Monthly Archives: February 2025

Review: 4000 Miles (Sydney Theatre Company)

Posted in Theatre by

Venue: Wharf 1 Sydney Theatre Company (Walsh Bay NSW), 8 Feb – 23 Mar, 2025
Playwright: Amy Herzog
Director: Kenneth Moraleda
Cast: Nancye Hayes, Shiv Palekar, Ariadne Sgouros, Shirong Wu
Images by Daniel Boud

Theatre review
Leo had only intended to drop in at his grandmother Vera’s for a quick visit, but ends up staying for much longer. Amy Herzog’s 4000 Miles is about kinship, and the human need for connection at a time when we are increasingly isolated. It is almost strange to see a young and an old person together, even though they are family, and should appear completely natural and matter of course. Such is the extent of our alienation in this day and age.

It is a humorous piece of writing by Herzog, remarkable for the delicate rendering of its characters’ frailties along with the intimate refuge they find in each other. Direction by Kenneth Moraleda is strikingly tender, full of sensitivity and genuine poignancy, for a show that speaks volumes about what we should regard to be the most important in life. It is never a saccharine experience, but always quietly profound, and subtly persuasive.

Production design by Jeremy Allen delivers a realism that helps make the storytelling seem effortless. Kelsey Lee’s lights bring immense warmth, with occasional punctuations of visual poeticism that feel transcendent. Music compositions by Jess Dunn are wonderfully pensive, with a rich sense of yearning to inspire further emotional investment in something truly universal.

Actor Nancye Hayes captivates with the charm she imbues Vera, but it is the honesty she is able to convey that really impresses. The eminently watchable Shiv Palekar as Leo too is resonantly truthful, in his depictions of someone finding his way out of trauma. The exquisite chemistry between the two is quite a thing to behold, and can be credited as the main element behind the production’s success. Also memorable is performer Shirong Wu as Amanda, utterly hilarious in her one unforgettable scene. Leo’s girlfriend Bec is played by Ariadne Sgouros, adding dimension to our understanding of dynamics between characters in 4000 Miles.

Vera’s friends are all leaving this plain, one at a time. In her twilight moments, she finds herself becoming an essential source of support for her grandson, and in this discovery of new meaning, we observe a new lease of life, for both Vera and Leo. In their care of one another, each is required to bring out the best of themselves. Modernity seems intent on drawing attention to many of our worst sides, but it seems that when we tend only to things that matter, a clarity emerges to help us decipher what is good.

www.sydneytheatre.com.au

Review: Chasing Dick – A Love Story (Qtopia)

Posted in Theatre by

Venue: Qtopia (Darlinghurst NSW), Feb 5 – 15, 2025
Playwrights: Dax Carnay-Hanrahan, Aleks Vujicic
Director: Dax Carnay-Hanrahan, James Lau
Cast: Dax Carnay-Hanrahan, Chris Colley, Jason Jefferies
Images by Jordan Hanrahan-Carnay, Matt Bostock 

Theatre review
Dick is a woman with a broken heart, but when she encounters two different men, at different times on the same day, it may seem that things could change. There is an undeniable chemistry to how she connects with each of them, but the psychological damage she has sustained as a trans woman in a transphobic world, is making it challenging for Dick to trust. Also, the fact that the two men are father and son, are only making things trickier.

Chasing Dick – a Love Story by Dax Carnay-Hanrahan and Aleks Vujicic, is often beautifully considered, containing excellent insight from a queer woman’s perspective that is severely underrepresented. Directed by Carnay-Hanrahan and James Lau, the show’s broad humour will not be to everyone’s taste, but what it does say about the trans experience, is certainly valuable.

Design aspects of the staging are accomplished with minimal fuss, offering simple solutions to help us contextualise the performance. Carnay-Hanrahan brings intensity as leading lady of the piece, along with a wonderful commitment that makes the story’s important message truly resonate. Chris Colley and Jason Jefferies offer reliable support as love interests, both actors demonstrating sincerity in their roles.

