Debra Campbell

Debra Campbell is the founder of Beyond Dance - proudly supporting Beyond Blue (@dance2forblue), which has raised many thousands of dollars for mental health. Debra is passionate that the Arts in all its forms can truly help one enjoy important time for themselves. She has lived a life of dance, theatre and visual art and believes therefore there are no ‘bad’ shows, there is ‘good’ in every show – “they are all different and will give you different experiences and feelings, so it is always worth venturing out to see one”. Returning to writing from her former years, Debra looks forward to meeting new artists and highlighting their creativity for everyone to appreciate. https://fundraise.beyondblue.org.au/fundraise-for-beyond-blue/posts/beyond-dance https://fundraise.beyondblue.org.au/t/dancetwoforblue

AVENUE Q – hold on to your puppets!

4 April 202510 March 2025 Debra Campbell

AVENUE Q Rating

★★★★★

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Avenue Q – Hmmm …?? Ummm…?? Grab your…. Ahhh…

Lots of prior guessing what this show would give to an 18+ adults-only with ‘puppets behaving badly’ …. I had never seen it before nor heard of it, yet in Broadway history it beat out Wicked, how was that possible? This is puppets looking similar to those you’d see on Sesame Street! Mind you, they definitely don’t have the same vocabulary.

Get ready to LAUGH!!! I’m not actually a huge fan of explicit content and sexual innuendos in shows, hence a lot of stand-up comedy nowdays doesn’t entice me, but this was a musical, so I couldn’t possibly not go. I got good seats and took my hubby (driving in he asked me what it was and when I said from the information I had it was like an adult version of Muppets, I think he stopped far longer at the red light than needed, hmmm….).

There’s no hiding explicit content and sexual innuendos in Avenue Q, they are in nearly every scene, but as its expressed from puppets I thought it was very FUNNY and even more CLEVER!

Something I’d never think we would hear about in a musical was open loud reference to ‘porn’. With a whole comical song on the topic, the audience were in stitches and the guys sitting in front of us were almost rolling out of their seats. You’ll have to go experience that part as I don’t want to conjure up anything not quite accurate here – I was also laughing so much at the huge porn-loving puppet I probably lacked concentration whilst watching. I don’t know how the actors on stage with him practiced at rehearsals, but I’ll bet it was nothing like anything they’d done before.

Talented and adaptable is an understatement of this cast. To be able to hold a puppet and portray a character isn’t something I imagine many performers could pull off with the kind of confidence and interaction they do, but especially to sing and move in conjunction with another actor holding the adjoining arm of the same puppet; their timing was spot on!

There are non-puppet characters too – a hoot is “Gary Coleman” in a parody of the real-life child star with the same name; he’s the ‘maintenance man’ of the apartments on Avenue Q where hopefuls, lovers and friends live their ordinary lives in New York city. Having grown up with that child star on my TV, his lines made perfect sense to me for a bit of a giggle.

‘Sucks To Be Me’ was my favourite scene, because everyone thinks that of themselves at some time in their lives, but let’s be honest, there’s always someone worse off than you are. The show has many messages of a similar tongue-in-cheek nature, however the underlying theme is a timeless story of not giving up hope (that’s like Sesame Street HAHA).

Funnily, you may want to close your eyes or look away occasionally or you might find yourself staring jaw-dropped at the stage figuring it all out. It’s a sexy romp of puppetry at times and just super cool fun at others, songs with catchy tunes and notes with punch – a sing out to Cassie Ogle playing vixen ‘Lucy’, what a voice!

If you are thinking that you don’t like the sound of possibly ‘sex obsessed’ puppets on stage, it’s really not too over the top (Avenue Q is from the 2000s and we didn’t do overly confronting back then). You could go with your mother-in-law, but a group of friends would absolutely have one hilarious night out to remember.

