Review: Parade (Seymour Centre)

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Venue: Seymour Centre, Everest Theatre (Chippendale NSW), May 9 – 25, 2024
Book: Alfred Uhry
Music & Lyrics: Jason Robert Brown
Director: Mark Taylor
Cast: Georgia Barron, Nic Davey-Greene, James Frampton, Ashley Garner, Guillaume Gentil, Genevieve Goldman, Adeline Hunter, James Lee, Sophie Loughran, Noah Missell, James Nation-Ingle, Maverick Newman, Rebecca Ordiz, Aaron Robuck, Quinton Rofail Rich, Montana Sharp, Tarisai Vushe, Liam Wigney
Images by Matthew Chen

Theatre review
It was 1913 in the USA state of Georgia, when Leo Frank was charged with the murder of a young girl. The case remains an important and deplorable example of antisemitism, and over a century later, authorities recommenced investigations, in efforts to clear the name of the wrongfully accused. The musical Parade, by Alfred Uhry and Jason Robert Brown, details that infamous trial. Although appropriately sombre, and containing some eternally useful lessons on human behaviour and injustice, the piece features highly enjoyable songs, that keeps an audience attentive to the meaningful story.

Music direction by Mark Bradley is richly inspiring for this 2024 Australian production, but sound engineering proves a significant deficit, often preventing us from sufficiently connecting with the creative endeavours being carried out. Lights too, keep us wanting. Although imaginatively rendered by Sidney Younger, the show is frequently shadowy and consistently dim, further alienating us from the action. Production design by Harry Gill, although overly muted with its palette, conveys a sense of authenticity, and provides impressive spatial adaptability that helps with engagement of the narrative.

Direction by Mark Taylor, along with choreography by Freya List, delivers a staging that is swiftly paced yet admirably earnest, in this valuable recount of history. Performer Aaron Robuck brings integrity to the portrayal of Frank, and Montana Sharp is especially memorable as wife Lucille, with a vocal brilliance and a dramatic urgency, that encourages our emotional investment. Also noteworthy is Adeline Hunter who is surprisingly convincing as the 14-year-old victim, with a believable innocence that accompanies very strong singing, for her interpretation of a crucial role.

The American Civil War was meant to have ended in 1865, but we see time and time again, that a system built on subjugation of peoples, will keep rearing its ugly head, and make refreshed nemeses of new others. We seem always to work on the liberation of particular communities, but in failing to address the very fascistic tendencies of how we relate to one another, we find ourselves simply creating different enemies and scapegoats. Humans understand peace, but it appears we know it much more as an abstract concept, than as a lived reality.

www.seymourcentre.com | www.soundworksproductions.com.au

Review: Misery Loves Company (KXT on Broadway)

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Venue: KXT on Broadway (Ultimo NSW), May 3 – 18, 2024
Playwright: Isabella Reid
Director: Mathew Lee
Cast: Lib Campbell, Clay Crighton, Lincoln Elliott, Paul Grabovac, Teale Howie, Mark Langham, Linda Nicholls-Gidley, Rachel Seeto, Annie Stafford, Michael Yore
Images by Clare Hawley

Theatre review
There has been a death in the Glynne family, and all the kin congregate to hold a vigil for the dearly departed. In Isabella Reid’s Misery Loves Company, we see everything go incredibly wrong, for an uproarious comedy, set in what should be the most sombre of times. With it being 1977 in Northern Ireland, and turbulence a permanent fixture during those years, perhaps chaos does make sense, even in moments of reverence and intimacy.

The jokes are plentiful, and indeed incessant, in Reid’s debut play. Misery Loves Company is full of mischief, with sharp dialogue and short scenes, that keep it a buoyant experience. Director Mathew Lee imbues a bold spontaneity, for a show that feels as fresh as it is amusing, consistently enjoyable with its resolute focus on delivering laughter. The cast of ten is strong in general, with a respectable amount of emphasis on chemistry between performers, that ensure we can all be swept up in the effervescent tomfoolery.

