Tag Archives: comedy

Review: All’s Well That Ends Well (Sport For Jove Theatre)

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rsz_img_63263574684765Venue: Seymour Centre (Chippendale NSW), Mar 27 – Apr 12, 2014
Playwright: William Shakespeare
Director: Damien Ryan
Actors: Christopher Stalley, Christopher Tomkinson, Damien Strouthos, Edmund Lembke-Hogan, Eloise Winestock, Francesca Savige, George Banders, James Lugton, Megan Drury, Michael Pigott, Robert Alexander, Robin Goldsworthy, Sam Haft, Sandra Eldridge, Teresa Jakovich
Image by Seiya Taguchi

Theatre review
Sport For Jove’s production of Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well is sleek and action-packed. Damien Ryan’s direction makes every effort to reach out to his audience to keep us mesmerised and entertained. Like a Hollywood film, everything is made to be seductive, but Ryan has the fortunate knack of giving things a sense of sophistication, including full frontal nudity and a completely insane love story.

One of the Bard’s “problem plays”, it is both a tragedy and a comedy. Ryan takes advantage of its “dramedy” quality and forms a creation full of texture and surprise, maneuvering around the text with a freedom that flaunts his artistic genius and courage. His interpretation is utterly contemporary, frequently fantastical and flamboyant, but never inappropriately so. Shakespeare’s outlandish writing meets its match in Ryan’s wildness. Acutely aware of the pleasure derived from visceral responses in the theatre, Ryan magnifies elements of eroticism, humour, tension and shock that are found in the original text, but also has the talent to keep the central story engaging and plot lines coherent. In other words, his direction leaves nothing more to want.

Shakespeare’s male characters are generally more interesting, and that is certainly the case here. The men in the cast have much more room to play, and their work dominates this stage. Edmund Lembke-Hogan is perfectly cast as Bertram. He has the good looks that make the ludicrous love story almost believable. His performance is spirited but precise, with commanding energy that fills the venue and a disciplined focus that keeps his character defined in spite of the often chaotic settings. Conversely, George Banders shines with the looseness in his acting style. Banders is a thoroughly funny and charming man whose character Parolles is easily the most liked of the show. He reads the audience well, and times his delivery impeccably to get us laughing at every opportunity. The production’s comedy makes its three hours feel a mere breath, and Banders is responsible for the best of it. The King of France is played by Robert Alexander who exemplifies charisma and experience. The meticulous detail in his portrayal turns a smaller role into a spellbinding one. His chemistry with co-actors is excellent but the gravity he brings on stage prevents him from ever being outshone.

Set, lighting and sound design are incredibly impressive. Ambitious in scale and scope, the creatives have outdone themselves with a show that is glorious in its look and feel. Its physical environment seems to be perpetually changing, and except for some mechanical noise issues, stage management is executed quite flawlessly. The versatility of Antoinette Barboutis’ set is a real marvel, but costume design is the one blemish in this grand visual experience.

The story is not an appealing one. A woman going to extremes for the love of a man who had shown her only disdain and humiliation is hardly a great idea for today’s stages, but Sport For Jove Theatre’s magical endeavour has transformed a 500 year-old script into a night of glorious theatre. Shakespeare was their starting point, but where they have ended up is a place beyond his wildest dreams.

www.sportforjove.com.au

Review: Quack (Sydney University Dramatic Society)

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rsz_1img_5842Venue: University of Sydney Studio B (Camperdown NSW), Mar 19 – 22, 2014
Director: Zach Beavon-Collin
Playwright: Ian Wilding
Actors: Nick Welsh, Alexander Richmond, Melissa McShane, Geneva Gilmour, Alex Magowan, Meg McLellan

Theatre review
Ian Wilding’s fantastical script is action-packed, funny, and satirical. Its influences are genre film and popular television, which makes it a natural choice for the young theatre makers at University of Sydney. Using the western and zombie genres, and taking inspiration from the Australian adversarial political system, Wilding creates a strange bygone world in which everything seems to be an analogy for the state of our world today.

