State Theatre Company. Space Theatre. 24 July 2018
As the audience sat numb, emotionally drained by the melodramatic denouement of the play, the players miraculously leapt up beaming with delight to take their bows. The audience erupted with whooping acclaim. It had been an intense and gruelling experience. The three characters had stalked the gates of hell as they made their gambits in the name of love and lust and loss and recrimination and revenge. The actors had reached into the deepest resources of emotional pain and turmoil. They had pushed their voices to the edge of endurance. They had wrung the last drop of dismay from the emotional cloth. They had, all three, produced tour de force performances and delivered the most awful Strindberg tale of the Creditors.
August Strindberg wrote the play in 1888. Duncan Graham has adapted it into a contemporary Australian context. It’s a sleek adaptation which retains the play’s dramatic integrity impeccably while sparking it with modern references and vernacular.
The plot itself was and is strange and convoluted. Set in an elite lakeside resort, it tells of artist Adolph and his writer wife Tekla in an encounter with Gustav, who turns out to be Tekla's embittered ex-husband. Adolph is famous but also insecure and highly strung. While Tekla is away, Gustav anonymously befriends lonely Adolph and pours psychological toxin into the artist’s perception of his happy marriage. The ensuing paranoia, jealousy and suggested illness throw the marriage into mortal conflict. The play is barbed and dark but, astutely directed by David Mealor, it is edged with humour and irony.
The debts to which the Creditors title refers are love and fidelity.
Peter Kowitz plays Gustav, the magnificently manipulative silverback ex-husband. His performance is not only expertly two-faced but also two-voiced as he firstly uses gravel-edged masculine authority to work on Adolph’s sensitivities and then softly submissive tones to apply Gustav's wiles to the ex-wife. It is a committed and engrossing performance. His Machiavellian expression at the play’s climactic moment is unforgettable.
The celebrated young Adelaide actor Matt Crook embodies poor Adolph, the vain and impressionable artist who loves his free-spirited wife too much. He is light of voice and limb in his depiction of this dupe, descending into petulance and despair. Of three pretty awful characters, his is the least likeable character. This is sharply paradoxical and one of the facets which give life and issue to the play.
It is terrible Tekla who steals the heart and the production. Caroline Craig devours this role with breathtaking dynamism. She is the light and dark of life, confident and coquettish at one moment and a tornado of righteous fury in another. It is a grand, dramatic character and she holds back no hue from her wonderful actor’s palette, one moment an elegant beauty, the next a virulent harridan.
Occasional piano strains tinkle through the production, more a commentary than a soundscape from Quentin Grant.
A third of the Space Theatre is used for designer Ailsa Paterson’s elegant resort setting. It has a minimalist Scandinavian feel, rattan summery decor, orange leather furnishings and a vast wind-ruffled lake projected beyond picture windows framed by boughs of eucalypt. An extremely esoteric stylised water jug downstage on a traymobile seems bottomless from the many glasses of water the characters pour, the refreshment one soon realises as much a necessity for vocal lubrication as for a handy prop. It is a vocally demanding play and one hopes that the sterling cast will see the season through without a croak. Best hasten in to see this passionate powerhouse of a production, just in case.
Samela Harris
When: 20 Jul to 5 Aug
Where: The Space Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au
Loaded Productions. Marion Cultural Centre. 19 July 2018
No, Tom Lehrer is not dead. He is 90 years old and living in California while his 37 satirical songs are living all over the enlightened world, particularly in Adelaide right now where Loaded Productions has revived the Tom Foolery revue to sate the eternal hunger of avid Lehrer fans old and new. The thing is, mathematician Lehrer’s wickedly funny lyrics still resonate more than half a century since many of them were penned. Controversially, five of the songs were banned when Lehrer first came to the prudish Adelaide of 1960. That would not happen now but the two Loaded performers who happen also to be cabaret teachers report that many of the lyrics have a whole new shock factor among the current young generation. They are too far “out there”, too politically incorrect for today’s culturally sensitive young.
The scary thing is that the songs and their sentiments really have not aged. Oh yes, there are a couple more elements “discarvered" than Lehrer knew back then at Harvard but pollution and politics are still with us.
The Loaded team has thrown in some local references to sharpen the satiric barb here and there and it shares out the singing load with harmonies and comic interactions. Most importantly, director Nicholas Cannon has honoured the show’s original direction and choreography by the late and much-loved Michael Fuller, to whom the production is dedicated. And, indeed, watching Hew Parham sometimes feels almost like watching Fuller himself. Parham is a lovely mover. And, like his peers onstage, he knows plenty about singing and comic timing. Sean Weatherly adds the impish quality to the trio. He can’t seem to lose that adorable quality and that glint of mischief in the eye. It works like magic in the Lehrer show. And, of course, there is Catherine Campbell, not only hitting the high notes but cracking up the crowd with the comic shtick. In bright red dress, bottle in hand, her version of the Irish Ballad, many recall as the Rickety-tickety-tin song, is a glorious, booze-sodden epic. Parham gives a deliciously delicate charm to the Old Dope Peddler and Sean leaves the audience breathless with his tongue-twisting finesse with The Elements and then again with the arithmetic acrobatics of New Math.
