Marie Clark Musical Theatre. Arts Theatre. 28 May 16
Frank William Abagnale gained notoriety as a conman in the 1960s by scamming banks and other organisations out of millions of dollars. He allegedly spent only 5 years in prison before taking up employment with the American Federal Government. DreamWorks gained the rights to make the film in the late 90s and under the skilful direction of Steven Spielberg went on to gross over $350 million worldwide with Leonardo DiCaprio in the role of Abagnale.
The 2011 Broadway musical of the same name received four Tony Award nominations.
Marie Clark Musical Theatre have taken on this mammoth production and in many ways do it justice, particularly in their casting of the two leads, Abagnale and his nemesis, FBI agent Carl Hanratty. Jason Bensen (Abagnale) and David MacGillivray (Hanratty) carry this production high on their shoulders.
We are greeted by the cast in the foyer on arrival. Mingling amongst the audience, and in character, they chat about this and that, until it is time for boarding, and we are ushered to our seats by some lovely stewardesses for the start of the show; it’s a lovely touch.
Directed by Charissa McCluskey-Garcia, and with Musical Direction by Ben Stefanoff, this production of Catch Me If You Can is very hit-and-miss, however. One moment it soars with all of the production qualities and skill of a professional performance and the next is undone by either bland lighting, poor sound tech, lacklustre choreography, or odd blocking descisions. It truly is a mixed bag, overflowing with unrealised potential.
The talented cast of leads and ensemble are more than up for the task and, at times, deliver perfectly polished numbers with equally outstanding production values to support them.
As Frank Abagnale Junior, Jason Bensen has a wonderful tonal quality. Bensen carries the extremely difficult vocal line with finesse, and demonstrates great control over his falsetto. Bensen is also incredibly charming and very charismatic. His suave and commanding presence single-handedly holds the audience’s attention when there should be much more going on to support him.
David Macgillivray is an outstanding talent and delivers an emotionally grounded performance. Don’t Break The Rules stands out as one of the best numbers in the show and - along with an incredibly strong male ensemble, excellent choreography, sound, and blocking in this number - shows what this cast and production team are capable of achieving. His solo rendition of The Man Inside The Clues is the most moving number in the show.
Shelley Crooks emerges from nowhere in Don’t Be A Stranger and puts Paula Abagnale on the map with a beautiful rendition that soars. Gavin Cianci as her husband, Frank Abagnale Senior, never seems to quite settle despite delivering a relatively sturdy performance overall.
For a bit of comic relief one cannot go past the combination of Buddy Dawson and Damien Quick as FBI Agents Cod and Dollar. Paired with James McCluskey-Garcia as Agent Branton and MacGillivray, they never fail to amuse.
Stefanoff’s orchestra are in fine form, particularly amongst the reeds (Nicole Molloy, Samantha Webber, Kara Williams), kudos for the delicious saxophone work! There were a few odd levels amongst the mix however, and the vocal line was regularly set too low or not turned up in time.
Catch Me If You Can is a big Broadway musical which relies on big Broadway numbers. Rachel Dow's and Rebekah Stonelake’s choreography has solid structure, but the execution and production quality just falls short of celebrating some of those really big numbers. Better lighting design and overall production values could have done more to truly make it shine.
Marie Clark Musical Theatre’s Catch Me If You Can is commendable for an amateur production and certainly qualifies as an entertaining night at the theatre. It will improve if the pace picks up and the sound issues are rectified. Regardless, Adelaide amateur theatre needs our support, and this show is definitely worth a look.
Paul Rodda
When: 27 May to 4 Jun
Where: Arts Theatre
Bookings: marieclark.asn.au
The Australian Ballet. Festival Theatre. 26 May 16
The audience murmurs as the orchestra pit is lit up and the hum of wind instruments begins to play. The curtain rises revealing a palace terrace by a dark and mysterious lake; the water’s edge glistening in the full moonlight.
The magic of Tchaikovsky’s score, the archetypal characters, and of course the dancing, is what has drawn audiences to Swan Lake for the last 100 years.
In 2012 Stephen Baynes adapted the Swan Lake of the 1890s, reinventing the choreography of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov whilst maintaining the moments most loved by audiences; including the Danses des petites cygnet. Blending the traditional with a modern undertaking definitely gives the ballet a more cohesive storyline that runs through the four acts.
Artistic Director, David McAllister wanted a traditional production to stand beside the Graeme Murphy reinvention of the last decade. Stephen Baynes admittedly abides by the traditional choreography for Act II, and the Black Swan Pas de deux of Act III, otherwise the rest is all him.
