Priscilla Queen of the Desert, The Musical

Gilbert and Sullivan Society of South Australia. The Arts Theatre. 21 Sep 2023

It felt as if the rafters might come down, so wild were the raucous whoops and whistles of the standing ovation opening night audience at the dear old Arts Theatre.

The G&S production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, The Musical is a hit.

It is a triumph of love and good spirit, of theatrical cunning and chutzpah. Oh, and of costumes, costumes, costumes. Did I say costumes?

Through its considerable history this zany Aussie juke box musical has been dazzling audiences worldwide with its spectacular audaciousness. The movie was one thing. The Stephan Elliott and Allan Scott musical, up and out there since 2006 when it was first developed, groomed, and directed by that legendary talent Simon Phillips, has been a global phenomenon of utter drag-liciousness. It is still on the zeitgeist, all the more so now with, for the first time, a genuine transgender former Les Girls star, playing the transgender former Les Girls star lead role of Bernadette. Vonni Brit was lured onto the stage on the Gold Coast to carve her path in this role and now, with G&S and a fragment of the budget, she reprises it with delicious panache. She is glamour incarnate, exuding the sweet and generous spirit which has made her such an icon in the LGBTQI+ community of Adelaide.

Like most of this cast, ironically, neither singing nor dancing is her forte. It is all about stage presence and giving. She still has that showgirl poise, glorious deportment and, of course, old-school beauty - despite some of the iffy costumes she has to don.

She “sells” her songs, as do the other principals Billy St John and Benjamin Johnson as Tick and Felicia respectively. The divas are there to support and cover for them, and what sublime shimmering divas they are: Charissa McCluskey Garcia, Danielle Greaves, Bec Pryor, and Vanessa Lee Shirley.

It is a story of love and self-discovery, and with the three principals travelling from Sydney to Alice Springs in their costume-packed showbiz bus dubbed "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", interacting for good or bad with the locals along the way. They meet homophobia and they meet love. And there is always music with a great big song and dance cast turning on breathtakingly spectacular routines from butch Thank God I’m a Country Boy hoe-down knee slappers to big showgirl floorshow promenades in luminous green cupcake costumes. 

The show is cheekily risqué and throws gay terms of reference out from Kylie, Kylie, Kylie to Barbara Cartland. 

The first night audience devoured it all, cheering and clapping from end to end. And, rightly so.

Director Gordon Combes with his production team of musical director Jillian Gulliver and choreographer Sarah Williams have rallied and worked the whole cast to resounding co-ordination and good spirit. Repetiteur Daniel Brunet and production manager Alicia McCluskey have been no slouches, either. There is immense work in this bedazzling feelgood show with its true-blue Aussie corrugated iron sets,

St John and Johnson deliver fine performances as the touring two drag queens with their own personal problems while Lance Jones is just a sweetie as the straight guy and Damien Ralphs does our First Nations performers proud as Jimmy, the outback Aboriginal with his troupe of tourists.

Sean Wright, Nadine Wood, Trish Hendrick, and Chany Hoffmann merit special mention and, emphatically, so does young Sam Schroeter. Look out for his name in musical theatre credits as the years roll on.

Then there is the rest of the diligent, disciplined, oh, so quick-change cast.  

And, Priscilla, of course. She’s a cleverly devised stage bus pivoted by manpower and bragging simply gorgeous eyelashes.

Run and book for this G&S production. It is cheerful, uplifting and just plain good for whatever ails you.

It might be rough around the edges, but it has a solid heart of gold.

Samela Harris

When: 21 to 30 Sep

Where: The Arts Theatre

Bookings: trybooking.com

1984

Adelaide Theatre Guild Student Society. Little Theatre. 16 Sep 2023

George Orwell’s 1984 should be on every university student’s must-read list, along with The Hobbit, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, A Separate Reality, Brave New World, and George Orwell again, Animal Farm. English writer Orwell’s fable, Animal Farm, was penned when WWII was barely over in August 1945 to illustrate how fascism takes root, ie: Hitler and Germany. Four years later, 1984 is a cautionary tale of dystopian totalitarian Britain. Orwell’s nemesis this time was Russia’s communism. These themes earned Orwell his own descriptive adjective: Orwellian. And first-time Adelaide Theatre Guild Student Society’s director Oswin Kwan may know something about this, having re-located from Hong Kong in 2018 after the failed Umbrella Movement of 2014. The Chinese government has recently disappeared its foreign and defense ministers.

Californian Michael Gene Sullivan wrote this adaptation in 2006. While the novel is chronologically linear, Sullivan chose to set the action during the interrogation of the hapless Winston Smith with the context and events leading up to that point weaved in as flashback, often abstractly, using physical movement and multiple role-playing.