Another thing about ‘AG Theatre’ productions that stands out for me is the atmosphere they create in the foyer pre and post show. You can take photos on their backdrop board (with the puppets) and pin those all over your social media to puzzle your friends not lucky enough to go along.

Avenue Q is a must-see, and if you’re into going out in theme, wear your wigs and puppet ears (you won’t the only one). The show has just been extended to play at the National Theatre in St Kilda until 22 March 2025. Tickets via https://agtheatre.com.au/avenueq/

This was one comedy I loved, thank you for a very fun night.

Congratulations everyone!

CAST:
Princeton: Harley Dasey
Kate Monster: Zoe Crisp
Nicky & Trekkie: Andrew McDougall
Rod: Jonathon Shilling
Lucy & Mrs T: Cassie Ogle
Bad Idea Bear & Puppeteer: Perri Espinoza
Bad Idea Bear: Darcy Harriss
Brian: Matthew Tomlin
Xmas Eve: Chiew-Jin Khut
Gary Coleman: Stephanie Lacerna
Swings: Liimei Lim, Jake Lonergan

Production Team:
Executive Producer: Andrew Gyopar
Director: Pip Mushin
Music Director: Alexandra Byrne
Choreographer & Assistant Director: Adriana Pannuzzo
Production Design: Abbey Stanway
Costume Design: Karen Spencer
Puppet Design & Creation: Andrew McDougall
Graphic Design: Jett Archer

AVENUE Q
Music & Lyrics by Jeff Marx & Robert Lopez
Book by Jeff Whitty
Licensed exclusively by Music Theatre International (Australasia)

Photo credits: @agtheatreproductions

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Debra Campbell

MELANCHOLIA – Premiere connects Tap Dancing & Contemporary

4 April 202516 February 2025 Debra Campbell

MELANCHOLIA Rating

★★★★★

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‘Melancholia is the premiere work of Melbourne’s own contemporary tap dance company, Studio Stocks. Founded by acclaimed tap dance artist Garry Stocks, Studio Stocks pushes the boundaries of percussive dance, weaving elements of contemporary movement with a fresh, genre-defying approach to tap. Audiences explore the depths of loss, pain and grief, while discovering moments of hope and healing through the power of rhythm.

Performed by an extraordinary cast of some of Australia’s most accomplished tap dance artists and rising talents, this evocative work promises to captivate, challenge and resonate with audiences on a profound level. Experience a performance that marks a new era in tap artistry and enjoy the emotional range that tap dance can embody from exuberant joy to deeply poignant reflection.’

That was the introductory write-up, so needless to say as a lover of all things ‘dance’, when I walked into one of my favourite theatres in Melbourne I was about to be in my element witnessing this ground-breaking creative at Chapel Off Chapel. I always enjoy the shows at this very professional boutique theatre and I’ve definitely seen some of the best shows I’ve ever seen here. They are often ‘different’, ‘out there’ and ‘exploratory’.

‘MELANCHOLIA’ – the meaning of the word surrounds depression and sadness, so I was very interested to see how the art form of tap dancing would be combined with contemporary dance to fuse the two; and how the cast would work together to bring about an actual embodiment of ‘joy’ from such a strong meaning in the title word. But this show does just that. You’ll leave happy, amazed and gobsmacked by what you’ve just seen.

Forget the toe tapping sounds done in concerts or musicals with a hat and cane. On stage, dressed in normal clothes (no fancy costumes) are some of the best tap dancers our country has; street style, their style. Blessing us with their ability to tap with the utmost clarity whilst also often moving their bodies in contemporary facilitation to music they also need to be in sync with; I found the concept alone mindboggling!

When I enter the theatre there are already six dancers on the stage; it is dark and they seem dark; gazing, sitting, lying, sliding, rolling. It was fun to watch them all and try and work out where their thoughts were and what their story was. Perhaps there was one and perhaps there wasn’t. Then another steps out of the wings in slow motion, and another – circling her feet in something like an imaginary puddle, seemingly not sure if she should step into it or not.

