Ghost Stories - Canberra Theatre Centre

Review by John Lombard

Stephen King once described horror as a door with something terrible waiting on the other side.  Some writers such as Lovecraft keep the door firmly closed, letting the reader's imagination do the work.  Other writers like Clive Barker swing the door open, confident that their creation is awful enough to horrify.  Stephen King described his own method as creaking the door open for a quick peek, getting the visceral horror of the jump scare but also letting the reader supply their own nightmare.

Ghost Stories subscribes to King's theory of horror, hiding its monsters and teaching us to shiver at what lurks in darkness.  When it opens the door completely, it is less effective, with all menace quickly evaporating in the harsh glare of stage light.  But the three tales of supernatural horror that make up this compilation are genuinely chilling, scary as much for what we glimpse as for what might be out there.

A title like "Ghost Stories" suggests a broad perspective, an attempt to sum up and explain why we are drawn to ghost stories themselves.  Sure enough, Ghost Stories provides this commentary in the person of Dr. Goodman (Stuart Brennan), the malf-mad skeptic determined to explain away the supernatural.  His lecture is the framing device for three ghost stories - the professor's favourite case studies - and as the night progresses we get more hints about the ghosts that may be pursuing Dr. Goodman.

Dr. Goodman explains the ghost story as guilt run amok, the conscience creating its own punishment.  A night watchmen who does not visit his comatose daughter finds something child-lkike lurking in a dark warehouse, while a teen driving without a license ends up trapped in his car, hiding from something in a dark forest.  As Dr. Goodman gleefully points out, we create ghosts because the uneasy mind is always fearful of retribution.

With League of Gentleman writer Jeremy Dyson co-writer alongside Andy Nyman, the show is heavy on humour, especially in Dr. Goodman's manic lectures.  Dr. Goodman is not afraid to bombard the audience with internet memes or to take a sly swig of booze.  The humour tenderises the audience, relaxing it just enough for the jump scares to have maximum impact, supporting the horror rather than detracting from it.

The three short stories are strong, with the opening night watchman story probably the most effective.  The setting and characters are staunchly English, and while the themes were universal this did feel like another country's bad dreams.  I would have been fascinated to see how these stories worked in an Australian setting, perhaps an encounter with a bunyip in the outback.  Heavy accents made the crackly radio voices in one segment almost incomprehensible, but for the most part the United Kingdom locale was a source of character and flavour rather than distance.

The show benefits from brilliant set design and lighting effects.  Tricky timing means that we are sometimes unsure whether we really saw something in the dark or imagined it.  Safe zones are created for the characters, and we tense up when characters stray from them.  A lot of the horror is in anticipation, for example when we are presented with a room full or mannequins or when a blanket in a haunted crib starts to rise of its own accord.  One of the plays even had a subtle smell effect, and I was genuinely unsure whether it was real or whether the mood was making me hallucinate it.

Where the show falters is in its coda, an attempt to fuse horror with humour that eschews the patient mood-building of the three stories for a bathos that falls slightly flat.  The resolution was clever, but so drawn out that it could not be chilling, a weak ending rather than a final shock.

However Ghost Stories achieves its mission, fusing humour and horror in a melange that mostly works.  It deserves particular praise for its adroit stagecraft, using sleight of hand in clever set and lighting to create the creeping atmospheric tension of a good radio play.  Ghost Stories is not only a spooky night at the theatre, but a compelling theory for why we are so determined to make ourselves afraid of the dark.

FUNNY GIRL

Music by Jule Styne

Lyrics by Bob Merrill

Directed by Jarrad West

SUPA Productions Inc., Q Theatre Queanbeyan to 3 September

Review by Len Power 19 August 2016

‘Who is the pip with pizzazz?’ sings Fanny Brice in ‘Funny Girl’.  On opening night at the Q Theatre in Queanbeyan, it was undoubtedly Philippa ‘Pip’ Murphy in a towering performance as the early 20^th century singer-comedienne made famous in the 1960s by Barbra Streisand, the original ‘Funny Girl’.  That old theatre cliché of the understudy taking the place of an ailing star does come true now and again.  Murphy, the understudy for the role, did the opening night performance due to the indisposition of Vanessa de Jager.