The most outstanding reinvention by Baynes is undoubtedly Act IV: The Night. The Lake, where the swans lift and hover en pointe, gliding across the stage like birds in flight. The corps de ballet swans are exquisite and exude elegance and grace as they perform pirouettes with precision, swaying through arm movements; croise, croise devant, ecarte, ecarte devant, efface, and efface devant with such simplicity and beauty it leaves the audience gasping for more.
The dual role of Odette/Odile is the pinnacle role for any principal ballerina, the role requires the principal to channel various different sensibilities; she must embody a swan, a tragic princess, and a scheming seductress. Amber Scott does not disappoint as Odette/Odile. She embodies all of these qualities and fascinates the audience with the state of peace with which she performs each sequence. Adam Bull as Prince Seigfried is a strong male lead who executes grand jetes with amazing technique and skill.
The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra under guest conductor Andrew Mogrelia are outstanding. The orchestra epitomises the melodious and imaginatively constructed dramaticism of the ballet, accompanying the storyline like a graceful pas de deux partner.
The Australian Ballet Company's Swan Lake does not disappoint and further reiterates why audiences will continue to flock to see it for the next 100 years.
Jaymi Humphreys
When: 26 to 31 May
Where: Festival Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au
Photography by Daniel Boud & Kate Longley
by Elena Carapetis. State Theatre Company. Space Theatre. 4 May 2016
They packed into The Space Theatre to see an education program touring show, a sturdy Establishment STC audience along with a whizz of Gen Y. It was a bumper house for a very short season of a new play by cherished Adelaide actress and award-winning upcoming playwright Elena Carapetis.
This new work targets secondary students and is written in their argot with a very large nod to the things that matter to them - cars, booze, social media, cell phones. But the theme is universal. It is the foolishness of youth, and the way the world changes in a split second. It is about grief. It is about love. It also is about guilt and, very touchingly, about the emotional abuse inflicted by the young on their parents.
The two-hander one-hour play depicts a couple of best friends who go out joy riding and have a fatal accident. A year later, the twin of the dead boy invades the self-inflicted isolation of her brother's bestie and confronts his grief head on.
It is a loud play. The two star-crossed mates, Lee and Maz, first shout and bellow in the crass exuberance of youth, in raucous party spirit. Their music is incomprehensibly cacophonous. There is no place for thought. Theirs is a world of the now, of impulse. And thus they go for a birthday drive.
This scene is magnificently wrought, the light and dark of it, the projections, the glare, as if in a box, a tight view of another world. And there is the freedom of the road and the boys in the car, the interplay, the thrill of speed, a brief understanding of danger and then...
One knows it is coming and yet, so brilliantly is it evoked, that one jumps with shock in one's seat. The aesthetic impact of all of this is the triumph of Kathryn Sproul's design with Chris Petridis's lighting and zippy timing through director Nescha Jelk. It is also well performed. Chiara Gabrielli doubles up as the twins while James Smith gives all his aching heart and then some to poor Lee
In the second scene, the stage opens out to a casually untidy flat - pizza boxes, drink cans, books and more books. Here, like a wounded animal, Lee has been holed up for a year in a pall of self-hatred and grief. Then Lola arrives, Maz's twin sister. She demands accountability. She is not going away. And, with a lot of high emotion and raised voices, the dead friend and twin are psychologically exhumed.
There is a strong element of the old Kitchen Sink drama of the 50s revived in the complexity of anger expressed in this scene. It is emotionally gruelling. On opening night, the older audience members felt a fond ripple of deja vu.
The young ones, for whom the play has been devised, responded with an effusion of excited approval. The medium had delivered the message, a universal message, timeless.
And thus may Elena Carapetis pop another feather in her cap.
Samela Harris
When: 4 to 7 May
Where: Space Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au
Adelaide Youth Theatre. Arts Theatre. 28 Apr 2016
From its small beginnings, Adelaide Youth Theatre has grown into a ginormous enterprise. Not only is it turning on regular major productions but, in the case of Aladdin, it is doing it with two whole alternating casts of principals. In other words, it has an embarrassment of riches in the youth talent department.
Aladdin opens with a very pretty, misty stage jam-packed with exquisitely-costumed children of all ages straight away impressing with how very well-choreographed and rehearsed they all are. They also seem almost all to be very well radio miked and playing to a solid orchestral soundtrack. It is all very professional.