The Sydney University Dramatic Society’s production is as playful as the script allows. Zach Beavon-Collin’s direction makes lovely use of the atmospherics, greatly assisted by lighting and music design, and indulges heavily in the gory details of all the zombie action. His work will be remembered for blood and pus that overtakes the stage for a good half of the show, which is unfortunate for the actors whose performances are subsumed by the theme park quality of the experience.

The cast is a committed one, but the humour of Wilding’s writing proves to be challenging. Alex Magowan is an exception, leaving an impression with consistently effective comedy. His portrayal of Gunner as an overblown caricature is exaggeratedly brash but a very welcome presence to scenes in the first act that tend to be lacking in energy. Meg McLellan is another supporting actor who shines in each of her appearances. She plays Rodney with a sense of precision, and provides an authenticity that sets her apart as being the most polished of the group. Alexander Richmond is strongest of the leads. His Dr Littlewood takes some time to develop, but in zombie form, the actor is impressive (and repulsive).

As mentioned before, some of the technical elements and music are crucial to the more successful aspects of this production. Josie Gibson’s original score is an accomplished one and often steals the show. Lighting designer Chrysanti Chandra works with minimal facilities, but does well to manufacture a lushness in the show’s moodier sections. These artists might be young and hungry for experience, but they prove themselves to be anything but a bunch of quacks.

www.sudsusyd.com

Review: Short+Sweet Theatre 2014 (Short+Sweet)

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rsz_1529736_585635138198747_2022174908_oVenue: King St Theatre (Newtown NSW) and Seymour Centre (Chippendale NSW), Jan 8 – Mar 22, 2014
Festival Director: Pete Malicki

Theatre review
Short+Sweet Theatre in Sydney featured 160 ten-minute plays this year. After 10 weeks of performances at the King Street Theatre in Newtown, a Gala event was held on Mar 21 at the larger Seymour Centre, featuring 12 of the best and most memorable. The selection is fairly varied, and would appeal to a wide range of audience types, but unsurprisingly, most of the work that have made the cut are comedic, with only two exceptions.

The Blue Balloon, written by Angie Farrow is a surrealist piece that uses visual design and physical theatre to tell its story. Direction is a little lacking in focus, but the team’s radical approach to the short play format is admirable. Late For School is the only work of tragedy at the Gala. Written by Iain Moss and directed by Lisa Eismen, the play stands out not only for being entirely different in tone, it was also the only monologue of the night. Its structure uses suspense, tension and drama beautifully, and actor Patricia Rowling does a splendid job taking us from curiosity to sadness in a very short time.

The night featured many fine performances including Lynda Leavers in Moonage Daydream by Vee Malnar, in which she plays a very drunk David Bowie fan. Her comic timing is exceptional, and so is Richard Carwin’s in Therapist by John Lombard, who captivates with a performance based on gay and straight stereotypes. In the work Nana, conventions are broken. Writer Micah Joel and director Tom Richards have created a thoughtful piece about sexuality in the elderly. Ros Richards’ daring and playful performance as the sexually liberated Nana is a rare treat. A hint of sadness appears towards the end of her story, which seems to add more complexity than the short format allows, but it is a nice touch nonetheless, to try to keep things in a realistic space.

It is noteworthy that through the entire Short+Sweet season, which also includes Short+Sweet Dance and Short+Sweet Cabaret, the rate of participation by women is significantly high. This is a festival that women are drawn to, and one where they do brilliantly. Some Other Toy by Fleur Beaupert features more sexual liberation, this time in a young woman, and a young female robot. It features some of the more original and fascinating concepts in the program, but its innovation is cleverly paired with a lot of laughs, making it a surprising crowd-pleaser. Wild Flowers (deftly directed by Alexandra Hines, pictured above) is another work helmed by funny women. Lauren O’Rourke’s performance as Violet is the most outrageous of the night and her ten minutes of incredible comedy is glorious.

