Blinky Bill is On The Loose

★★★★1/2

Adelaide Fringe. Koala Life and Theatre Bugs present Kobugs Theatre Company. 13 Mar 2021

Blinky Bill is, to say the least, an iconic Australian children’s character. So taking along three little Londoners could have been risky. But, like very good Australian grandparents, we made sure that they were as familiar with Blinky as they were with Winnie the Pooh. To be fair, they’ve been here a couple of years now, and they now love Blinky with that same ferociousness as their Antipodean school mates.

Reproducing books on the stage can be fraught, and this is especially so with loved children’s stories. Kids often have very fixed ideas on what should be happening at any given time to whom. While there were a few instances where voices were raised in consternation (Who are they? What’s happening now?), for the most part the entire audience, adults and children alike, were more than happy to go on this journey with Blinky and his friends.

The adventure opens with a song, of course, and with a bit of fourth wall fun; the actor playing Blinky Bill is late, and the rest of the four person cast must start without him. Donning theirs ears (and tails if they have one) they set the pace of the production with the first of some entertaining original compositions from Michael Mills and Robert Kimber, and some very jaunty choreography (Carol Wellman Kelly).

Mrs Koala (Claire McEvoy) is trying to think of a name for her baby koala (David Salter). The audience is immediately drawn into the action as they are asked for suggestions, and the children raucously dismiss the names until ‘Bill’ is called; of course they all agree. Mrs Koala then, like all good mothers, acknowledges that Bill needs to go off and find himself, and so in a series of (mis) adventures, the young Blinky sets off to see what the world is all about.

Bill meets up with numerous Australian bush creatures along the way (all variously played by Jamie Hornsby, Chloe Bremner and McEvoy), and they each have a lesson to teach him. The plight of the bush and the fragile ecosystems underpin each of the scenarios Bill finds himself in, and it is testament to the excellent script that the children remain focused on the story, understanding and agreeing with the concerns of the bush creatures.

Costuming is kept simple; Bianka Kennedy and Kate Prescott have delineated each character by ears and tails, and it works beautifully as the cast, for the most part, change on stage so that the audience understands the change of characters.

The introduction of the Vandals goes beyond Dorothy Wall’s adventures for Bill, and are reminiscent (as pointed by the Londoners) of the evil loggers in Alexander the Elephant in Zanzibar, written by Grinspoon’s Pat Davern. The same ecological message prevails in this production, and let’s face it, you simply can’t have enough of this. Michael Mills, of course, has form here; he has garnered science awards for his theatrical work for children, which features issues from the fate of the dinosaurs to saving the rainforests.

Salter plays a brilliantly disingenuous Blinky; his endearing naiveté keeps the children entranced as they’re allowed to be cleverer than he - a sure fire way to keep them interested - and the disembodied voice of George the Parrot (Ali Clarke) provides a constant reminder of Bill’s home base.

The young audience was kept involved throughout the production and were not backward in offering suggestions, even when unprompted! Of course, when offered the opportunity to become involved through song, there was little hesitation. Children and adults alike joined in with gusto for Hip Hop Clippety Clop, the school song for Mrs Spotty Frogs’s Frog School.

Director Michael Eustace has drawn out the best from this small ensemble: the cast is exemplary, skilfully singing, dancing and acting their way through this production with barely suppressed delight.

The amphitheatre at the Botanic Gardens lent itself beautifully to this world premiere. The wetlands form a stunning backdrop (though a basking cormorant did threaten to steal the show) and lends itself to the fiercely environmental theme of this production.

Captivating and entertaining, this is one for adults and children alike. Best take a short person with you though; they can explain the difficult bits to you.

Arna Eyers-White

When: 13 to 21 Mar

Where: Wetlands Amphitheatre, Botanic Gardens

Booking: adelaidefringe.com.au

Tahir - The World’s Best Worst Magician

★★★

Adelaide Fringe. The World’s Best Worst Magician. Octagon, Gluttony. 14 Mar 21

Is Tahir the world’s best worst or worst best or the best of the worst or the worst of the best or just the worst or just the best? He’s a comedian and magician, in any case, and in this children’s show he attempts to combine the two. Sometimes it works, sometimes he’s not the best. Or the worst.

One man, a fair size stage, a table of props and a gig audience to use for participation. As Tahir notes, “three year olds are tricky, you’re not sure what they’re going to do”. Nor necessarily can you predict how they might take to a joke or a magician’s performance because whilst the Mystery of the Vanishing Bandanna is excellent (obviously, being misread, this became the vanishing Banana) the idea of plucking a dad from the audience and making him into a baby is less effective with preschoolers, who just couldn’t quite comprehend the joke.

The problem here is that Tahir is a good magician; so when he says ‘bad’ it’s irony, and kids have trouble with irony, preferring their backhanded humour to be a little less perceptual. Sardonic, even. So when Tahir pretends to show how a trick is constructed and in doing so reveals he’s not a dolt, he is actually revealing that he is clever and that the joke is on the audience. Just like all magic shows, since they all essentially play the same sleight trick upon their audience.

And so it was with the world’s best worst magician, a show of ‘one step forward’ and ‘two steps back’. The audience all played their parts: Harper and Lily played the innocents in the yellow silk scarf routine; three year old James was adorably passive, and Jeremy (renamed Jeff) as dad was excellent. Sadly the show just failed to capture the attention, except where it did so by assaulting the senses. Failed and dropped audio cues were one thing, but the attack by volume is an appalling oversight and unacceptable for a children’s show. Too many kids in the audience were forced to cover their ears too many times.

Tahir is clearly not the world’s worst magician, and this is not a bad show. It moves along quite well, and stretches to achieve its high points, which are quality, but it is also a patchy affair.

