Tag Archives: comedy

Sure Thing (Walking Moose Theatre Co)

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surething1Venue: TAP Gallery (Darlinghurst NSW), Sep 11 – 29, 2013
Playwright: David Ives
Director: Raf Nazario
Actors: Steven Corner, Lisa Fletcher

Theatre review
Sure Thing is a very short play, running approximately 15 minutes, but it is marvellous. Certainly, “a quick game is a good game”, but this production also demonstrates that great writing and great performances can provide as much satisfaction as any two hour piece. David Ives’ writing is superb, and the condensation of time in the play creates a structure which ensures that every moment packs punches.

Raf Nazario’s direction shows a thorough engagement with the text. His insistence in working with the most minute of nuances creates a sense of multi-dimensionality that quickly draws the audience in and keeps us involved to the end. Things move quickly, but nothing feels rushed. Humour and cultural references are allowed their flashes of brilliance, and we relish them all.

Lisa Fletcher plays Betty, the straight man in this comedic two-hander. The audience identifies with her authenticity and she provides an anchor to the script’s frenzy. Steve Corner’s performance as Bill is magnificent. He plays a character that manifests in many different forms, with what seems like a hundred faces and voices, all compelling and charming. There is always a sense of joyous play in his work, and also a focus that is intense but never laboured. He plays his jokes on many levels, but whether subtle, obscure or hammy, Corner shows himself to be a rivetingly funny actor… and this little quickie leaves us pleasantly surprised and delightfully sated.

http://2013.sydneyfringe.com/…

Narrow As The Line (King Street Theatre)

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narrowastheline1Venue: King Street Theatre (Newtown NSW), Sep 24 – 29, 2013
Playwright: N. Gregory Finger
Director: N. Gregory Finger
Actors: Nicholas Richard, Sydney Abba, Logan McArthur, Ryan Knight, Daniel Hunter, Brendan Paul

Theatre review
Narrow As The Line is a clever and entertaining work set against the backdrop of war and destruction. N. Gregory Finger’s script is witty, thoughtful and intelligent. Its structure is simple and efficient, which allows for creative space on stage. Characters are interesting, although speech patterns could have been written more differentiated for greater distinction between personality types.

The actors are youthful and committed, with some displaying good skill and potential. Nicholas Richard shines in the role of Lieutenant Parsons, delivering a strong performance that anchors the production, giving it a sense of sure-footed solidness. Sydney Abba takes on the comic role of Colonel McGrath, delighting at every entrance. She connects well with the audience, and creates the most memorable character in the play. In general however, the cast plays the show too naturalistic. There is a good dose of absurdity in the script but the actors tend to underplay their scenes, attempting instead for believability and misses an opportunity for more heightened satire.

This is an impressive production that showcases young talent and a very smart script. The prominence of the writing does however, encourage the desire for a team of more experienced actors, and more adventurous direction. It is evident that a more dynamic show can be created from Finger’s words but as far as baby steps go, this is a monumental one.

www.narrowastheline.com

In Between Days (King Street Theatre)

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inbetweendays1Venue: King Street Theatre (Newtown NSW), Sep 21 & 28, 2013
Playwright: Leanne Mangan
Musical Director: Cassady Maddox
Actors: Leanne Mangan, Cassady Maddox, Josh Shipton

Theatre review
In Between Days is an example of the kinds of alternative voices that can appear in the Sydney Fringe Festival. The stage opens with a poster of The Cure’s Robert Smith dominating its backdrop, and he stays in position overlooking proceedings in this musical. 2 women share a home and a penchant for the goth aesthetic. They do not explicitly discuss the nature of the subculture of which they belong, but it is inscribed upon their being, and also in the music selection of this production.

The women’s singing are the absolute highlight of the show. Their voices are pleasant and occasional harmonies are always tight and beautiful. Accompaniment is simple, usually only with an acoustic guitar, but the arrangements are perfect for the small venue. Song choices are appropriate for the story, and all tend to be very melodic, which ensures immediate appeal.

Stand-out performance of the production belongs to Josh Shipton, who displays more experience than the other players. His character Johnno delivers the laughs, and endears himself quickly to the audience. The writing does not give any of the actors much to work with, but Shipton is able to turn his moments into brief instances of magic.

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Slutterati (New Theatre)

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slutterati1Venue: New Theatre (Newtown NSW), Sep 19 – 23, 2013
Writer: Michael Gottsche
Director: Louise Fischer
Actors: Matt Charleston, Rebecca Clay, Amy Fisher, Jorjia Gillis, Kate Skinner, Stephen Wilkinson

Theatre review
The title of the piece evokes the modern phenomenon of celebrity and glitterati that is less about a glamorous “smart set”, and more about the sleazy, cheap, and vacuous “content generators” of news and media. It is also about the rise and rise of gossip in the media landscape, and its perverse pervasiveness in our daily lives.

Michael Gottsche’s script begins with the familiar story of a sporting celebrity in the limelight for less than dignified reasons. We are introduced to the stereotypes: an ex-Olympian, an aspiring d-list actor, 2 media spin doctors,  a tabloid journalist; and the story unfolds like an amalgamation of the many scandals that have surfaced in recent times, of which none were of great consequence to the public. Slutterati discusses how “news” is created, that it is generated by commercial interest rather than a straightforward reporting of important events.