The show’s strength is in the performances.  Michelle Klemke is terrific as Fanny Brice’s mother, Rose.  Joel Hutchings scores strongly as the troubled husband, Nick Arnstein.  Will Huang is very appealing as Fanny’s friend and mentor, Eddie.  Peter Dark, Shennia Spillane and Dave Smith also give good performances.

Will Huang (Eddie) and the Girls

The focus of this show is the star performance of the actress playing Fanny Brice.  It’s a formidable role needing a singer who can belt strongly as well as sing sensitive ballads and be a comedienne who can play strong drama.  Philippa Murphy ticked all the boxes, giving a memorable performance in the role.  For any actress taking on this role, the pressure is enormous.  If Murphy was feeling the pressure, she certainly didn’t show it.  Her performance was assured throughout.  It was just a pity that the most famous number in the show, ‘People’, was staged with her sitting at a table to the side of the stage, killing any chance for the actress to stop the show with it.

Philippa Murphy as Fanny Brice

There was fine musical direction by Rose Shorney for the voices but the orchestra playing on opening night was quite unsettled.  Choreography by Amy Fitzpatrick captured the style of the era as did the costumes by Suzan Cooper.  Lighting design by Hamish McConchie was fine but there was some strange flickering happening during the second act.  Sound levels were well balanced between singers and orchestra.

Jarrad West’s production is strong on period detail but is hampered by an impractical and unattractive set which limits the playing areas.  A large theatre proscenium and stage with steps takes up much of the space but is hardly used.  In spite of the set piece’s size, its stage is too small and the show numbers are mostly played in front of it rather than on it.  Other scenes were played in cramped areas to the sides of the stage.  The song, ‘Find Yourself A Man’ was especially limited by this.  Some key dialogue scenes had the focus pulled away from them by distracting actions of some chorus members in the background.

However, this is an entertaining production of a show not often staged.  It’s the performances of the principal performers that make it well worth seeing.

Photographs by Craig Burgess

This review was first published in the Canberra City News digital edition on Saturday 20 August.  Len Power's reviews can also be heard on Artsound FM 92.7 'Artcetera' program from 9am on Saturdays.

INDIA MEETS

Belconnen Arts Centre 20^th August 2016.

Reviewed by Bill Stephens

Prolific local dance maker, Liz Lea, seized the opportunity presented by the visit to Australia of celebrated Indian classical dance artist, Seeta Patel, to arrange this eclectic program of Indian dance. Seeta Patel specialises in Bharata Natyam, a particular strand of Indian classical dance which Lea also studied for some years while living in London.

Apart from performances by both Patel and Lea, the program also featured several local professional Indian dance exponents, including husband and wife team, Jenni White and Mahesh Radakrishnan, who, following a short introduction by Lea, and the showing of a short film giving an insight into Seeta Patel’s classical practice, commenced the program with a mesmerising performance of “Ashtapadi No. 19”.

The storyline of the song sung by Radakrishnan, accompanying himself on a drum, was gracefully interpreted by White, beautifully costumed in traditional dress, and incorporating the sophisticated vocabulary of sign language based on gestures of hands, eyes and face muscles inherent in the Bharata Natyam style. It was a beautifully executed performance which set the standard for the rest of the evening.

Also wearing spectacular traditional costumes, Vanaja Dasika and Suhasini Sumithra, dancing to a recorded soundtrack, performed an energetic duet, entitled “Shivashtakam” in Kuchipudi style. For the duration of this dance, the perfectly synchronised dancers mirrored each other’s gestures throughout the long series of complex eye, hand and foot movements to interpret the cycle of death and rebirth in the world of Lord Shiva.