The show fires up and everyone’s on board, brilliant piece after brilliant piece, it is cleverly sectioned for the audience to enjoy and the artists to clearly demonstrate their skill sets both individually and in groups. Four girls. Four boys. Always great to see boys dancing!

It is a rare treat to see a company’s Director/Choreographer also on stage as part of the cast and my favourite was the duet by Garry Stocks and his wife Jade Wood. Garry in his tap shoes and Jade without on her contemporary side; an improbable mix, but they expressively tell a very genuine interpretation of togetherness with the choreography and execution of both styles being impeccable of course (both having performed extensively with the Australian Ballet).

The use of clever lighting in featured spotlights and strobe effects embellish the performance, but also very effective is the use of tiny spotlights hand-held and transferred by the dancers in action. I wonder who thought to incorporate this idea – genius. Loved the part when we were left with light on nothing but the shoes – they bring the absolute brightness here, and the ‘camp fire’ was the final magic touch duly deserving of the standing ovation.

Whilst I was expecting to be surprised with something new, I wasn’t expecting the feelings that I felt watching this show. More than once it sent a shiver, and tears were close on my cheek at the end. It’s not sad though, I think I just realized it was an absolute privilege to be there. I had just seen something totally different, totally out-there and totally exploring new ground.

In summary, the work is actually quite difficult to explain in words and when I asked my dancer daughter her opinion, she said exactly what I was thinking: “it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before, it’s something you have to go see”. It truthfully is an evolution in dance.

Please, everyone who loves dance, do yourself a favour and check out the website for updates on Stocks Studios’ future productions and opportunities to be involved: https://www.garrystocks.com/studio-stocks

To understand just how good this new dance company is, you must go see them.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CAST:
GARRY STOCKS
PAIGE POTE
TIARNA LEIGH
JAYDEN WATSON
BILL SIMPSON
LUCAS THOMSON
CLAIRE STUBS
JADE WOOD

Photographer: Bill Simpson

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Debra Campbell

F5 – Presented by UNLID Dance Theatre

4 April 20255 February 2025 Debra Campbell

F5 Rating

★★★★★

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Certainly a different type of show when you walk into the alley laneway next to the Arnold Street Studio to see a performance by three ultra-talented dancers and one super talented choreographer behind the vision ‘F5’ by ‘UNLID’ last weekend. This Premiere follows the company’s inaugural tour to Singapore in 2024 with Part I which I had read about, so I’m excited to see how this performance unfolds.

USA born Jennifer Fleenor-O’Brien welcomes us all with her personable quality and genuine care of the arts. She says though she was ‘technically’ trained in the United States, she was ‘artistically’ trained in Europe (from her many years living and working there). Having now lived bayside in Melbourne Australia for many years with her family, Jennifer (holding a Master of Dance (Hons) from the University of Melbourne VCA Dance amongst many other accolades) is the founder of possibly the newest visionary contemporary dance company in Victoria. Working with her passion out of the company’s base in the Cheltenham studios, she offers dancers who have finished full-time training courses, or those wishing to further enhance their higher dance training, the opportunity to learn and grow in developing performances such as ‘F5’.

It’s a beautiful night, perfect weather, the dancers have a light breeze as the sun dims just enough to create the best light. An ounce of luck there!

We, the audience, are comfortable to stay outside as three all-in-black figures appear, one by one, to the sound of percussion rhythms backdropped by a paling fence and against the red brick wall, with its graffiti just adding to the realism of where we are. There is no ‘stage’ as such, this laneway and the rooms inside will be the ‘stages’ to which we witness this project.

The dancers’ spacing, timing and awareness of each other outside in this unusual environment is so good that at one point I only saw the front dancer with the other two completely disappearing from my view to go behind her in exact matches of lines and extensions. Great opening!