Rebecca Clay plays Talia-Jayne, the commercial television personality who presents herself as a journalist. Clay successfully portrays the dichotomy of misplaced self-importance with a good dose of low-life wretchedness. It is a thoroughly enjoyable performance that is convincing, but also knowingly tinged with camp commentary. She looks every bit the part, but we revel in the actor’s awareness of her character’s absurdity.

Stephen Wilkinson as Clark, the shady talent manager, provides the play’s most dramatic moments. His vigour creates a tautness to the drama, and scenes without his energetic presence tend to come across less focused. Wilkinson has a knack for introducing urgency to the plot, as well as the crucial sense that the stakes are high, so that the audience’s attention is tightly gripped.

The play comprises many quick scenes, and this is problematic for the live stage. Time and space change often and these sometimes occur inelegantly. However, the story is told with clarity and the plot structure is strong. Our interest in the characters grow, and we invest emotionally in their experiences. This is a critique of Australian media, and although it does not propose alternative strategies, the statement it makes is valid and timely.

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Keira Daley Vs The 90s (Seymour Centre)

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keiradaley3Venue: Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Sep 18 – 21, 2013
Writer: Keira Daley
Musical Director: Mark Chamberlain
Performer: Keira Daley

Theatre review
Keira Daley’s last show was entitled Lady Nerd and that has become the moniker which she proudly uses for all her cabaret acts. The connotation of a socially awkward person is amplified on Daley’s stage, and it becomes a starting point for comedy as well as fertile ground for idiosyncratic material.

Daley is a performer bursting with enthusiasm. The passion she brings to the stage proves that theatre is where her heart is, even if she portrays herself as someone who is probably more suited to the accounting or technology industries. In Keira Daley Vs The 90s, she performs a mixture of original songs and hits from the 1990s, from luminaries like Des’ree, Soundgarden, Frente, Jamiroquai, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In between each song, she reminisces about her days in school and teenage life, ensuring an abundance of goose bumps and cringing laughter especially if the audience is between the ages of 30 and 50.

The show ends with a moving original composition, and the slightly sentimental tone works well amongst all the giddy hilarity. In fact, one comes away from the show hoping that the artist’s softer feelings had been allowed to present themselves throughout the show. Daley’s back up band is delightful and contribute a wonderful effervescent energy, even though one does wonder if they had even been conceived when the Friends television show first appeared.

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www.seymourcentre.com

Jane Austen Is Dead (Brave Theatre)

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janeaustenVenue: New Theatre (Newtown NSW), Sep 16 – 23, 2013
Playwright: Mel Dodge
Director: Patrick Davies
Actor: Mel Dodge

Theatre review
Romantic love for the modern woman is a tricky thing. While Jane Austen’s books are still adored, the meaning of marriage has changed drastically over the last two centuries and we now negotiate relationships afresh without religious or traditional constraints. This opens up a liberated new world, but it also presents a kind of quagmire where some of us are left baffled and defeated.

Mel Dodge’s work expresses this experience perfectly. It is a thorough exploration into the world of a single woman in her 30s who is looking for love, but who in the process, also questions her own motivations and decisions. The script is an honest one. It gets to many ugly truths that audiences will identify with, but wraps it up in humour and wit so that the predicaments portrayed are never allowed to painfully wallow or to turn into misery.

Dodge’s performance of her own script is stellar. She has crafted a protagonist Sophie, who is endearing from the very start, and we develop a warm affiliation that keeps us engaged through every second of the show. The plot freely jumps across time and space, with Dodge playing a whole raft of characters, all believable, familiar and funny, making this one-woman show hugely entertaining and impressive.

Patrick Davies’ direction fleshes out all the cleverness and all that is amusing in the script. The transitions between characters, and the different levels of engagement with the audience are skilfully constructed so that our attention is kept tightly under control and no moment is wasted.

A single flaw would be the play’s abrupt ending. Sophie comes to a conclusion that is at once meaningful and interesting, but it all winds up too swiftly. Although perhaps, it could just be the audience enjoying her company too much and are unwilling to say goodbye.

www.facebook.com/BRAVETheatre

The Catastrophists (The Basement Productions)

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catastrophists1Venue: Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Sep 17 – 21, 2013
Playwright: Jordan King-Lacroix
Director: Jordan King-Lacroix
Choreographer: Naomi Hibberd
Actors: Jordan King-Lacroix, Eleanor Ryan, Edward Ransom
Dancers: Naomi Hibberd, Ken Ishii

Theatre review
The Catastrophists is about very dramatic characters in three separate stories with slightly different styles of comedy. The three stories are linked with modern dance sequences, but are not obviously connected in any other way.

