Annie Zeleznikow🆕

Author badges: 🆕 Fresh Face (3 reviews) Annie has been a musical enthusiast since the age of 3, she recalls watching the Sound of Music in Lithuanian on her dad's lap, getting excited whenever someone said 'Maria'. Annie lived in NYC from 2017-2020, at which time her status of musical fan escalated to musical fanatic, seeing an average of 3 shows a week, frequently including Broadway Musicals. Since then Annie has tried to remain up to date on Theatre in Melbourne, and has been delighted in her failure to see every show, there is just too much good theatre! Annie is currently perusing a PhD (not in theatre, boo), and is excited to continue watching theatre in her spare time. Annie has been reviewing shows for several years, and is delighted to join the team at Whats the Show.

The Haunting of Spook Mansion (By Ghosts)

15/11/2025 Annie Zeleznikow🆕

The Haunting of Spook Mansion (By Ghosts) Rating

★★★★★

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The Haunting of Spook Mansion follows author and ghost sceptic, Prof Adrian Chambers (Peter Houghton). Chambers is approached by Beth Jackson (Emily Taheny) with an offer he cannot refuse, $500,000 for him to spend the night at Spook Mansion! Chambers reluctantly accepts the offer, and haunting ensues. Haunting if full of silly puns and not too scary jump-scares, which are terrifically balanced by the chemistry of Houghton and Taheny.

To get to my seat for this show I entered through the stage, which effectively began the immersion into the spooky haunting. The energy in the room was electric. Beginning slowly as a silly parody of a spooky movie, this show leans into horror tropes to subvert expectations and heighten the impacts of the truly scary things in life, emotional vulnerability and death! Spook Mansion is truly camp core. At 75 minutes with no intermission, this silly show was the perfect length, allowing for some thrills, and lots of laughs.

Directed by Russel Fletcher, the technical timing and coordination set up the audiences to enjoy the right amount of haunt; with minimal screams and maximum emotional impact. The tight direction combined with excellent lighting (Jason Bovaird) and sound (Stephen Gates) meant I was sufficiently spooked throughout the show. The sound and lighting allowed the twists and turns to make a powerful impact. The decision to have complete blackouts between scenes allowed Bovaird to enhance the lighting impact, and deepen the spooky story telling.

The characters of Spook Mansion are met with a wild evening, filled with stories and inevitably numerous puns. Michael Ward (writer and producer) fit as many puns the show could accommodate. Ward did this in an attempt to cram Spook Mansion full of jokes, leaving it relatively free of spirits from the great beyond. Ward defaulted to storytelling as a dependable way to scare the audience. Ward and Fletcher utilised the characters themselves, rather than cheap scary tricks, to push and pull the tension of the show. Ward and Fletcher commendably conveyed the real horrors of the world, not complying to mandatory health and safety audits.

To book tickets to The Haunting of Spook Mansion (By Ghosts), please visit https://chapeloffchapel.com.au/show/the-haunting-of-spook-mansion-by-ghosts/.

Photographer: Darren Gill

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Ethnically Ambiguous

19/10/2025 Annie Zeleznikow🆕

Ethnically Ambiguous Rating

★★★★★

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Ethnically Ambiguous is a silly and heartfelt comedy that explores three actors disappointing experiences as culturally diverse individuals in a shallow industry. Max Nunes-Cesar, Jo Malta and Zac Rose created and performed Ethnically Ambiguous as an exploration and presentation of their upsetting experiences as actors. This show contained a skit like format, moving between storytelling, faux game shows, musical numbers, and heartfelt monologues. This show also broke the fourth wall in frequently funny ways.

Ethnically Ambiguous contained a plethora of clever self-referential jokes and audience participation. The most powerful audience participation is the game of ‘guess the ethnicity’ with a wheel of origin as a practical gag. This worked well in combination with the actors and creators, it had an immediate and powerful impact on the audience. This skit was a clear and powerful moment of the actors creating tension, and using themselves and their experiences to cut the tension and connect with the audience.

The actors felt authentic, which makes sense given their roles as creators of the show, sharing their own experiences of the world. In particular, Zac Rose stood out as a powerful story teller, conveying his experiences and personal narrative in a touching and meaningful way. Rose was able to explore his ongoing feelings of shame and guilt, accepting that his ancestors were discriminated against because of the colour of their skin, and acknowledging that he carries the trauma of those experience, with the understanding that no one can see it, and he doesn’t experience it himself (due to his white passing presentation). Rose is told by his friends that “you choose what defines you,” as he decides to reclaim his sense of self, and falls into a space of acceptance.

The show’s theme of disconnection of perception and sense of self was well established and maintained. However, the show at times lacked direction and focus, with skits between the characters stagnating the pacing of the show. There were moments of the show that felt non-sensical. A sharp and clear perspective was missing at times, which meant the impetus of the show fell flat. As a result, the long-lasting impact of the show might not be as clear as the creators intended.

Acting is a visual and audible job, how you look and sound impacts how you are perceived, and although Nunes-Cesar, Malta and Rose don’t state it, to me it felt that it important to recognise and accept that there are things you cannot change, like the colour of your skin. This show reminded me that one’s sense of self, confidence, and acceptance of self should be tied to who you are, rather than the success you find in your career.

Ultimately, I came out of this show with the knowledge that pursuing a career in acting is risky, idealistic and irrational, and I’m glad Nunes-Cesar, Malta, and Rose are doing it.

To book tickets to Ethnically Ambiguous, please visit https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/ethnically-ambiguous.