The topic is important, and the novel is famous so the play should be seen, but there are many theatrical elements that let the show down. Party members are suitably dressed alike in blue jumpsuit-type outfits suggesting blind unity and alienation (costumes: Jehosheba Manoa). We’ll get to The Interrogator later, but our protagonist, Winston Smith, played by Liam Warmeant, is dressed in a white get-up resembling Indian traditional dress. As the audience takes seats before lights up, Warmeant lounges for a considerable time on a platform that one may guess is wired up for torture. That may have overly relaxed him; his Smith often sits cross-legged and looks as blissed out as a yoga instructor. Nothing seems to ruffle him, not all the shouting that’s going on, not his desperate predicament, not what should have been a torrid and excitingly furtive relationship with Julia, played with nearly equally unsuitable equanimity by Veronika Wlodarczyk. Ooooooommmmmm. The sparks of humanity never catch fire and they seem to suffer from dissocia.

The party members, played by Henry Chipperfield, Rajiv Paranavithana and Lily Watkins, are performed without nuance but with extraordinary volume that frequently strains enunciation. Watkins presented a lovely character in the shopkeeper. Abstract physical movement often seems pointless or is a poor replacement for some real action (movement director: Deli Cooper).

Adam Bullmore was a very welcome addition late in the piece. After a decade in the army, Bullmore’s gone arty. His Interrogator is nattily attired, and he performs with an intimidating panache that reminds of Dennis Hopper in Blue Velvet. Although a very nuanced, suave and intelligent performance, it was all hard work for Bullmore as Warmeant’s Smith remained relatively unfazed, even when confronted with a diabolical torture that should have caused him unimaginable fear and anxiety and turned stomachs over in the audience.

Although Sullivan may not have made the best choices in his adaptation, there is a whole lot more to get out this script.

David Grybowski

When: 14 to 17 Sep

Where: The Little Theatre

Bookings: Closed

Macbeth

State Opera South Australia. Her Majesty’s Theatre. 7 Sep 2023

State Opera South Australia’s current production of Verdi’s Macbeth is a visual and aural feast: the costuming, setting, lighting, singing (both solo and ensemble), and orchestra are all first rate, dramatic, and importantly, empathetic to the storyline. The fundamental elements are all there, in abundance, but the production doesn’t land a killer punch because the drama is often wasted through ‘stand and sing’ blocking, particularly in Acts 1 and 2.

State Opera have chosen to present the original 1847 version of Verdi’s masterpiece from his early compositional period, rather than the 1865 revision that was specifically tailored for a French audience. The modifications were numerous: the aria of Lady Macbeth at the beginning of the second act, the dances and the duet between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in the third act, the chorus of the exiles and the final hymn of victory were all changed. Arguably, the 1847 version is more satisfying.

The story of Macbeth is well known and hardly needs recounting. In brief, Macbeth is told by witches that he will soon become King of Scotland. On hearing this, Lady Macbeth - his wife - urges him to take matters into his own hands and expedite the prophesy. So, he murders King Duncan, becomes the new king, and, guilt ridden and becoming increasingly paranoic, he murders even more to protect his position. Similarly conscience-stricken, Lady Macbeth is driven to madness and kills herself as Civil war erupts which results in Macbeth’s own demise. The essence of Shakespeare’s story is preserved in Piave’s libretto, but by necessity the text is pared right down. Even so, the opera comes in at around one hundred and fifty minutes. A major challenge for any production of Macbeth, whether it be of the original play or of the opera, is to clearly dramatize the mental and emotional consequences of unchecked naked ambition. In the opera, the libretto and Verdi’s powerful score only go part way to assist in this. The lion’s share of the challenge rests with the director, but Stuart Maunder tends to have his principal cast members largely stand and deliver presumably in the belief that the text, music and singing of itself is sufficient to convey the psychological drama that should be playing out on stage. On occasion, the transition from one scene to the next was stilted, leading to incongruities such as jolly music overlapping the preceding solemn scene of the murdered king’s body being ceremoniously removed.

The ingredient that is often missing, especially in the first half of the performance, is explicit characterisation, of which the talented cast is more than capable. The opening night audience seemed to be aware of this, and applause was often muted. However, Acts 3 and 4 were a different ball game, and the production truly hit its straps with deservedly enthusiastic responses from the audience.

José Carbó delivers a stoic yet calculating Macbeth. He sings Verdi extremely well, and his energetic and powerful depiction of Macbeth as a self-destructing and obsessed despot in the closing scenes are riveting. His Pietà, rispetto, amore is sublime. As Lady Macbeth, Kate Ladner is at her best in the iconic sleep walking scene, and her rendition of Una macchia è qui tuttora is almost unnerving. Oh, that Carbó and Ladner would unleash similar intensity in Acts 1 and 2!

Pelham Andrews plays an imposing and dignified Banquo and his Studia il passo mio figlio is sung with grave conviction and a sense of foreboding, almost as a portent of his own murder. Impressive.

