Venue: Hayes Theatre Co (Potts Point NSW), Mar 8 – Apr 6, 2024
Book, Music and Lyrics: Laura Murphy
Director: Darren Yap
Cast: Natalie Abbott, Tamsin Carroll, Chelsea Dawson, Nancy Denis, Adam Di Martino, Ryan Gonzalez, Stefanie Jones, Drew Livingston, Monique Sallé
Images by John McRae
Theatre review
It is three hours before curtains at a community theatre in Sydney’s west, which is a terribly inconvenient time for zombies to begin rampaging all across the land. Zombie! The Musical is an ingenious work of musical theatre by Laura Murphy, memorable for its zany humour and amusing characters. Murphy’s infectious pop-flavoured songs are deeply compelling, and accompanied by a delightfully absurd plot, Zombie! proves to be most satisfying, even if its concluding moments do go overboard with its intentional cheesiness.
Darren Yap does wonderfully as director of the show, turning every moment into a joke, and making every joke absolutely hilarious. Choreography by Chiara Assetta is inventive and charming; always keeping energies up, and holding our attention to every plot detail.
Set design by Nick Fry impresses with its adaptive capacities, and costumes by Esther Zhong are memorable for their convincing renderings of apocalyptic ruin. Lights by Verity Hampson are a sensational element, completely delightful with their flamboyant depictions of supernatural occurrences.
Sound design by David Grigg adds to our enjoyment of the production’s style of faux horror, unabashedly theatrical with its enhancements for all the ghoulish goings on. Music direction by Damon Wade is exciting and varied, thoroughly engaging in its post-modern pastiche approach, for a story taking place in 1999.
Performer Stefanie Jones is a confident and grounding presence as Felicity, giving our focus a secure centre for a playful narrative that could otherwise have turned too chaotic. In the role of Dave, Ryan Gonzalez presents the most endearing zombie one could ever meet, with a pizzazz that is, well, to die for. Tamsin Carroll and Drew Livingston bring exquisite polish to the stage, along with the most excellent comedy, in a show that brims over with laughter. Musicals may not be for everybody, but Zombie! is entertainment that even the sourest of dullards can sink their teeth into.
Suzy Goes See 