After 12 years of growth, the Short+Sweet festival has produced around 2,500 plays and now finds itself in six different countries. Its success demonstrates that the demand and need for it is real. Practitioners want to participate in it, whether as a means to some other end, or as a destination in its own right, and audiences flock to it to see what our artists are cooking up. The cream of this year’s crop is undoubtedly excellent, but it is also the sheer volume of artists involved (750+ writers, directors and actors) that is impressive. The theatrical arts are indeed thriving in Sydney.

List of prize winners below:

Best Actress runner up
LAUREN O’ROURKE (WILD FLOWERS)

Best Actor runner up
RICHARD CARWIN (THERAPIST)

Best Actress
LYNDA LEAVERS (MOONAGE DAYDREAM)

Best Actor
NAT JOBE (GUIDED BY VOICES)

Best Script
BLABBERMOUTH by Cerise de Gelder (VIC)

Best Director
TOM RICHARDS (MOONAGE DAYDREAM and NANA)

Best Newcomer (Male)
DREW HOLMES of Newcastle (Star of ADVANCED by Jo Ford)

Best Newcomer (Female)
ROBYN PATERSON (writer, director and star of one-woman show THE SOUTH AFREAKINS)

Overall People’s Choice Winner
THERAPIST – writer-directors Rob White & Leah White, starring Richard Carwin & Rowena McNicol

Overall People’s Choice Winner
GUIDED BY VOICES by Mark Konik (ACT) directed by Florence Kermet and Rosemary Ghazi, starring Jamie Merendino, Nat Jobe, Kat Hoyos and Aimee Timmins

Overall Wildcards Winner
THE BLUE BALLOON by Angie Farrow, directed by Cecile Payet and starring Daniel Gorski, Rachael Williams, Hannah Zaslawski, Anthony White, Lyna Collins, Ethan Lowinger, Olga Pagrati, Brooke Doherty and Ivan Kurnia

Best Production
MOONAGE DAYDREAM by Vee Malnar, directed by Tom Richards, starring Greg Wilken and Lynda Leavers

www.shortandsweet.org

Review: High Windows Low Doorways (Subtlenuance)

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subtlenuanceVenue: TAP Gallery (Darlinghurst NSW), Mar 19 – 30, 2014
Playwrights: Jonathan Ari Lander, Noelle Janaczewska, Katie Pollock, Alison Rooke, Mark Langham, Ellana Costa, Melita Rowston
Director: Paul Gilchrist
Actors: Alice Keohavong, Helen Tonkin, Peter McAllum, Matt Butcher, Kit Bennett, Gavin Roach, Naomi Livingstone
Image by Zorica Purlija

Theatre review
Subtlenuance’s new production features seven monologues by seven different actors and seven different playwrights. The monologues are presented as a cohesive whole by director Paul Gilchrist, although it is always clear where each story begins and ends. The theme that binds them is the concept of spirituality, with a focus on the actors’ personal experiences, rather than their beliefs.

Common themes emerge. We hear revelations about family, religion and the metaphysical. We also see a sense of struggle that often comes into play in these reflections on spiritual lives. Naomi Livingstone’s piece starts in a space of hopelessness and pain. Her performance is heartfelt and sincere, with a powerful emotional quality that she tends to slightly over-indulge in. Nevertheless, the authenticity in her expression invites us in and helps us connect with her story. Ellana Costa’s interpretation of her story is well structured, and the imagery they create is vivid and uplifting. Gavin Roach’s style is vibrant and camp. The actor’s enjoyment of the stage and his eagerness in keeping his audience engaged, makes him the most entertaining of the group. Mark Langham’s script for Roach’s story is probably the most complex in the show, which helps the performer craft a segment that is more elaborate, physical and livelier than the others.