Between these two items, Liz Lea, an extraordinary dancer in her own right, performed two contrasting pieces. The first, “The Incense” is Lea’s reinterpretation of a piece originally choreographed by Ruth St Denis in 1906 in which a temple dancer makes offerings to the Gods. Costumed in a bejewelled, diaphanous blue costume, Lea’s superbly controlled, graceful movements perfectly captured the mystical mood suggested by Henry Worthington Loomis’ evocative music.

Liz Lea performs "The Incense"

Her second offering was “When Tagore met Einstein – or part thereof”, a piece created by Lea in response to a 1930 conversation between Rabindranath Tagore and Albert Einstein. Having seen an earlier version of this work, it was fascinating to have the opportunity to revisit it and observe how Lea has utilised her knowledge of the Bharata Natyam technique to hone and refine it.

Performed to a recording of Lea’s voice repeating the exchange between the two men, Lea takes her cue from words that the men utter, to create movement passages, which she punctuates with subtle facial expressions and traditional gestures to clarify and underline the arguments. As the work progressed, spontaneous little laughs and vocal acknowledgements from the audiences indicated how successful her efforts had been in translating this unlikely source material into an engrossing dance work, which will no doubt continue to evolve in future performances.

The final section of the program was given over to Seeta Patel, who performed two pieces of which the first, “Patra Prevesham – Ananda Nartana Ganapatim”, choreographed by Mavin Khoo, proved to be a miniature compendium of the Bharata Natyam technique.

Seeta Patel in performance 

Describing the dancing form of the elephant headed god, Ganesha, the work cleverly encapsulates all the hallmarks, the fixed upper body, the flexed knees, the complex footwork, the hyper-extended fingers, the use of eyes and facial expression, all meticulously interpreted by Patel in one engrossing masterclass.

Not waiting to recover her own breath, Patel then held her audience spellbound with a description of her next dance, “Padam (Theruvil Vaaraano) – Raga Kamas”, telling the story of a young Tamil woman waiting in anticipation for the Lord Shiva to pass by her home in a procession.  She followed her flawlessly spoken description with a performance in which every nuance of the story was etched on her face and body with such stunning clarity that it was impossible not to be deeply moved.

It was a masterful and memorable performance on which to end an extraordinary evening of insights into a highly refined art form.

In the Q & A, conducted by Dr. Michelle Potter after the performance, Seeta Patel proved just as eloquent with words, as she was with dance, as she responded to enthusiastic questions posed by her audience.

An edited version of this review was first published in the digital edition of CITY NEWS on 21st August 2016.

NATIONAL CAPITAL ORCHESTRA CONCERT

Conducted by Leonard Weiss

Barbara Jane Gilby, Violin

David Pereira, Cello

Edward & Stephanie Neeman, Piano

Llewellyn Hall 20 August

Review by Len Power

The National Capital Orchestra under the baton of Leonard Weiss presented a feast of fine music on Saturday night at Llewellyn Hall.

The ‘Overture to Fidelio’, from Ludwig Van Beethoven’s only opera, written in 1805, was played with great energy and warmth with fine work from the horns and an especially strong and exciting finale.

Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 49 ‘La Passione’ in F minor, written in 1768, was next on the program.  Discussion continues to rage over its popular title ‘The Passion’ with many thinking it refers to the sombre nature of the opening movement while others believe it has a theatrical origin.  The first movement was played with great control and feeling and contrasted nicely with the energy of the second movement.  The atmospheric playing of the third movement was the highlight of the performance of this work.

There was a change of pace with the next offering.  Martin Wesley-Smith’s ‘My Brother Jack’ from 1994 is based on snippets of the melody from the popular folk song ‘Frére Jacques’.  It was played with four hands on one piano by Edward and Stephanie Neeman.  This modern work is challenging but fun and the performers were as delightful to watch as they were to listen to.  The co-ordination between them as they played was extraordinary.

The major work of the evening was Beethoven’s Triple Concerto for cello, violin and piano.  It is the only concerto Beethoven ever completed for more than one solo instrument.  This popular work, written in 1803, was played superbly by the soloists David Pereira, cello, Barbara Jane Gilby, violin and Edward Neeman on piano.  The second movement where cello and violin weave around the melody was just sublime.  The orchestra accompanied the soloists with fine and sensitive playing.

