging of the  duet, Too Much In Love To Care, during which both  proved themselves much  more than competent dancers.

Robert Grubb invests his role as the mysterious man-servant Max Von Mayerling, with an affecting sense of dignity, while Paul Hanlon as Cecil B. DeMille, Troy Sussman as Sheldrake and Jarrod Draper as Artie Green, all make the most of the opportunities inherent in their roles.

Robert Grubb as Max Von Mayerling - Sarah Brightman as Norma Desmond - Tim Draxl as Joe Gillis in "Sunset Boulevard"

An outstanding feature of this production is the inventive choreography of Ashley Wallen. Although quite different to Fosse, Wallen’s choreography is riddled with clever signature moves which comment on the action, exemplified in his inventive staging of The Lady’s Paying. Throughout the show, it is brilliantly executed with precision and attention to choreographic detail by the large ensemble.

Atmospheric projections by George Reeve enhance Morgan Large’s lavish set and costumes, superbly lit by Mark Henderson to capture the glamour and extravagance of 1950’s Hollywood; while the icing on the cake was the pleasure of hearing Lloyd Webber’s stunning score performed in superb Cinerama sound by the Opera Australia orchestra directed by Paul Christ.  Indeed, many of the audience sat on in the theatre following the thunderous finale ovations to luxuriate in the generous play-out music.

Please note that at the performances of Sunset Boulevard on Tuesday nights and the Wednesday matinee, the role of Norma Desmond is played by Sylvie Paladino.

The Company of "Sunset Boulevard.

                                                           All images by Daniel Boud.

         This review first published in CANBERRA CITY NEWS on 3rd September 2024