Trans people like Dick are deserving of love, but what we receive is always compromised and tainted. Luckily love comes in all forms, and even though the vast majority of us are unable to find the romantic kind that our cisgender counterparts enjoy, friendships are much less likely to evade us. Chosen families, along with biological ones, are at least as important to our wellbeing, and to our abilities in living full lives. It is true that we can do without romantic love, especially when we lean into the wisdom that we have inevitably cultivated as a community that has survived interminable cruelty. We must always remember that more than everyone else, we know how to feel enough, that our capacity for self-sufficiency is both rewarding and extraordinary.

www.qtopiasydney.com.au | www.tayotayocollective.au

Review: Peter And The Starcatcher (Capitol Theatre)

Posted in Theatre by

Venue: Capitol Theatre (Sydney NSW), Jan 31 – Feb 9, 2025
Playwright: Rick Elice (from the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson)
Music: Wayne Barker
Director: David Morton
Cast: John Batchelor, Paul Capsis, Olivia Deeble, Otis Dhanji, Morgan Francis, Lucy Goleby, Ryan Gonzalez, Pete Helliar, Colin Lane, Benjin Maza, Hugh Parker, Alison Whyte
Images by Daniel Boud

Theatre review
It is the story of how Peter Pan came to be “the boy who never grew up”. Originally a novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Peter and the Starcatcher involves two ships, pirates, hidden treasure and a celestial substance known as “starstuff”. Transformed into a play by Rick Elice, with music by Wayne Barker, those fantastical elements come to good use, for a theatrical experience catering to young and old.

Design and direction by David Morton delivers a staging that borrows heavily from the pantomime tradition, with notable incorporation of puppetry further enhancing its sense of wonderment. Costumes by Anna Cordingley are commensurately whimsical in nature, with her humorous mermaids leaving an especially lasting impression. Dynamic lights by Ben Hughes are creatively rendered, to take us somewhere magical, with imagery that is often uplifting and inspiring.

Portraying a highly endearing Peter is performer Otis Dhanji, who brings great energy and a compelling innocence to the central role. His new friend Molly is played by Olivia Deeble who delights with her athleticism, and who keeps us attentive with a remarkable presence. Both sing their parts powerfully, along with jaunty and sumptuous musical direction by James Dobinson.

Neverland is a place where the lines between reality and fantasy blur, implying that imagination plays an important part no matter a person’s age. Neverland is also full of danger, meaning that much as we should hold on to an innocent sense of limitless possibility, understanding responsibility is always an essential part of carving out a good life. One should always remember to look to the stars, but unlike Peter Pan, we must never forget to keep our feet steadily rooted to the ground.

www.peterandthestarcatcher.com.au

Review: Wuthering Heights (Roslyn Packer Theatre)

Posted in Theatre by

Venue: Roslyn Packer Theatre (Sydney NSW), Jan 31 – Feb 15, 2025
Adaptor: Emma Rice (from the novel by Emily Brontë)
Composer: Ian Ross
Director: Emma Rice
Cast: Sam Archer, Nandi Bhebhe, Matthew Churcher, Rebecca Collingwood, Frederick Double, Stephanie Elstob, Thomas Fox, Stephanie Hockley, TJ Holmes, John Leader, Robyn Sinclair
Images by Steve Tanner

Theatre review
It is the story of star-crossed lovers Heathcliff and Catherine, from the pen of Emily Brontë but adapted for a contemporary stage. The circumstances around the dark romance of Wuthering Heights may seem a relic of the past, but the emotions that it represents prove enduring.

Transformed into a musical, we are swept away by compositions from Ian Ross that are alternately ethereal and intense, creating a majestic soundscape that takes us far away to 18th-century northern England. Its characters make choices that are unlikely to make sense today, but the music connects with something primal, for an instinctive understanding of how they might have felt.

This reinvigorated version by Emma Rice is as imaginative as it is exuberant, with pop influences that help the old novel resonate anew. Choreography by Etta Murfitt introduces an unexpected kineticism, adding a sense of palpable urgency. Production design by Vicky Mortimer may look somewhat home-spun and dwarfed by the lofty sleekness of the auditorium, but quirky elements are nonetheless delightful.

It is an endearing cast that takes the charge, with John Leader’s idiosyncratic interpretation of a marvellously suave Heathcliff, earning our investment in his epic tale of ambition and regret. Stephanie Hockley’s passionate defiance as Catherine brings an undeniable spiritedness to the production. Also notable are Nandi Bhebne as Leader of the Moors, and Robyn Sinclair as Young Cathy, both highly compelling with their splendid vocals and considered depictions.

There are so many tragic deaths in Wuthering Heights, most of which are related to the notion of a broken heart. Heathcliff was indeed devastated by the loss of his love, and even though it is a truism that life without love is worth little, it is easy to mistakenly believe the same about romance. Only love is essential, and fortunately much more attainable than its illusory and evanescent echo.

www.wutheringheightsaustralia.com