The National Capital Orchestra has excelled once again with a well-played and enjoyable concert of nicely varied works.

Len Power’s reviews can also be heard on Artsound FM 92.7 ‘Artcetera’ program from 9am on Saturdays.

SNUGGLEPOT AND CUDDLEPIE

Snugglepot and Cuddlepie

Adapted by Eva di Cesare, Sandra Eldridge and Tim McGarry from the stories by May Gibbs. Directed by Susanna Dowling. Monkey Baa Theatre Company. Presented by the Canberra Theatre Centre and CDP Productions. The Canberra Theatre. August 18 -20 2016

Reviewed by Peter Wilkins

 

The crackly voice of elderly  May Gibbs, creator of the iconic and beloved immortal gumnut babies, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie  reminds the audience of her childhood inspiration that gave birth to the delightful  adventures of the creatures of the Australian bush. Generations have come to love the stories of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie , and young children on their parent’s  or grandparent’s knee gaze wide-eyed at the illustrations as they listen to the exploits of the Gumnut Babies and the popular loveable Ragged Blossom, the pompous Professor Kangaroo, the matronly Miss Fantail and the smooth Mr. Lizard. The eyes widen in anxious concern at the nasty actions of Mrs. Snake or the Banksia Men and squeal with joy as Snugglepot and Cuddle Pie overcome all the perils of the bush.

Thomas Pidd as Cuddlepie and Nicholas Hiatt as Snugglepot
Photo by Heidrun Lohr

CDP’s presentation of the stage adaptation of May Gibb beloved tales is no less delightful, vividly brought to life and colourfully realized in Imogen Ross’s gumleaf setting and Matthew Aberline’s splendid costumes. Adapters Eva Di Cesare, Sandra Eldridge and Tim McGarry have been faithful to May Gibbs's creations and have woven a fun-filled, fifty-five minute adventure that had the young children rapt in wonder as their beloved flora and fauna sprang to life upon the Canberra Theatre stage.

Monkey Baa Theatre Company’s  production is the perfect illustration of first class children’s theatre.  Bright, energetic, colourful and filled with clever physical business and lively performances by the small cast, it sweeps the audience along as Snugglepot (Nicholas Hiatt) and Cuddlepie (Thomas Pidd) set out to find a human. Snugglepot the intrepid cajoles the more cautious Cuddlepie to join him, and he finally acquiesces, but “at a distance”. Like all good tales, Gibbs’s characters embark upon a quest. Along the way, they encounter new friends to join them, and must escape the perilous pursuits of the slithery snake (Lucy Goleby) and the bumbling Banksia Man (Jake Lyall). With the aid of Mr. Lizard, Ragged Blossom, Mr. Frog and Miss Fantail, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie come across a human rescuing Mr. Possum from a trap. And therein lies the moral of our tale. Just as there are the good and bad members of the flora and fauna race, so too are there good and bad humans who live upon the earth. With the aid of good friends, the bad can be vanquished and good will triumph. It’s a moral that even the youngest five year old as well as the oldest ten year old and their families can understand.

Lucy Goleby as Mrs. Snake. Photo: Heidrun Lohr

Susanna Dowling directs with flair and imagination. The children delight in the playful opening wooden sword combat between the two gumnut babies and there is much sliding and swinging on the central see-saw branch. Goleby and Lyall take on the many other roles with lightning costume changes. There is tumbling and falling, running and bumping and Goleby  in both her roles as the captured Ragged Blossom and the vanquished snake.is hauled across the floor by her legs into the wings

Lucy Goleby as Miss Fantail. Thomas Pidd and Nicholas
Hiatt. Jake Lyall as Mr. Lizard. Photo: He
idrun Lohr

Exquisitely staged and performed with gusto and fun by the versatile cast, the production exudes every ounce of adventure and charm that have made May Gibbs’s stories such a treasured collection on generations of bookshelves. This production is sheer joy and tells its tale for all to love.