Production design by Ruby Jenkins is commendable for its sense of accuracy in terms of portraying a precise time and place, and also for a visual vibrancy that contributes to the humour of the piece. Lights by Tyler Fitzpatrick are deployed with an impressive eye for detail, notable for their ability to manufacture subtle but meaningful shifts in mood. Clare Hennessy’s music demonstrates an impressive sophistication, as it evokes cultural specificity and a gently melancholic nostalgia, for a presentation that for some, relates to a cherished tradition. We come from all corners, but where we converge on this land, is often in the sheer absurdity of living through together, each and every mercurial day.

www.kingsxtheatre.com | www.legittheatreco.com

Review: Switzerland (Ensemble Theatre)

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Venue: Ensemble Theatre (Kirribilli NSW), 3 May – 8 Jun, 2024
Playwright: Joanna Murray-Smith
Director: Shaun Rennie
Cast: Laurence Boxhall, Toni Scanlan
Images by Brett Boardman

Theatre review
The famous author Patricia Highsmith is visited in the Swiss alps, by a junior member of her publisher’s office. Everybody it seems, wants another instalment of her Ripley novels, but Highsmith is making things very hard, including for herself. For all the bravado she displays, there is clearly a crisis of confidence underway. Young Edward however, is determined to have the new book completed, even if it means having to contend with the artist’s impossible insolence.

The wit in Joanna Murray-Smith’s Switzerland is remarkable, with an unrelenting acerbity that director Shaun Rennie uses to great effect, for a show that is as hilarious as it is thrilling. The humorous acrimony is established from curtains up, but a creeping sense of mortal danger develops decisively over the three acts, as the general tone turns indubitably darker. Fatalistic as it might be, Switzerland is also wonderfully poetic, in its rendering of the creative process, and of the nature of inspiration itself. Murray-Smith’s explorations into the meaning of art, for an artist like Highsmith, turns out to be deeply rewarding, for the rest of us who are unlikely to experience that level of accomplishment.

Actor Toni Scanlan brings extraordinary charm to the comical bitterness of Highsmith’s schtick. The character we encounter feels authentic, whilst being irresistibly theatrical, and we find ourselves incredulously mesmerised by that unremitting wickedness. Laurence Boxhall is fabulously nuanced as the stealthily talented Edward, offering endless layers beyond a sparkling American surface, convincing whether playing naïve or morbidly cynical. Chemistry between the two is electric, effortlessly sustained for 90 minutes of delicious storytelling.

Costumes by Kelsey Lee are appropriate in every way, never distracting and in a sufficiently vibrant palette to help us endear to both personalities. Set design by Veronique Benett is thoroughly elegant, for a home that absolutely befits Highsmith’s status and exacting standards. Benett’s lights, along with Kelly Ryall’s music, are unostentatious to begin with, but as the action turns noir, both rise to the occasion and deliver dramatic transformations to atmosphere that have us spellbound.

In Highsmith’s world, people are never who they seem to be. One may go so far, in Switzerland, to conclude that people rarely even know who they really are. We yearn to have firm grasps of our own identities – it makes our essential evanescence tolerable – but the whole truth of each person’s existence, seems eternally to be a mystery. What is real, is that we continue to seek pathways to understanding, and in that persistence, we can only hope that what we find, is not only glorious, but good.

www.ensemble.com.au

Review: Isolde & Tristan (Old Fitz Theatre)

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Venue: Old Fitzroy Theatre (Woolloomooloo NSW), May 3 – Jun 1, 2024
Playwright: Esther Vilar
Director: Damien Ryan
Cast: Sean O’Shea, Tom Wilson, Emma Wright
Images by Kate Williams

Theatre review
In Isolde & Tristan by Esther Vilar, the Irish princess Isolde is being cargoed off to England, like an item of merchandise, where she is to marry the king of Cornwall. In charge of dispatch, is the handsome Tristan, who had very recently beheaded Isolde’s betrothed, by the king’s order, which makes the journey exceedingly interesting.

The German title of Vilar’s play is Stundenplan einer Rache (or Timetable of a Revenge), which draws unambiguous attention to its revenge narrative, but under Damien Ryan’s direction, in a refreshing translation by Udo Borgert and Laura Ginters, we are made almost to forget the heroine’s vendetta, as she negotiates her very survival, on board a vessel to an anguishing future. The complexities of Isolde’s plans are diluted in the drama, and the show consequently loses tension at some points, but it is nonetheless a charming work memorable for its flirtations with controversy.

A delicate balance between humour and a sense of danger, is struck by a very competent cast comprising Sean O’Shea, Tom Wilson and Emma Wright, who demonstrate admirable ingenuity and instinct, in their presentation of Vilar’s contentious ideas. Live singing by Octavia Barron Martin, accompanied by Justin Leong on piano, features extracts from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde to add an extravagance to the experience.

Sound design by Sorie Bangura makes certain our awareness around the characters being at choppy seas. A set by Tom Bannerman delivers alluring, if slightly unrefined, shapes to help us perceive the nautical surrounds, with lights by Sophie Pekbilimli ensuring we are conscious of time’s movement, from one scene to another. The overall visual quality of Isolde & Tristan can be improved, but costumes by Bernadette Ryan are a cut above the rest, with the princess’ attractive and extensive wardrobe proving especially noteworthy.