Matt Butcher’s piece about his grandmother is one of loss and longing. He craves an impossible meeting with her, and finds solace in his memories of their time together. Jonathan Ari Lander does a good job putting those recollections to words, and Butcher uses them to paint a bitter sweet picture of reminiscence and love. In a similar vein, Helen Tonkin recalls her father, further illustrating the link between family and spirituality. Assisted by Peter McAllum’s performance, their depiction of the father and daughter relationship tenderly demonstrates the depth at which childhood experiences affect our lives.

The trouble with monologues is that they are too often written without keeping in mind the other senses that an audience brings with it to the theatre. There must be a difference between reading a poem or a memoir on paper, and going to see a staged performance. There are instances in this production that feel as though the writing would have worked better in a book, but the personal nature of the material helps make the production feel earnest and accessible. There is a resonance that exists where people dig deep to tell personal stories, and in High Windows Low Doorways, the cast wants us to hear them, but the commonality of our experiences also makes us feel heard.

www.subtlenuance.com

Review: Clybourne Park (Ensemble Theatre)

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clybourneparkVenue: Ensemble Theatre (Kirribilli NSW), Mar 13 – Apr 19, 2014
Playwright: Bruce Norris
Director: Tanya Goldberg
Actors: Paula Arundell, Thomas Campbell, Briallen Clarke, Nathan Lovejoy, Wendy Strehlow, Richard Sydenham, Cleave Williams

Theatre review
Bruce Norris’ multi-award winning play is a stunning work about racism and its manifestations in American neighbourhoods. By looking at the formation of communities and the process of home acquisition over the last 50 years, Norris captures the evolution of attitudes regarding ethnic diversity and political correctness in the USA. It is a script that is dynamic, entertaining and funny, while maintaining a complexity that reflects the intricately divergent beliefs we hold on the subject. We all accept that racism is not to be tolerated, but it is our individual and differing definitions of the concept that gives Clybourne Park its dramatic exuberance.

Direction by Tanya Goldberg for this production by the Ensemble Theatre is exciting and impressive. Goldberg’s work is full of intellectual depth but also gleefully entertaining. She relishes in the dark and sometimes sardonic humour of the script, making us laugh at every opportunity but always keeping us aware of the precariousness of the topics being discussed. We are never sure if our laughter is appropriate, and we are constantly required to assess the political correctness of our responses to what unfolds on stage. Goldberg’s achievement in creating an electric piece of theatre, while presenting some of the bravest and most contentious points of view on race, is truly remarkable.

This cast of seven is magnificent. Each player takes on two roles (except Thomas Campbell who adds an extra one at the end), and every character we see is thoroughly explored and colourfully executed. The chemistry between all is playful and powerful. It is quite incredible to see a stage full of infallible actors with so much confidence and surety in their undertaking. Nathan Lovejoy’s impeccable timing is showcased well without his comic abilities overwhelming the deeper meanings being communicated. Several scenes involving Lovejoy’s characters speaking with varying degrees of offensiveness are delivered with a poignant irony that is dangerous and delicious. Briallen Clarke is animated and vivacious, with a natural ability at commanding attention. She is a charming and funny actor who creates endearing characters effortlessly. Richard Sydenham brings charisma and gravity to his roles. The dramatic tension he creates as Russ is absolutely enthralling theatre. Paula Arundell has two very different roles but introduces the same amount of passion into both. Her dignified performance in Act 1 transforms into something more unexpected and complex in the second half. Her characters are interesting and challenging, giving the play a sense of daring edginess.

There are things in life that are difficult to articulate due to the many valid yet conflicting perspectives that apply. Politics is distilled by the media into simple, black and white sound bites, and our minds and thoughts are shaped accordingly. Clybourne Park is a reminder that our world is infinitely large, and perpetually evolving. In our navigation through different lives and communities, rules and social norms are constantly in flux. Our minds need to always be developing because nothing ever stays the same, least of all the sensitive needs of human beings.

www.ensemble.com.au

Review: The Drowsy Chaperone (Squabbalogic Independent Music Theatre)