This production has been directed by Serena Martino-Williams and Leah Harford with Emily Glew assisted by Rory Adams as musical director and Charlotte Hill and Hannah Dandie as choreographers - these all being budding theatre workers and part of the whole Emma Riggs/Kerreane Sarti ethos of cultivating young talent in all aspects of the production process.
Everyone does everything very well.
From the smallest chorus member right through to the leads, ever member of the massive cast seems utterly committed to the show. They work like beavers. They look like an exotic mass of Middle Eastern glamour with the vivid harem-pants and bejewelled bellies. They sing in tune and, although some work in American accents and some don't, they work hard at characterisations.
In this performance of this production, the star performer is Joshua Spiniello as the Genie. He has born-to-perform presence and the stage lights up when he is upon it. Taylor Tran, who plays Princess Jasmine, is another young performer with immense promise, and also Eliza Oppedisano, who plays the parrot, Iago. Notable is Liam Tomlin as the Sultan while Jack Raftopoulos as Aladdin has a lovely singing voice but seems to be constantly uncomfortable in his costumes. Other good performances come from Alyssa Tacono, Kristian Latella, Miley Vincent and the terrific pack of narrating girls.
The show is a junior version of the big musical without too many long scenes or songs. There is lots of song and dance, goodies and baddies are clearly defined, the plot is clear and the magic carpet scene is very vivid and touching. The whole thing runs for one nice, tight hour, leaving young audience members still fresh and interested.
Pity it is such a short season.
Samela Harris
When: 28 to 30 Apr
Where: Arts Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au
Luckiest Productions and Tinderbox Productions. Her Majesty’s Theatre. 22 Apr 2016
It is a grey and gloomy skid row that set and costume designers, Owen Phillips and Tim Chappel give us for the first half of this revival production of The Little Shop of Horrors; and it is easily one of the most effective elements. Erth Visual and Physical Inc’s magnificent Audrey II puppet bursts forth in bold colour, encompassing everything in its wake; but it is the talented cast of all-rounders on whom the success of this show rests, and with superlative direction by Dean Bryant, simple and effective choreography from Andrew Hallsworth, and tight musical direction from Andrew Worboys, The Little Shop of Horrors leaves audiences hungry for more!
Based on the B-grade cult-hit film version of 1986, The Little Shop of Horrors finds the orphaned and solitary Seymour Krelborn working for the down-and-out Mr Mushnik in a florist on Skid Row, his colleague, and secretly beloved, Audrey shares the desperately slow workload; the shop being on the verge of closure.
When Mushnik announces that it is curtains for the trio, Audrey suggests placing one of Seymour’s queer horticultural creations in the window to draw in the punters - and so we meet Audrey II; a blood thirsty Venus flytrap-like vegetal which rockets our unlikely heroes to fame and fortune.
But at a massive cost!
Brent Hill is in fine form as Seymour Krelborn, and in a fantastical twist simultaneously provides the soulful vocalisations of the plant, demonstrating a penchant for multiple characterisations and adding a sadistic layer to Seymour and Audrey II’s relationship, perhaps revealing to us his true inner desires.
Esther Hannaford’s voice soars over well-known numbers like ‘Suddenly Seymour’ and finds new levels of emotional connection in ‘Somewhere That’s Green’. Her comic timing is first rate and has the audience regularly in stitches; even if her accent travels the gamut from Eastern European to Jewish via New York and back again.
Tyler Coppin’s Mushnik is corruptible and careless in the kindest of ways, never overplaying the comedy yet somehow likeable despite his manipulative nature. Scott Johnson garners plenty of laughs, and many from himself, in a wonderfully sadistic performance as the pain-inflicting dentist Orin Scrivello, DDS; Audrey’s boyfriend and Audrey II’s first meal.
The chorus of street women, Chiffon, Ronnette, and Crystal - played by Josie Lane, Chloe Zuel and Angelique Cassimatis respectively – are sexy and sassy. Their numbers opening both first and second acts are a bit garbled and difficult to understand, but their voices are spectacular and harmonise well together.
This production feels as though it has been lifted straight out of a comic book. Ross Graham’s lighting is evocative and brings depth and complexity to the greys as well as life and excitement to the coloured scenes. One could live without the projections on the flimsy and distracting curtain, however.
Audiences old and new will love this production for its energy, comedy and excellent characters. New life has been breathed into and old classic and it tastes good! Feed me more!
Paul Rodda
When: 20 to 30 Apr
Where: Her Majesty’s Theatre
Bookings: bass.net.au
Photography by Jeff Busby