Isolde’s story seems so much to be about who she belongs to, but even though she has no real autonomy, there is definitely no shortage of agency in how she operates. Vilar seems to celebrate in her writing, the heroine’s capacity at inflicting harm upon her adversaries, even if it comes at an extremely high cost. This is about a woman trying to beat men at their own game. Much as we often have to play by their rules, we know that it is not the gender of winners that matters, but the nature of the game itself. We need to arrive at a place where we can decide on our own circumstances, and never to be possessed by anybody else.

www.oldfitztheatre.com.au | www.sportforjove.com.au

Review: Nayika A Dancing Girl நாயிகா – ஒரு நாட்டியப் பெண் (Belvoir St Theatre)

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Venue: Belvoir St Theatre (Surry Hills NSW), Apr 30 – May 19, 2024
Creators and Directors: Nithya Nagarajan, Liv Satchell
Cast: Vaishnavi Suryaprakash
Images by Brett Boardman

Theatre review
When we meet the heroine of Nayika a Dancing Girl, she is just becoming ready to face the hard truths of her past, and recall the trauma that has pushed her away from her loved ones in India. With the passage of time, and having found a sense of security in her safe harbour of Australia, our unnamed protagonist is now able to confront the hidden parts of herself, that are scarred by having experienced intimate partner violence, when she was but a teenager. In order to survive, there are things that need to be psychologically sequestered, but for a person to truly thrive, their emotions require healing, and those can be attended to, as one becomes stronger over the years.

Created and directed by Nithya Nagarajan and Liv Satchell, Nayika a Dancing Girl tells a story of recovery and triumph, through an amalgamation of western theatrical conventions and the Indian classical dance form of Bharatanatyam. The production is visually compelling, with brilliant choreography set against the tranquil elegance, of Keerthi Subramanyam’s scenic and costume design. Morgan Moroney’s dynamically alluring lights further enrich the atmosphere, as do live music by Marco Cher-Gibard and Bhairavi Raman, delivering for the show a luxuriant aural dimension.

Actor Vaishnavi Suryaprakash is the unequivocal main attraction, with unassailable magnetism, steadfast energy and focus, along with a passionate and authentic approach to the material, that keep us absolutely riveted. The play bears a regretfully halting pace, and a structure that communicates with insufficient power, but Suryaprakash is nonetheless captivating, consistent in her ability to persuade us of the gravity of Nayika and its themes.

It is evident that some of our enduring problems will not find resolution, even after repeated attempts for rectification, from within established systems and conventional approaches. The dancing girl in Nayika has had to abandon an entire culture, and seek refuge elsewhere, before she can pick up the pieces, by creating meaning out of a refreshed consolidation of diverse perspectives. The old ways were never going to serve her, in fact they were made to bolster the behaviour of assailants. To find something effective, has meant that she needed different points of reference. To leave, may look like quitting, but it is that courage to stand on one’s own convictions, against persistent pillars of conformism that are patently harmful, that will set a person free.

www.belvoir.com.au

Review: Aurat Raj عورت راج औरत राज (25A Belvoir)

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Venue: Belvoir St Theatre (Surry Hills NSW), May 2 – 19, 2024
Playwright: Pratha Nagpal
Director: Pratha Nagpal
Cast: Vinaya Elijala, Nikki Sekar, Anusha Thomas, Kirthihaa Veluppillai
Images by Phil Erbacher

Theatre review
Four women are hard at work. Their tasks appear menial and repetitive, but there is a level of dedication that cannot be denied, except for the youngest of the group. She questions the ritualistic practices, but being the factory’s only rebel, faces only repudiation and castigation. Pratha Nagpal’s wonderful Aurat Raj, named after a 1979 Pakistani feminist film, interrogates the meanings of labour and womanhood, within structures that rely on women yet keep us simultaneously subjugated. The absence of male characters further explores the ways in which we enforce instruments of control, on behalf of those who have little concern for our interests.

Aurat Raj might be considered a presentation in the form of physical theatre, but it is unequivocal that the splendid ensemble offers expressions far beyond western conceptions of dance. Vinaya Elijala, Nikki Sekar, Anusha Thomas and Kirthihaa Veluppillai bring a sentimental quality that relay the emotional and psychological complications, of being cogs in systems, whether or not we understand those systems to be functioning to our disadvantage. Movement direction by Sekar is full of grace, with a simplicity for the piece that ensures its symbolism resonates effectively.