With slick sound and lighting from Bob Weatherly, the show is played with three red stools for the singers and a big black piano from which Mark Sandon brilliantly lays out that other wonderful Lehrer touch, a wild and lively musical foundation. He’s a champion performance in himself.
And is an old hit eminently hit-worthy yet again.
Samela Harris
When: 18 to 22 Jul
Where: Marion Cultural Centre
Bookings: marionculturalcentre.com.au
The Imperial Ice Stars. Adelaide Entertainment Centre. 18 Jul 2018
The Imperial Ice Stars take the genre of ballet on ice up several notches into an arguably unprecedented level of spectacle and excellence.
Its Swan Lake on Ice is simply breathtaking.
There are not enough superlatives for the athleticism and flawless expertise of the international skaters. The production is lush and beautiful while at the same time edged with danger. There are thrillingly flamboyant circus touches such as fire on ice and a swan who actually takes off and flies and flies and flies.
Tchaikovsky’s music soars, as performed by the Manchester Symphony Orchestra, and the fable of the bewitched swan and the handsome prince follows its traditional narrative through dark and light, love and loss, good and bad to a contenting climax followed by, oh balletomanes, turn away, a joyful, athletic encore.
It is Bogdan Berezenko as Prince Siegfried who lifts this production to dream status. Here is a tall, lanky Ukrainian skater who marries magnificence in skating skill with a beautifully brooding romantic presence. He is as much an actor as a vividly athletic skater, perchance today's Nureyev of the ice.
He is surrounded by quality, particularly in his romantic partner, Olga Sharutenko as Odette, the princess cursed into swan form by the wicked sorcerer. She astounds the audience with her exquisite flying and charms them when she swaps skates for toe shoes and dares to dance en pointe on the ice. With Berezenko, she flows and rears and rises and spins in myriad magnificent skating lifts while always conveying the sweetness and poignancy of the swan. As for her flock in their soft drapes of white skirt and little swan headdresses, they ebb and flow and swirl and, oh yes, tippy toe comically against the restless waters of the lake projected on the backdrop behind them. The corps de skating ballet at all times is energy and precision and ever wreathed in radiant smiles. The assorted champion and Olympic skaters therein embody graceful courtly dancers and exuberant folk-dancing peasants in a versatility of handsome, sometimes gymnastic, routines under the artistic direction of Tony Mercer.
Stanislav Pertsov plays the prince’s perky friend, Benno. He is a very showy, clever skater spraying ice in his wild spirals, leaps and slides. He also is a forceful comic presence. The lithe and vivacious Maria Mukhortova depicts Odile, the beautiful rival her sorcerer father Rothbart contrives to steal the prince’s heart. Sergei Lisev, a powerful and imposing skater, plays this classic villain.
The production sustains its energy and beauty throughout the two complex acts incorporating all sorts of surprises, not the least which is some daring silk work.
Albina Gabueva’s glorious costumes and the gentle animations within Eamon d’Arcy’s set projections add lushness to what is a simply dazzling show.
The only negative for Adelaide audiences is the staging at the Entertainment Centre’s theatre annex. The height of the ice stage is such that those seated in the stalls cannot see the skaters’ footwork, a flaw the Centre and tour organisers might amend for future shows.
But the opening night audience for this show was eminently forgiving, responding to the show with whooping and well-deserved acclaim.
Samela Harris
When: 18 to 22 Jul
Where: Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Bookings: premier.ticketek.com.au
Matt Byrne Media. The Arts Theatre. 7 Jul 2018
The Arts theatre foyer is packed to overflowing on arrival and there is barely an empty seat in the house for Matt Byrne’s South Australian premiere of We Will Rock You. There is an audible buzz of excitement amongst the Queen fans and many are thrilled to finally be seeing the show after previously announced South Australian tours of the professional production were cancelled.
When the lights finally do go down, the restless, non-traditional theatre audience let out whoops and woos as the first chords of the opening number are struck. This crowd is here for the music of Queen and they intend to enjoy it!
And enjoy it they do. They sing and dance along, let out waves of laughter, and rapturous applause. The vibe is one of satisfaction and enjoyment.
This is not, however, a theatrically strong production.
Producer/Director Matt Byrne has spared no expense on this show. It really looks the goods. Sue Winston’s costumes are slick and spectacular, Rodney Bates’ lighting is sharp and professional, and the Audio by Allpro is nicely balanced. The digital creations and video by Flinders University are icing on the cake.
Unfortunately though the singing is average across the board - with a few exceptions - and none of the performers achieve a meaningful connection to the storyline or to their character. In a show which already lacks a strong narrative thread, this leaves it significantly lacking.
The story’s weak premise has a group of outcasts dissenting against a government that has banned musical expression. “Pop” music reigns and the society’s members are, for the most part, willing participants in this sociological, techno-age, construct. Except, that is, for the few rebellious “bohemians”. They believe in freedom of expression and thought, and connect with that via the now ancient and banned musical medium, ‘Rock and Roll’.