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drowsychaperoneVenue: Hayes Theatre Co (Potts Point NSW), Mar 14 – Apr 6, 2014
Book: Bob Martin, Don McKellar
Music and Lyrics: Lisa Lambert, Greg Morrison
Director: Jay James-Moody
Choreography: Monique Sallé
Musical Direction: Paul Geddes
Actors: Jay James-Moody, Gael Ballantyne, Chris Coleman, Emma Cooperthwaite, Anna Freeland, Hilary Cole, Brett O’Neill, Ross Chisari, Laurence Coy, Steven Kreamer, Richard Woodhouse, Jaimie Leigh Johnson, Tom Sharah, Monique Sallé, Michele Lansdown

Theatre review
The Drowsy Chaperone is a brilliantly written musical. It is also a hilarious comedy with intelligently sharp and sophisticated humour that does not underestimate its audience. The show’s concepts and structure are original. Considering the usually restrictive genre, the writers have been able to create something that feels refreshing, yet maintain a classic musical formula that is perennially appealing.

The cast is a fairly large one, but the undoubted star of the production is Jay James-Moody, who plays “Man in chair”, a narrator of sorts who functions as our sometimes tipsy chaperone, guiding us through his favourite musical. James-Moody is also director of the work, and does a good job assembling and crafting the many elements of his creation, but his achievement as performer here is outstanding. His humour is subtle and precise, with a very thorough grasp of the vacillations and nuances in the writing. His connection with the audience is impeccably strong. James-Moody addresses the audience directly and is required to take control of all our reactions to almost everything that unfolds on stage. It is a very tall order but he delivers at every point, and in unbelievably fabulous form.

Hilary Cole as Janet van de Graaf impresses with a beautiful and versatile singing voice. Her role is a demanding one, and she delivers on many fronts but some of the choreography exposes her shortcomings. Cole’s work is full of conviction, and she looks very much the part, but can sometimes introduce too much fragility into her characterisation. Her fiancé Robert Martin is played by Brett O’Neill who has created a character that seems to be magically transported from the 1920s. It is a performance that is authentic and meticulously studied. O’Neill is delightful in the genre, with a strong singing voice and confident execution of choreography. Ross Chisari is slight of frame and plays a smaller role, but leaves a substantial impression. He is by far the strongest dancer in the cast, and has a surprisingly strong voice that belts out some of the most powerful notes in the show. Chisari has many qualities that would see him thrive in the field for all the decades to come.

In its final moments, the show takes a swipe at blockbuster musicals like Cats and Les Misérables. Indeed, The Drowsy Chaperone is not for every Tom, Dick, Harry and their 8 year-old children. It doesn’t operate on a level of simple sentimentality and doesn’t rely on unthinking emotion to hit its mark. This is a supremely entertaining show that appeals with its clever humour, but may need its crowd to have some level of cultured awareness. It is also a show about our love of performance. “Man in chair” has an obsession for stage performers in his record collection, and this production gives us many reasons to be enthralled in our seats, amused and awestruck.

www.hayestheatre.com.au

www.squabbalogic.com.au

Review: Dimboola (Epicentre Theatre Company)

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rsz_1506680_10151906976482061_1759131297_nVenue: King Street Theatre (Newtown NSW), Mar 13 – 22, 2014
Playwright: Jack Hibberd
Director: Darcy Green
Actors: Darcy Green, Louis Green, Ashleigh O’Brien, Phillip Ross, Alixandra Kupcik, Adam Delaunay, Anna Dooley, Julian Ramundi, Connor Luck, Annie Schofield, Kimberly Kelly, Zoe Tidemann, Letitia Sutherland, Tim Mathews, Michael Yore, Cameron Hutt

Theatre review
Jack Hibberd’s Dimboola is a play written with the metaphysical “fourth wall” completely removed. The audience’s presence is always acknowledged and whenever possible, characters are made to involve us in their story. In Epicentre Theatre’s production, even lighting design embraces the concept, with the entire theatre lit a bright white, and house lights are never turned off so that we are all conscious about being part of the onstage action.