Paul O’Neill is an impressive Macduff. His O figli, o figli miei … Ah la paterna mano is incredibly touching. We see him lamenting the murder of a king and wrestling with the fact that he must himself avenge that death by murdering a king as well, albeit an illegitimate one. The audience gave him the biggest applause for the night up to that point.

The State Opera Chorus played multiple roles and were at their best as the innocent victims of war as they sang the heart rending Pattria oppressa chorus at the start of Act 4. Every syllable of every word could be clearly heard as if it was being sung by just one person. Credit to Chorus master Anthony Hunt. Their costuming, designed by Rodger Kirk, underlined their downtrodden status as an oppressed people, and Trudy Dalgleish’s lighting complemented the visual imagery superbly, as it did throughout the production. Indeed, the set design (also by Kirk) and the lighting were highlights. The overall design was deceptively simple, but incredibly commanding, versatile, and effective. The apparition of the parade of kings before Macbeth was especially effective, with the imposing movable columns that comprised the essence of the set being used to mask the ghostly spectres. Genius really.

Finnegan Downie Dear conducted the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra with clarity. Of course, as an audience member one is always aware of the sound that emerges from the orchestra pit, but it shouldn’t always be the primary focus. It needs to complement the action, rather than being a driving or motivating force itself. That is how he conducted. He understands the intent of the poetry of the libretto, and how Verdi’s score draws out the meaning. When it was appropriate that the music take centre stage, Finnegan Downie Dear unleashed the forces of the ASO with vigour without losing musicality.

This Macbeth is a co-production with the West Australian Opera. It was first performed in Perth in 2019, and was to be performed in Adelaide in 2020, but COVID ended that plan. Finally, three years later Adelaide audience get to see Macbeth put to the sword. Good things are worth waiting for!

Kym Clayton

When: 7 to 16 Sep

Where: Her Majesty’s Theatre

Bookings: ticketek.com.au

Noises Off

The Adelaide Repertory Theatre. Arts Theatre. 1 Sep 2023

Make ‘em laugh. It’s a showbiz catch-cry. For comedic actors, audience laughter is a veritable drug.

But, high comedy is the hardest of the arts, not only in the need for extremely skilful writing but in the timing, timing, timing of the actors.

Noises Off may be the ultimate test case.  Written by the master of English farce, Michael Frayn, it is an insanely busy play with an awful lot of doors and props plus a complex reversible set.

In three acts, it depicts a comedy called Nothing On in rehearsal and in production with one act devoted to that same show on tour as seen from backstage. 

Escalating mayhem is the shortest description. The characters are classic old school thespians complete with offstage relationships and quirks. There’s lots of luvvie and darling and ego massaging; quite close to the bone, really.

As an unfunded non-professional company with a small crew, the Rep has been wildly ambitious in staging this monster of theatrical silliness, but David Sinclair is a seasoned and seemingly fearless director who has designed the English country house set with its two floors of doors and its very important garden window. It all sort of works and even if it doesn’t, it is grist for the mill of a play about everything going wrong. 

There are some lovely performances in this production in which bad performances are good. Outstandingly terrible and utterly adorable is Cassie Gaiter as Brook, the shrill and wooden ingenue. Wide-eyed with big batting eyelashes and wearing high white boots and sexy black undergarments, she stands out like a traffic light. Her character is there for a naughty weekend with the handsome young letting agent who thinks the house is empty. But, of course, it already contains the trusty, crusty factotum, Mrs Clackett, who, aptly embodied by Julie Quick, is being played by an old darling of the stage who has endless trouble remembering her cues and props. Sardines will never be the same again.

So, because each actor is playing an actor, there are double cast names and even a program within the program. And the “empty” country house is a scene of double trysts and lots of twists. 

Thomas Filsell gives a breathtaking performance in the shoes of the romantic rental agent. Heart-in-your-mouth prat fall department.  Truly.

Peter Davis gives authority to the role of the exhausted director with Brad Martin properly a complete pain as the complete pain, Freddie Fellows, and Robyn Brooks hilarious as the stereotypical over-informed, over-helpful cast member. Then there’s beloved old stalwart Ian Rigney playing the beloved old stalwart with a drinking problem who, in turn, is playing the burglar. He has some of the best lines in the play. 

Last but never least are Maxine Grubel as the actress playing the assistant stage manager, Polly, and Jamie Wright as her hapless senior - both called upon to go far beyond the line of duty.

If all of this is not quite clear, bad luck.

The play itself is there to be seen in The Arts. Complete with awful wigs and a character wearing unlucky green onstage.

Whatever wasn’t working on the first night is sure to be working on the next night. If one can work out what is meant and not meant to work.

It can only get faster and funnier as the season runs in.

Samela Harris

When: 1 to 9 Sep

Where: The Arts Theatre

Bookings: trybooking.com