Iman Saleh is Galileo Figaro, the ‘dreamer’ of the bohemian rebellion. He performs with boundless energy. Byrne has made a call on Saleh’s ability to hit the right notes in his songs due to sickness, and for this performance he is voiced by musical director Kym Clark during musical numbers. Saleh’s mimed performance is equally energetic, but often way over the top and rarely connects emotionally with the lyric of each song. Similarly, Danielle Greaves – who does have the voice to hit the high notes – has chosen to down play her character Scaramouche, so much so that it comes off as complete disinterest. One found it impossible to believe the two leads fell in love on this stage.
April Stuart and James McCluskey-Garcia are the figureheads of the ruling elite and should have a foreboding presence. Neither is particularly frightening though, and moments of comedy throughout their performance only weaken that presence. Both have significant acting chops, but their characterisations fail to reach their potential.
The pairing of Anthony Butler and Kathryn Driver as Brit and Oz is a strong one, and some of the best moments in the production come from these two. Butler’s character feels spot on for the tone of the show, and Driver sings one of the evening’s most impressive numbers in Noone But You. Another vocal highlight is Scaramouche’s reprise of I Want To Break Free at the top of the show where Greaves is particularly on song.
Byrne has cast himself as Buddy Holly And The Crickets, and delivers a lovely little characterization. His penchant for adlib is well and truly overworked in the second act however. Despite being funny, it sits completely out of context with the show and makes an already long show, even longer.
The use of old school blackouts for set changes is excessive and unnecessary, and adds to a feeling of disjointedness that pervades the whole production. There is a tight ensemble of dancing girls led by Stacey Baldock who drag the numbers along, but choreographer Sarah Williams should have identified the strengths and weaknesses in the ensemble earlier and choreographed more to their abilities.
Kym Clark’s musical direction is tight once the music is underway. The band sounds great and Patrick Maher’s lead guitar solo in We Will Rock You and Bohemian Rhapsody is a highlight.
All that being said, much of the audience appears to well and truly get into the swing of it. If that is the measure of a successful production then this one might just serve as intended.
Paul Rodda
When/Where: 5 to 14 Jul – Arts Theatre
When/Where: 19 to 28 Jul – Shedley Theatre
Bookings: mattbyrnemedia.com.au
State Theatre & Malthouse. Odeon Theatre. 6 Jul 2018
Never has there been a more gripping, heart-rending opening to a play. Within moments of curtain rise, audience members are in tears. And yet, the action has been offstage.
Immediately, it is clear that Jada Alberts has tapped a nerve in her play Brothers Wreck, that there is a touch of genius to her skills as an emerging Australian playwright.
As an Indigenous Australian, she has written this play, she says, as a “love letter” to her family. In so doing, she has taken all of us under the skin of contemporary Aboriginal societal dysfunction. It is an intense experience. It is an emotional rollercoaster.
The play is set in rain-drenched, sweltering Darwin. With the sounds of torrential downpours and heavy drips, rain streaming through the ceiling of the set, the climate seems tangible. Designer Dale Ferguson's towering set of plastic-panelled walls with lots of cheap screen doors gives the idea of a block of council units. It is a sensationally good set. Unforgettable.
As is this play.
Its catalyst is the suicide by hanging of a young indigenous man. His body is found too late. He cannot be saved. The reason for his suicide is not defined. It was fuelled by alcohol and cultural despair. It sets off drinking and more cultural despair. Ruben, a cousin of the dead man, is on parole and he is an angry, angry, grief-stricken black man. Even the wisest indigenous counsellor cannot get the chips off his shoulder. Played by Dion Williams, Ruben has a storm of dialogue to impart, a lot of it rambled and mumbled and roared and raged, unreasonable and unreasoning, a flailing barrage of pain. Alcohol makes his pain worse and more potentially dangerous than that being suffered by the rest of the family. Theirs is eclipsed in the need to support and pacify him. One grows quickly to love the family, not only through Albert’s writing of the characters but through the marvellous performances. If Leonie Whyman is superb in her portrayal of the traumatised sister, Lisa Flanagan is utterly consummate as the stalwart auntie who glues the family together. They are well supported by Nelson Baker as young boyfriend Jarrod, and the renowned Trevor Jamieson as the patient counsellor. His voice is such a pleasure on the ear, and his mega-beard seems straight out of Edward Lear.
The narrative of grief and loss is compounded by the absence of the family mother. She is in hospital and her prognosis is not good. Thus the emotional experiences of the play resonate with audiences of all cultural backgrounds. Not to take away from her cultural imperative, but Jada Alberts has written an Aboriginal play which rings true for the world at large. She also has directed this production with a deftness which makes it ebb and flow with fine emotional balance. Chris Petridis’s lighting fits like a glove and Kelly Ryall’s soundscape, apart from a couple of attacks of aggressive volume, enhances the moods of the work and makes the hellish rainy season feel hellish real.
Despite and because of its grim theme, this is a lovely landmark piece of Australian theatre.
Brava Jada Alberts.
Samela Harris
When: 6 to 15 Jul
Where: Odeon Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au