Darcy Green’s direction pays tribute to 1970s Australia, with visual design aspects made to look very close to the 1979 film version, and actors determined to take us on a time travel expedition in which references to 2014 are strictly forbidden. What results is an experience that is unique, if a little bizarre. The humour is broad and old-fashioned. Under the guise of a country town wedding reception, the setting is relentlessly drunken and raucous. The air of wild disarray is successfully created by the uniformly strong cast, but some jokes and plot lines do get lost amidst the bedlam.

Adam Delaunay plays Angus with gleeful exaggeration, in a style that is reminiscent of villains in pantomimes. We don’t hear very much of what he has to say but his physical work is impressive and certainly attention grabbing. Anna Dooley as Florrie has some of the funniest facial expressions one can hope to encounter in the flesh. Her fight scene in particular is uproarious, and the most memorable moment in the show. Annie Schofield is hilarious as Shirl, playing up her character’s parochialism to great effect. It is a big and noisy crowd at the party, but Schofield works enough magic to stand out, with a characterisation that can be described as, well, a bloody ripper.

This work is an oddity. It is an interesting observational study of one aspect of our identity from a time past, so the audience does view it from a detached (and ironic) distance. We watch the nostalgia, but do not always find ourselves deeply immersed in it. Perhaps an update might improve the experience. Dimboola shows how we feel about ourselves when we are not at our best. The show is cheerful, forgiving and delirious, much like how we often think of each other.

www.epicentretheatre.org.au

Review: Heaven Help Us (Gherkin Global)

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rsz_heaven_help_us_sirmaiadscn8386Venue: Bordello Theatre (Potts Point NSW), Mar 12 – 29, 2014
Playwright: Keith Bosler
Director: Keith Bosler
Actors: Lyn Pierse, David Woodland, Orlena Steele-Prior, Emma Galliano, Tai Scrivener, Nick Radinoff
Image by Sirmai Arts Marketing

Theatre review
From Goethe’s Faust to Dudley Moore’s Bedazzled, the story about a man selling his soul to the devil is a motif that western cultures are more than familiar with. For many, the journey through life is nothing but a navigation between good and evil, so it is no wonder that another play has surfaced, in which a character explores those dichotomous choices.

Keith Bosler’s work is not an attempt to offer up something new to this discussion. In his writing and direction, Bosler is an exorcist, determined to get to a conclusion where irrefutable goodness exists, and it triumphs in the form of romantic love. The predictability of his plot and obviousness in his story are disappointing, but the earnest voice we hear is ultimately a comforting one. There is an innocent, almost childlike tone to the show, in spite of the overt portrayal of Satan and his aides as lustful, crude and so very naughty. Bosler’s approach keeps the devil and his nemesis completely segregated, so the concepts of good and bad are never allowed to become complex.

The highlight of the production are actors Lyn Pierse and David Woodland who seem to be able to “sing the phone book”. Pierse’s God is ironically and perversely, the only multidimensional character in the show. She is simultaneously kind and caustic, and is keen to play with frivolity at every opportunity while also effectively poignant when gravity is required. David Woodland plays the devil with a lot of flamboyance. His work is filled with tricks and techniques to prevent the character from ever becoming too plain. Woodland is a highly entertaining performer, even if our devil here is written with little originality. The rest of the cast struggles to match up to these two scene stealers, but in the second half, Nick Radinoff comes to life with surprising and funny consequences, showing off considerable comic ability.

Heaven Help Us retells a story that is too familiar. It however does include an unusual transgender character Michaela, who was formally known as the archangel Michael. After years of doing good, she had transformed into the female form. The joke is somewhat reversely sexist, but amusing nonetheless. Grey areas are by nature controversial, but they are also much more interesting. There is no requirement that all art is made for controversy, but it should strive for something that is at least a little out of the box. The butterfly leaves its cocoon to take flight; the angel should follow.

www.heavenhelpus.com.au

Review: Monkey (Creative Practice Lab UNSW)

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rsz_monkey-505Venue: UNSW Io Myers Studio (Kensington NSW), Mar 11 – 15, 2014
Director: Ben Winspear
Playwright: Les Winspear (based on the traditional Journey To The West)
Actors: Students from UNSW School of the Arts & Media

Theatre review
The enduring tale of Journey To The West is one of enlightenment and aspiration. It is also about mentoring, development and progression, all of which come together to make Les Winspear’s contemporary retelling of Monkey a natural thematic choice for a production involving young people. The characters in the story are mischievous, imperfect and unafraid of failure. This serves as great catalyst for students to approach their play with a sense of playfulness and daring.