Above all, the telling of the tale is done with integrity, understanding and a delicious insight into the imaginative world of the child. It is a production to appeal like May Gibbs’ tales to all ages for all time. It is a quintessential Australian folk lore, and Children’s Theatre at its best.  

Thomas Pidd as Cuddlepie. Nicholas Hiatt as
Snugglepot. Photo by Heidrun Lohr

Jake Lyall as Mr. Lizard and Lucy Goleby as Ragged Blossom

Jake Lyall as Professor Kookaburra and Lucy Goleby
as Miss Fantail  Photo by Heidrum Lohr

 

 

FUNNY GIRL

Funny Girl.

Music by Jule Styne. Lyrics by Bob Merrill. Book by Isobel Lennart from an original strory by Miss Lennart. Directed by Jarrad West. Musical Direction by Rose Shorney. Choreography by Amy Fitzpatrick. Supa Productions. The Q Theatre. Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre. 19 August until 3 September 2016.

Reviewed by Peter Wilkins

She’s the greatest star. She is by far. It’s hard enough to be the understudy on opening night. But to take on the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl and step into the shoes of an ill Vanessa de Jager at a moment’s notice is even more daunting. Add to that that this is the role made famous by Barbra Streisand on stage and screen in the Sixties and you have a recipe for sheer terror.  Director Jarrad West has cause to rejoice that Philippa Murphy was there to save the day with a performance worthy of any leading lady. With limited rehearsal, Murphy was able to capture the wit, the Jewish chutzpah, the vulnerability and the comedy of the Vaudeville comedienne and Ziegfeld  headliner in his famous Follies. Murphy is a star on the rise and anyone fortunate enough to catch her performance in Funny Girl will witness a star of the Australian musical theatre stage in the making.

Philippa Murphy as Fanny Brice in Supa
Production's Funny Girl. Photo by Craig Burgess

This in no way diminishes the quality of other performances or the excellent standard of production of Supa Production’s  fine staging of a rarely revived musical by Jules Styne and Bob Merrill with a book by Isobel Lennart, based on an original story by Miss Lennart.  Lennart’s book is a simple telling of the life of Jewish girl, Fanny Brice, who becomes a star of the Follies of impresario, Florenz Ziegfeld, played with a certain sobriety by Peter Dark.  It traces her unfortunate marriage to charming con man and compulsive gambler, Nick Arnstein (Joel Hutchings). There are excellent performances from the principals, including Will Huang as the devoted Eddie Ryan, Ziegfeld’s dance master, Michelle Klemke as Fanny’s Jewish Momma and Shennia Spillane as the gossipy, busy-bodying neighbour, Mrs Strakosh. Supported by a lively Ensemble the show moves swiftly under West’s tight direction and the energetic, colourful choreography by Amy Fitzpatrick and the accompaniment of the orchestra under the baton of musical director Rose Shorney .

Michelle Klemke as Mrs. Brice. Photo: Craig Burgess

Funny Girl is not without its design challenges. Set during the early decades of the Twentieth Century, the setting changes from Fanny’s humble home to the theatre to Fanny and Nick’s lavish home and the sumptuous setting of the Ziegfeld Follies. It’s a huge challenge for an amateur company on a limited budget, and it is a credit to costume designer Suzan Cooper that she is able to costume a large company in everything from Fanny’s costumes to the Top Hat and Tails of the male chorus, the glittering feathers and spangles of the showgirls and the army jackets for the Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat routine. Hamish McConchie’s lighting design sets the right atmosphere with the effective use of the cyclorama and the follow spot to highlight Fanny’s People and Don’t Rain on My Parade.

Joel Hutchings as Mick Arnstein, Barbara Denham as Mary O'Malley
Shenni Spillane as Sarah Strakosh, Vanessa de Jager as Fanny Brice
and Maureen Read as Agnes Meeker. Phot: Craig Burgess

Only Brian Sudding’s naively painted cut outs lose the solid sense of setting. The show demands a more substantial theatricality that a commercially funded production might provide.