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Horse Girls

02/10/2025 Annie Zeleznikow🆕

Horse Girls Rating

★★★★★

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Horse Girls follows a group of tweens who make up the passionate and prestigious Lady Jean Ladies, a dedicated group to all things horses. Lead by the aggressive alpha dog (or horse) Ashleigh (played by Tamzen Hayes) this club, bursting with different personalities, holds their regular weekly meeting that quickly descends in chaotic madness.

Horse girls is a dramatic and fast paced dark comedy, with sharp writing (by Jenny Rachel Weiner) and brilliantly choreographed and directed physical humour (direction by Eugenie Muggleton). This show is camp and silly, a perfect morsel of female adolescences wrapped in a violent twist. The audience is introduced to the club by Camille (Candice Leask), the promiscuous caricature of the group, through the eyes of her newcomer cousin Trish (Mish Keating). Camille quickly explains each girls’ role in the club to Trish, acting as a character guide for the audience.

The Lady Jean Ladies are stupid as only teen girls can be, leading to hilarity and at times surprising depth and gravitas. It was an interesting experience watching young ladies be so naïve and silly, but in that naivety, they were able to express genuine and universal feelings of grief and loneliness. Weiner was able to capture a glimpse of what we all experience through the outrageously loud camp concepts of this show.

The chemistry and social hierarchy within this ensemble is perfectly balanced. The balance of the relationships allows for on point comedic timing and delivery, cementing the cringe core status of this show. This peaks during the horse song, which, oh wow, contained choreography that teenage me would be so jealous and proud of. The performance in its entirety was acutely accurate and hilarious.

In an attempt to calm the group, the girls try to reach Anne Romney for advice. After the show I conducted my own search on google, it was confirmed that this is the wife of Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, and a big equestrian enthusiast. The girls were unsuccessful in contacting Anne, and as a result their connections with each other proceeded to quickly break down into violent discourse. The teetering balance of power ruptured, causing chasms in the group.

Horse Girls embodied the savage way teen girls love and hate. The Lady Jean Ladies Club reflected the passion of my adolescence, with a smattering more drama and violence. This show got audiences continuously laughing for the first 80% of the show, and mouths agape for the final 20%. The passion of the cast was genuine and infectious, I feel like I now need to be careful how I approach any horse enthusiasts.

To book tickets to Horse Girls, please visit https://www.theatreworks.org.au/2025/horse-girls.

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How Classical Music Can Feel Modern And Accessible

22/08/202521/08/2025 Annie Zeleznikow🆕

Elevator Music Rating

★★★★★

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The Omega Ensemble’s Elevator Music, consisted of Anna Clyne’s Stride, Gaeme Koehne’s Dances on the Edge of Time and Aaron Copland’s Clarient Concerto. The concert was deliciously familiar and heart-warming. In particular Koehne’s work sampled familiar melodies, acting as a postmodern classical music DJ of sorts. The lively and energetic ensemble wove both old and new classical music, bringing to life a new and harmonic story through sound. The music was postmodernist and playful, referencing and recycling beloved melodies. The clarinet soloists (Michael Collins and David Rowden) pression and control, particularly their purity of tone in the upper registers, exhibited a mastery of the clarinets transition between registers.

The first piece began with, what seemed to me, crisp personality and warmth, benefitting from the expressive first violin, Véronque Serret. The music continued ominously and atmospherically, effectively building tension and my anxiety (as I assume the composer intended). The piece felt like story telling through sound, a fearsome loathsome tale that swiftly transitioned from hopeful to fearful. The tone was clearly conveyed in a way that listeners unfamiliar with classical music could feel and understand.

Dances on the Edge of Time introduced the two clarinet soloists, Michael Collins and David Rowden (also the artistic director). The clarinets ushered in a warmth and airy lightness. This was mirrored in the addition of the piano (Vatche Jambazian). In this piece the two clarinets blended deliciously with a foundation of sound built by the orchestra. All the musicians were playing and toying not just with sound, but volume too, which drew out swirling emotions from the audience. Koehne’s work continued to be heart warmingly nostalgic, as intended, the program noted that Koehne prefers warmth, clarity and lyricism over “the cliched angst and ponderousness of so much ‘respectable’ new music.” I tend to agree, and found the soulful, thoughtful and playful music, particularly the call and response from the clarinet soloists, to be moving and enjoyable. Koehnes orchestration is at times reminiscent of ravel’s colouristic effects

The Clarinet Concerto began slowly and gently, guided by the harmonic direction of Michael Collins. The piece was played as hopeful and dreamy, and produced feelings of wistfulness within me. I was brought along a journey that the artists wanted the audience to follow, it was twisting path of beauty and cool breezes. This piece continued, picking up speed and energy, with an ominous shift in orchestration and accompaniment. The clarinet soloists, however, continued with a light and energetic harmony, containing more call and response weaving in well-known classical melodies to the modern music. The piece continued with the whimsy highlighted by the double bases (Adrian Whitehall and Jacques Emery), powerfully building and breaking the tension of the music.

The concert ended with a surprise encore and world premiere of a reworked (for two clarinet soloists) piece called Ornamental Air. The encore began with a sense of urgency from entire orchestra. This piece continued with the playfulness of the previous works. The clarinets were delicately and deliberately light and harmonious. It was a delightful end to a lovely evening of music that moved me, and took me along a journey through my mind.

To book tickets to Elevator Music, please visit https://www.melbournerecital.com.au/whats-on/current-productions/omega-ensemble-elevator-music.

Photographer: Eloise Coomber

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