Eleanor Ryan’s playful performance as Desiree stands out as the most memorable. Her Bronx/Brooklyn accent tickles many funny bones, and the campiness of her character is a perfect fit for the high octane style of the show. Her other character Rachel is equally entertaining but less compelling, due to the complexity of the story that introduces a few too many surprising plot twists. Edward Ransom plays Jack, an awkwardly endearing I.T. professional. There is a lot of quirkiness in his portrayal, which gives his character a complexity and believability that could easily have been overly simple and undimensioned.

Naomi Hibberd’s choreography is charming and has many beautiful touches, but it struggles to find its place amongst the big comedic performances. Bryce Halliday’s music on the other hand, adds to the comedy, and his presence is incorporated well into the production’s staging. One can expect Fringe festivals to deliver the weird and the wonderful, and depending on your personal tastes and disposition, this could be just the production that gets you into fits of laughter.

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Past Tense (Awkward Duck Theatre)

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pasttense1Venue: Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Sep 17 – 21, 2013
Playwright: Kara Eva Schlegl
Director: Kara Eva Schlegl
Actors: Joshua McInnes, Liz Jameson, Hanni Trewin, David Reynolds

Theatre review
There are two interesting throughlines in Past Tense. It is mainly concerned with Terry’s predicament as a young woman stuck in a rut, but it is also about her relationship with the narrator of her life story. The play therefore consists of a real life dimension as well as a metaphysical realm, but they are not kept distinct. The Narrator is allowed to interact with Terry and her friends, and through this anomaly, a lot of colour is added to the simple story. The show also attempts to introduce a sense of Brechtian distanciation with the idea of a materialised Narrator, although it is unclear whether creating that effect serves much purpose in this instance.

The players are encouraged to perform their comedy broadly, and their approach comes across more akin to the work of comedians rather than actors. Their main intention for the audience is one of effect, rather than empathy or affiliation. This means that the production is able to deliver lots of laughs, but we are unable to connect with the story’s central character satisfactorily. The biggest laughs are for David Reynolds who plays Rich. He has a keen sense of timing, and attacks his funny moments with gusto and conviction. He is there to deliver hilarity, and he is single-minded about it. Joshua McInnes as the Narrator is a good fit. The young actor has an innate sense of formality that is perfectly utilised. He portrays a character that is somberly rigid yet agile, and the show relies on his focus to keep the plot on track.

Along with the Narrator, a musician is on stage through the duration. Mark Conroy underscores the action and provides a few delightful incidental songs, which add to the joviality of the proceedings. Past Tense has a story to tell, and that story is used as a vehicle for entertainment and laughter. The show’s reverberations fade quickly after the performers have taken their bows, but it is great fun while it lasts.

www.pasttensefringe.com

Oh! My Shattered Illusions (Seymour Centre)

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Kelly Young New CabaretVenue: Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Sep 12 – 14, 2013
Writer: Kelly Young
Director: Chris Rutherford
Musical Director: Peter McDonald
Performer: Kelly Young

Theatre review
The show starts with a song about taboos. Indeed the cabaret is the perfect space for the exploration of the subversive, antithetical, and rude. Fortunately, even though Kelly Young’s material is frequently bawdy and coarse, her most memorable features are her warm sincerity and open-hearted joy. Without the slightest hint of menace or cattiness, any joke she makes no matter how extreme, is met with gleeful and knowing laughter.

Young’s material is full of thoughtful wit that delivers a wonderful sense of playfulness. Along with musical director Peter McDonald, Young performs her songs beautifully, and every line is allowed to resonate with meaning and emotion. Her voice is perfectly suited to the style of cabaret she and director Chris Rutherford have created, and one gets a sense of a performer finding the ideal niche for her talents in this production.

The show talks about Young’s “shattered illusions” in terms of a woman growing into her own, and discovering that the wonder of life lies not in myths and promises. Her existence is a blissful one, and her performance, uplifting and infectious. This is a night of song and comedy that comes from a place of enlightenment, and what we witness is a labour of, and about, love.

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www.seymourcentre.com

Bushpig (Bagabus Inc.)

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rsz_bushpig_seymour_event_build_hero_imageVenue: Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre (Sydney NSW), Sep 10 – 13, 2013
Playwright: Hannah Malarski
Director: Jack Richardson
Actor: Hannah Malarski

Theatre review
This is a one-woman show featuring a young actor who looks like she is having the time of her life, and that there is no other place she would rather be. Hannah Malarski plays Bushpig, an Australian girl who leaves the countryside for “the big smokes”. It is not clear if the story is auto-biographical in any way, but it is evident that both Malarski and Bushpig are destined to be great storytellers.

The play takes on a simple structure, with Malarski portraying the lead character, as well as multiple incidental characters who come into Bushpig’s story. There is a lot of mimicry and playful appropriation of voices and accents, which the audience thoroughly enjoys. Malarski excels at a comedy which is about characterisation, and thrills with every transformation and with every introduction of a new persona. She is an accomplished comedic actor, and one longs to see her in a bigger production, interacting with other performers.

Plot-wise, Bushpig does not offer very much. There are no big dramatic moments, or great spiritual messages, but it defiantly tells the story of an independent female from childhood to adulthood, without mention of romance, marriage or motherhood. Bushpig sprouts from a simple country town, but she stands gallantly on her own two feet.

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www.seymourcentre.com