Alex Wheaton

When: 20 and 21 Mar

Where: Octagon, Gluttony

Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au

A Child of Our Time

Adelaide Festival. Festival Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre. 14 Mar 2021

Sadly, racism, bigotry, persecution and their abhorrent consequences all remain alive and well – they are still children of our time.

Sir Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time is an oratorio akin to the likes of Handel’s Messiah, which we frequently hear performed at Christmas, and Bach’s Passions (such as St Matthew Passion) which are usually heard at Easter. Tippett’s oratorio, however, is not tied to a particular religious festival. It transcends religion and speaks to the human condition more generally, and this particular production addresses what is ugly about the way human beings and societies often treat each other.

A Child of Our Time was written in 1942 when the composer was in his mid 30s and World War II was raging. Although it was Tippett’s response to real events – the assassination of a German diplomat by a teenage Jewish refugee, and the subsequent persecution of the Jews – the work possesses a generality and timelessness that makes it relevant to later generations. A Child of Our Time is a very political work insomuch as it reproaches those who inveigle themselves into our collective conscience and beguile us into supporting vile policy responses. But of course, we all bear some responsibility.

Conductor and chorus master Brett Weymark commands an enormous contingent of musicians and singers, including the Adelaide Festival Community Chorus, singers from the aboriginal women’s Iwiri Choir, and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Like other oratorios, it also inlcudes vocal soloists and this production features tenor Henry Choo, alto Elizabeth Campbell, Bass Pelham Andrews, and soprano Jessica Dean.

Weymark’s work with the choir is excellent: from the quietest of moments to the rousing fortissimos, the choir held together, and the pitching, phrasing and articulation appeared effortless. The members of the choir did not all stand at the same time for the opening chorus. Rather they stand in groups one after the other as does a crowd when it gradually reaches consensus and demands to be heard. It is a potent moment: simple choreography but pregnant with meaning.

Throughout the performance images are projected onto a large screen above the stage, including historical footage from various theatres of war, human conflict, and pitiful images of anguished and angry people. The images are often related to the sung text and the result is sobering. Some of the images relate to Australia’s Stolen Generation, and to the Black Lives matter movement. It is chilling to observe the members of the Iwiri Choir at these moments.

Henry Choo is outstanding as a soloist. His attractive tenor voice rises clearly above the choir and orchestra, and he sings with heart-felt expression befitting the text. Jessica Dean’s light soprano voice continues to be an attractive instrument, and Elizabeth Campbell and Pelham Andrews inject gravitas when needed.

A Child of Our Time is powerful and elicits heightened emotions and feelings of outrage, shock, and sadness. But it also stirs feelings of hope that we can do better as a species.

This heartfelt performance is important.

Kym Clayton

When: Closed

Where: Festival Theatre

Bookings: Closed

The 60 Four: In Concert

★★★★★

Adelaide Fringe. Norwood Concert Hall. 14 Mar 2021

Talk about high octane.

They’re not only the hottest act in town. Perchance they are the hottest act in the land.

The 60 Four is fuelled by old-school pop music - The Four Seasons, the Beach Boys, The Supremes, The Beatles, Elvis, the BeeGees…

From their beginnings as an instant-hit schoolboy group, they’ve grown to be a peerless super-sound foursome with the ability to pack out large venues. So popular are they that audiences arrive hours early to bag the best seats.

So it is a super-packed Norwood Concert Hall on Saturday night with covid marshals working like crazy to ensure the seating and dancing rules are properly respected. 

And, while the hits may be Boomer era, truth is that the 60s era music is so good that nothing can make it die. They just don’t do tunes like this anymore. So don’t expect an oldies audience. It’s a cross-generational thing.

Furthermore, back in the 60s, no one could or did perform this material with the sort of energy and panache that the 60 Four turns on. They are not just singers. These boys are all serious theatre entertainers performing non-stop high-energy and sophisticated dance moves. The choreography is worth an award in its own right.  And the synchronicity of the performers is impeccable. Their energy seems inexhaustible and their fitness is breathtaking. Footballers are pussycats by comparison.

There’s not a moment of dead air in the two-hour show. With the nine-piece band on full throttle, they charge from one song into another, from one seemingly exhausting dance routine into another.  With the help of some careful stage smoke, the lighting thrills with the music as moving shafts of colours.  The boys keep their patter to a minimum. But they do introduce themselves - Ben Francis, who is the mover and shaker leader of the pack, Kyle Hall, who is the dance moves genius, with Lachlan Williams and Jack Conroy completing this talent team perfect.

While Francis's superb falsetto range has been a key ingredient of the Four’s success, it is the spirit of the Four and their clearly diligent discipline which attracts admiration. No one can turn on this sort of professionalism without hard work and much consideration. For instance, the arrangements are their own. They are not a mere “tribute” group. They are a fantastic musical powerhouse in their own right - vividly versatile and masses of foot-stomping good fun. They just make an audience feel uplifted. They make the world a happier place. Even in a pandemic.

Hence, with the areas fastidiously marked out in covid quotas, their audience dances in front of the stage. Post interval, the Four really turn on the dance numbers, and the Twist is born again, and again, and again.

The sound is amped up after interval, which is not really necessary. The place is already rocking. 

Quite a few songs bring the roof down. . Williams does a wow version of Tom Jones' It’s Not Unusual.  Francis simply rips into Johnny O’Keefe’s Shout. Even J’OK would be blown away.

It is just a bravo, bravo show, boys.

Five stars does not really seem enough.

Samela Harris

When: Closed

Where: Norwood Concert Hall

Bookings: Closed