The Queen and I
by Sue Townsend
adapted by Melissa Reeves
Her Majesty’s
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
Take a script by Sue Townsend, already a success in the UK, add adaptations from Melissa Reeves, gather together a strong cast of Australian and English actors, have it directed by Max Stafford-Clark, toss in some songs by Ian Dury and you ought to have some sort of a hit. Alas, The Queen and I is a royal mess.
Sue Townsend, creator of …
Continue Reading Back to top1995
The Floating World
by John Romeril
State Theatre
Space
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
It is timely to have State Theatre’s revival of John Romeril’s APG classic, The Floating World. Timely in that its subject matter- the experiences of Australian soldiers on what was then called the Burma-Siam Railway- coincides with the Australia Remembers project. But on closer inspection its themes sit uncomfortably with the blandness of the current celebrations. Fifty years on, Australia is remembering- but about as selectively …
Continue Reading Back to topDesert
by Gavin Strawhan
Red Shed Company
Cardwell St.
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
Mention the Men’s Movement and in no time flat someone will make a joke about hugging a tree. All those bollocky jokers running with wolves, listening to the mythopoeic beat of a different drum. But, the apologists insist, women have their rituals, their secrets, their Fun- so why not men ? Never mind Lodge, the RSL, the footy club and the communion rails of the front bar …
Continue Reading Back to topSanctuary
by David Williamson
Playbox Theatre
Playhouse
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
Sanctuary, David Williamson’s newest work, is a two-hander directed by Melbourne Playbox director Aubrey Mellor. It is a distinctly more serious piece than recent Williamson exercises such as Money and Friends and Brilliant Lies. They were serious too, of course, as the playwright never loses sight of issues and situations which give a new or different glimpse of zeitgeist. But conspicuously propelling his dissection of nouveau riches or questions …
Continue Reading Back to topLecture: Sweetown: Silent Legacy
NB. It is essential that you first read the text of Sweetown- distributed in tutorials some weeks ago. If you don’t have a copy please collect one from the Drama Office. On Monday 31 October at our 2pm session members of the original Red Shed production of Sweetown will present a reading. Please make sure you attend, it is an ideal opportunity to get a sense of the comedy and theatrics of the play. The actors …
Continue Reading Back to topMorning Sacrifice
by Dymphna Cusack
State Theatre
Playhouse
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
Reviving a play can often be a damnable business. You are damned if you do it and even more damned if you don’t. There was some lively discussion around our part of the stalls, for instance, about whether Morning Sacrifice was worth the evening sacrifice or not. One heatedly dismissed the play as a waste of time but a number, including several teachers, quietly and keenly defended.
Dymphna …
Continue Reading Back to topFence
by Colin Lane, Frank Wood and Neill Gladwin
Performed by Lano and Woodley
Director: Neil Gladwin
Lighting Co-ordinator: Charlie Murray
Stage Manager: Dan Jonsson
Lion Theatre. June 14, 1994.
In the popular TV comedy show, Fast Forward, there was a recurrent skit about the WhizzBang Theatre Company. They were a TIE group bringing worthy, didactic theatre to schools. Short on talent, subtlety, and anything remotely resembling humour, the Whizzbangs represent all that captive adolescent audiences most dread.
When Neill …
Continue Reading Back to topA Cheery Soul
by Patrick White
Queensland Theatre Company
Her Majesty’s
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
On the slowly spinning revolve Bill Haycock’s design could be a retro-chic lunch place. Patrick White’s meticulously described kitchen scene, in cream and red chrome and formica, once embodied the Australian Ugliness, the bland vulgarity of that early Sixties suburban Sydney he lumped together as Sarsaparilla. Now it is aestheticised, wry down-market decor, unable to harm or threaten- as it did White and the young …
Continue Reading Back to topPersonals
by Roxxy Bent
Vitalstatistix
Waterside
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
Although their seasons have included a variety of writers Vitalstatistix’ work has always been characterised by founding members Ollie Black, Margaret Fischer and author of Personals, Roxxy Bent. Bent’s work is consistently self-descriptive. Even early rambles like A Stitch in Time had a daft quality – reinforced in that instance by the writer’s own performance. Waiting for Annette (collected in Around the Edge, the excellent Tantrum Press collection of South …
Continue Reading Back to topSex Diary of an Infidel
by Michael Gurr
State Theatre Company
Lion Theatre
Reviewed by Murray Bramwell
It has gradually become apparent over the last few years just how many Australians are involved in the South East Asian sex trade. Not only those who fill the planes destined for Bangkok and Manila but those who own and operate the businesses that cater for their various tastes. Michael Gurr’s Sex Diary of an Infidel examines the relationship between the voyeur and …
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