Production design by Hailley Hunt introduces a sense of ethereal beauty to the production, along with lights by Tyler Fitzpatrick that deliver remarkable sensuality, to this portrait of woman as both heroic and tragic. Sounds and music by Christine Pan are exquisitely rendered, to offer something transcendental that connects us with the people on stage, and with the larger implications of their earnest, if slightly timid, storytelling.

We understand that the machine will exert punishment, when it detects disobedience. Some of us cannot help but adhere to its every whim and fancy, but there will always be a few who take a more risky approach, even if it means suffering ramifications. It is to those who are fearless and self-sacrificial that we owe gratitude, for it is their incremental efforts that has moved us progressively forward, as we await the next big revolution.

www.belvoir.com.au

Review: Working Class Clown (Biennale of Sydney)

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Venue: White Bay Power Station (Rozelle NSW), May 1 – 3, 2024
Writer/Performer: Tommy Misa
Performance Guide: Emma Maye Gibson
Images by Joseph Mayers

Theatre review
The show begins with Tommy Misa describing a bittersweet moment, soon after their father’s death. Misa’s one person show Working Class Clown can be considered a commemorative piece, although most of it seems to be autobiographical, or perhaps the lines are intentionally blurred, for when we are told these stories about parent and child. Much to our chagrin, we all turn into our mothers and fathers eventually, but thankfully only to a certain degree.

Misa is proud of the similarities in their personalities, and it is with a deep appreciation of what has been inherited, that they present a showcase emphasising the humour of the dearly departed, for a work about the process of mourning, that always moves us from dark to light. Misa’s charm as performer is undeniable, and in all of these 45 minutes, we feel secure in the palm of their hand.

The writing can however feel unfocussed and somewhat mundane. We want the storytelling to bear a greater poignancy, but it seems to shy away from a more conventional articulation of what is usually a sorrowful process. As director, Emma Maye Gibson smooths out the bumps, and renders a sense of cohesion, so that we are able to invest attentionally, if not emotionally.

A glorious costume by Nicol & Ford takes inspiration from clownery, but combines it with traditions of queerness and of proletarianism, for a marvellous and unexpected denim creation that gives meaningful elevation to this theatrical experience. Sounds by Jonny Seymour provide an etherealness that connects us to the spiritual qualities, of this exploration between the present realm and the thereafter.

The decisiveness of death means that we regard it with a distinct permanence, but it is also incomprehensible to our mortal minds, how our current transience is so minuscule in comparison to that perpetuity. We struggle to perceive a bigger picture that can satisfactorily encompass a reality that understands our living days to be only the tiniest of instances.  We always want what we currently are, to be the main thing, and in many cases, the only thing. Magical moments do occur however, when heaven seems to be right here, and we see the eternal taking place in the now. Those are unbearably fleeting, just as it is unbearable to be anything other than human.

www.performancespace.com.au

Review: Do You Mind? (Old Fitz Theatre)

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Venue: Old Fitzroy Theatre (Woolloomooloo NSW), Apr 23 – 27, 2024
Playwright: Shay Debney
Director: Julia Robertson
Cast: Shay Debney
Images by Julia Robertson

Theatre review
Shay Debney has lots of questions, but it is more likely that he is finding a way to communicate, than being genuinely inquisitive about so many different things. In his one-person show Do You Mind?, Debney demonstrates a burning desire to connect, so he keeps making queries in hopes of finding a way to bridge the gap. A lot of art is about that need for humans to see one another, and Debney’s show is certainly a worthwhile exploration of that relationship between seeing and being seen.

The concept is meaningful, but as a theatrical conceit it can make Do You Mind? feel somewhat hollow in the moment, as we wrestle with the glaring absence of a conventional narrative. Director Julia Robertson however ensures that the viewing experience is a rich one, with inexhaustibly surprising variations to the ways in which Debney’s simple text is delivered. Commensurately, lights by Ryan McDonald are in constant flux, with a notable warmth that keeps us from ever feeling alienated by the work’s abstract nature.