Director Ben Winspear’s style is brave and bold. He is faithful to the story, but is audacious in vision. Rules are made to be broken, and one is tempted to conclude that rule-breaking is a method he cherishes when creating magic in the theatre. Or perhaps, it is simply his outrageous imagination that reaches beyond convention and the predictable, into a space that feels refreshing and original for contemporary audiences. Indeed, the director’s ability at materialising the fantastical details of Monkey, not only gives us a work that is dynamic and highly amusing, it provides a safe and spacious springboard for his student actors to experiment and perform. The wildness of this world they create, encourages lively expression but also comprises a healthy protection for those who need it. This is a stage so full of colour and vigour that nothing can look out of place.

Design is excellent. All aspects, from costume and props, to set, sound and lighting are thoughtful, inventive and confidently executed. It is by no means a show about polished production values, but what this crew achieves with a minuscule budget in the most basic of venues, is impressive. It is a beautiful collaboration of disciplines that works together to tell a story with clarity, wonder, and a lot of fun.

All performers appear to be students. It is a big cast, with varying degrees of ability, but unified by a common level of enthusiasm and commitment. Some seem to be appearing on stage for the very first time, and others are brazen and ambitious. Most are allowed their moment in the sun, and each bask in their own, in idiosyncratic, joyful ways. There are performers who impress with their use of voice, and some with their dance. Actors who charm us with comic timing, as well as those with outstanding physicality, and presence so strong, they steal our attention for a second or two.

Although Monkey and his friends reach a penultimate moment of glory, what we remember most after all the dust has settled, are his qualities of mischief and joy. We often forget the importance of the light, for the weight of darkness makes for easy victories, especially in the arts. It is unimportant what the scriptures at the end of Monkey may contain, if the journey that is taken fills itself with all that is gallant, and good.

https://sam.arts.unsw.edu.au

Review: Tidy Town Of The Year (3 Quacks / Sydney Independent Theatre Company)

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tidytownVenue: Old Fitzroy Theatre (Woolloomooloo NSW), Mar 4 – 22, 2014
Playwrights: Victoria Greiner, Sarah Hodgetts, Andy Leonard
Directors: Deborah Jones, Sean O’Riordan
Actors: Victoria Greiner, Sarah Hodgetts, Andy Leonard
Image by Katy Green Loughrey

Theatre review
It is probably true that a show cannot contain too many amusing ideas. Tidy Town Of The Year has no shortage of amusing lines and concepts, but trying to keep up and absorb them all can be challenging. Its writing and direction lack breathing space, often making the show feel overwhelming. Timing is key in humour. Even with clever and inspired ideas, attention needs to be paid on editing and delivery for communication to happen, especially in comedies.

In spite of these imperfections, performances are actually polished and confident. It is a fast-paced show, with a cast that is full of enthusiasm and buoyancy. We may not always catch the jokes that they attempt to relay, but their energy can be infectious. More variation in tone could be explored to prevent the actors from playing at the one level that they are most comfortable with, but their overall commitment to the work is a delight.

At heart, this is a show with a great deal of eccentricity, but the eccentric is by nature an entity that finds connections challenging. It has the capacity for brilliance and originality, but to convey its genius, a bridge needs to be found. In the theatre, ideas are exchanged and laughs can be shared, but only when the linkage between show and audience is established. This isn’t always easy, but the quest for it is always rewarding.

www.sitco.net.au