Supa’s Funny Girl scores a hit with numbers like People, Don’t Rain on My Parade, Sadie Sadie and I’m The Greatest Star. Songs are sung with verve and panache and there is fine voice from Dave Smith as Ziegfeld’s Finest Tenor during His Love Makes Me Beautiful, Hutching’s Nick Arnstein in You Are Woman; I am Man and the reprise of Don’t Rain on My Parade and Huang’s Eddie Ryan with If A Girl Isn’t Pretty and Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat.

Dave Smith as Ziegfeld Finest Tenor. Photo by Craig Burgess

Ultimately, Funny Girl is written for Fanny Brice and on opening night audiences witnessed a rising star in Philippa Murphy.  Supa Productions have hit the jackpot with the revival of a show that captures the glamour and the saga of life in the theatre, as well as the personal struggle and success of the funny, witty, complicated  stage darling, Fanny Brice. This is a show to see twice -once to delight in Murphy’s performance and be entertained by the Supa team and twice to catch the talented Vanessa de Jaeger when she returns to the role. Whatever you do, don’t miss Supa Production’s Funny Girl!

Declan Pigram, Emma Quinlan and Kym Starr

in Funny Girl. Photo by Craig Burgess

Erin Gough in Funny Girl. Photo by Craig Burgess

ANYTHING GOES

Directed by Marty King

Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter

Canberra Philharmonic Society, Erindale Theatre to August 27

Review by Len Power 11 August 2016

“Anything Goes” was Cole Porter’s smash hit musical of the 1930s.  A vehicle for Ethel Merman, it introduced a number of songs that have since become standards.  The production presented by Canberra Philharmonic Society is a revised version from the 1980s which, while maintaining the period of the story, streamlined the book of the show and changed the song list, dropping some songs and adding others from the Cole Porter catalogue.  Even the lyrics of some songs have been changed.  Many of the topical references made by Porter were about his contemporaries at the time and would be meaningless to most audiences these days.

Marty King’s production is a delight from start to finish.  He has captured the style and pace required to make this show come alive.  His enthusiastic cast do the rest, having great fun with the funny and improbable story and singing and dancing with glee.

A star vehicle needs someone in the lead who really shines throughout the show.  Kelly Roberts as Reno Sweeney gives the role glamour as well as the toughness this worldly-wise dame needs and sings her songs wonderfully.  Her “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” lifted the roof off the Erindale Theatre on opening night.

Marcus Hurley gives a great performance as the scheming Billy Crocker, finding the fun in the character and playing it for all it’s worth.  His lead singing for “All Through The Night” was especially memorable.

Amongst the large cast there are some standout performances.  Ian Croker’s comic timing was excellent and his “Be Like The Blue Bird” brought the house down.  Emma McCormack shone as the hard-boiled Erma Latour, especially in her “Buddy Beware” number with the sailors.  Amelia Juniper-Grey was pretty and sang with great sensitivity.  Jonathan Rush pulled out all the stops in his hilarious portrayal of the dopy English Lord and Steven Galinec and Anita Davenport were very funny as the older travellers.

Choreography by Emma Tattam was especially fine in this production.  She made the entire cast look like they dance for a living.  Riley Gill’s tap dance choreography was one of the highlights of the show’s title number.  Musical direction by Jim McMullen was excellent from start to finish.  That band was ‘hot’!

Ian Croker’s two level ship-board set was nicely designed, giving lots of playing areas for the director to work with.  Pip Miller and Heather Palazzi costumed the huge cast with eye-catching and well-designed period clothes.  Lighting and sound by Eclipse Lighting and Sound worked very well but some light cues were a little slow on opening night.

This is a very funny, colourful and tuneful show, played by an expert cast.  If you want to see how much fun life was in the 1930s, don’t miss it!

This review was first published in the Canberra City News digital edition on the 12^th August.  Len Power’s reviews can also be heard on Artsound FM 92.7 ‘Artcetera’ program from 9am on Saturdays.