As performer, Debney is immensely endearing, and with his remarkable skills in physical expression, our attention is easily and enjoyably sustained. There is an irrepressibility to Debney’s presence as an artist. It may not be obvious what he wishes to say, but his need to create is evident. In Do You Mind? he exemplifies the artist at work, with trepidation but without restrictions. There is a freedom in his practice that reveals something about the expansiveness and the unorthodoxy of what we require of artists, and in our interaction with his work, that freedom proves inspiring.

www.oldfitztheatre.com.au

Review: Sparkling Darkly (Old Fitz Theatre)

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Venue: Old Fitzroy Theatre (Woolloomooloo NSW), Apr 17 – 27, 2024
Playwright: Nick Coyle
Director: Nick Coyle
Cast: Sandy Gore, Anna Houston, Ed Oxenbould, Andre de Vanny
Images by Phil Erbacher

Theatre review
Nick Coyle’s Sparkling Darkly features five short monologues in which public speaking takes an unsuspected turn. Providing contexts are a wedding reception, a retirement party, a courthouse, a funeral and a radio station, all places where a certain decorum is expected, but things are not quite what they seem, when seen through Coyle’s wild imagination.

Macabre humour is order of the day, whether exploring supernatural phenomena or simply venturing into the morbid recesses of human psychology. The five pieces all bear that same twisted flavour, even if their potency can feel inconsistent between each tale. As both playwright and director Coyle is able to introduce a distinct idiosyncrasy to the staging, along with an enjoyable playfulness that makes it a worthwhile 75 minutes at the theatre.

Performers are Sandy Gore, Anna Houston, Ed Oxenbould and Andre de Vanny, all of whom are captivating presences, able to showcase professional skill and inventiveness, for their respective take on a range of kooky characters. Production design by Kate Beere is cleverly conceived, with a simplicity that proves highly effective, in their suggestions of strange goings on. Lights by Alex Berlage are commensurately distilled, only making dramatic gestures when necessary, but certainly elegant for the entirety. Sounds by Zac Saric are gently stimulating, with just enough embellishment to keep us relevantly attentive.

Public speaking is not a common occurrence for most, and when one is required to attempt it, terrifying thoughts of faux pas and other embarrassing mishaps, are par for the course. We understand that to present the self in a certain way, although a non-negotiable requirement of polite society, is never a completely true iteration of how we feel on the inside. It is implied that what is denied, and to be deemed unacceptable, must be ugly or abominable. Some of those estimations are appropriate, but many of those judgements are just waiting to be dismantled.

www.oldfitztheatre.com.au | www.sugaryrumproductions.com

Review: Toy Symphony (Qtopia / Ad Astra Theatre Company)

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Venue: Qtopia (Darlinghurst NSW), Apr 18 – 27, 2024
Playwright: Michael Gow
Director: Michelle Carey
Cast: Adam Dakin, Chantal Elyse, Felix Jarvis, Wendi Lanham, John Michael Narres, Bernadette Pryde, Sam Webb, Gregory J Wilken
Images by Bojan Bozic

Theatre review
Roland has lost his ability to write, which is a disaster for someone who relies on it to make a living. His art is of course, also the foundation of his self-esteem and the only thing that gives him a sense of purpose, so in a moment of desperation, he can only turn to professional help in the form of a psychologist, to hopefully work things out. In Michael Gow’s 2007 play Toy Symphony, we watch the therapeutical process unearth the protagonist’ past; not only his formative youth, but also his regrettable behaviour in more recent times. Roland is taught that to gain an understanding of all that has hurt him, along with the hurt he had inflicted on others, is key to being set free.

Hence a writer’s life story unfolds, commencing in 1966 suburbia where parochial values began imposing themselves, until the dawn of the new century, when he finds himself bursting at the seams, as though unable to contain decades of toxicity, that seems to have an ability to accumulate and exacerbate. There is a lot of detail in the personal reflections of Toy Symphony, and while not all of it is universal in resonance, the process of self-examination and rehabilitation, certainly is.

Lively direction by Michelle Carey keeps us invested in the storytelling, and although we perceive a sense of poignancy, it manifests somewhat inconsistently. Gregory J Wilken is extremely focused as leading man, with an unwavering commitment that makes the experience feel worthwhile and authentic. The ensemble cast is strong, admirable for the integrity they bring to a wide range of characters. Less effective are design and aesthetic aspects, in a production that can look and sound creatively deficient, or perhaps insufficiently imaginative in its manipulations of a tight performance space.

In Toy Symphony, we observe an interesting parallel between homophobia and the fear of imagination. Roland’s story is concerned with the suppressive and stifling tendencies of traditional Australia, that part of our culture that insists on conformity and that punishes those who rock the boat. It is insidious, so we often overlook its severity. Roland however demonstrates the devastation that results, from trying to survive in a place that tells our children, that their nature is wrong. Roland inherited their fear, and has turned it against others, as well as harming himself with the same. The play’s conclusion is tentative, and we can only hope that healing is possible and real.

www.qtopiasydney.com.au | www.adastracreativity.com