This is very different choreography to ‘…5,6,7,8’. Contemporary dance has no rules, no boundaries, no pre-expectations other than when you see ‘contemporary’ you expect to have some intricate thought process on what it’s about. And that can be different for everyone watching. Our interpretation may not even be similar to each other’s or that of the choreographer or dancers, but I think that’s what makes the world of contemporary dance so interesting, you never know what you’re going to get or how you’re going to feel.

F5 takes us on a day to day (hour by hour) journey in life (that’s my interpretation anyway), i.e. three dancers, three different perspectives on life. Are they lives that are mundane, fulfilling, hurting or joyous? Will they continue to dance alone, in synchronisation or come together in a different way? Are they experiencing or remembering or imagining?

Sometimes, in certain situations, we’d all like to crawl under our coffee table, slide forward and scrape ourselves blindly down the kitchen bench, open our wardrobe and change from our boring neutral daywear into a dress of colour, screaming in silence and expressing that we all cope in different ways; falling and surviving at the same time.

Are we being heard? Do we want to skip and run and stop suddenly to meet another person only to be enveloped into their world of darkness or happiness? Is it to be our world? What choices should we make?

I saw movements and uniformity in this show I hadn’t witnessed before in contemporary dance. An element of almost hip hop at times and some amazing partnering combinations, fluidity and cross referencing from where we started in the alley for the first scene, through to the everyday living spaces and finally into the open vastness of a blank canvas room, made for compelling engagement.

We didn’t sit down at all, the audience was standing and then following the dancers through the spaces, using the entire building. When it came time to take a bow (actually 3 or 4 bows), the audience was loud and proud of what they had just seen. Well done girls!

Speaking to some other attendees after the show:
“I didn’t mind standing up, it was excellent. It didn’t have any dull moments, it went fast!”
“My mum cried, it was so captivating.”
“I couldn’t believe they could dance on, under and around the table so well”
“Loved the dancing outside, extraordinary!”
“I thought I knew what was going to happen but I didn’t”
“They were dancing in the moment, I stared straight at them, but I couldn’t shift their gaze”

Speaking to a dancer:
“To be involved was to experience a different aspect of Jen and her work, I have taken her classes before. She has a lot of energy and we worked a lot on very precise movements. Most contemporary dance I’ve done is nothing like what we did tonight. I loved it.”

Speaking to Jennifer (choreographer) on her ideas for ‘F5’:

Conformity by society is what came to mind.

“Mapping the dancers’ own stories to memory, lineage and connecting the audience to take the journey with them that underpins their own personal story within.”

A thoroughly enjoyable show, and the drinks and supper snacks provided afterwards for all the audience to enjoy gave us the opportunity to find out who thought what; and how interpretations differed, but all were impressed.

Congratulations to Jennifer and her dance artists in ‘F5’, Mollie Harrison, Bridget Lyte and Bre Surridge.

I strongly recommend if you’re a lover of dance or any interpretive artforms, look out for their next creative work and opportunities to be involved. Website link: https://www.unlid-dance.com.au/

Dancers may join an Advanced Contemporary class at Space Fest on Monday March 10th from 11am – 12:30pm at The Space and to come along! Check our the Unlid Dance website for the most current information on classes and upcoming auditions.

Photographers: Lee Harrison, Chrissy Dore Photography, Gnashmas of Singapore

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Debra Campbell

Daddy Long Legs – Long Applause

4 April 202510 November 2024 Debra Campbell

Daddy Long Legs Rating

★★★★★

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What a show! It’s a little bit like a fantastic audio-book with songs and an incredible two person cast having us all holding on for the ending we hope to be. Based on the novel by Jean Webster, the musical of Daddy Long Legs deserved the long applause it received for the Peoples Playhouse Theatre on opening night!

My friend and I sat front row as community theatre gives you that chance to see a show up close and personal, something you cannot get (without a big ticket price) at the professional shows in the city and the talent on stage is no less fabulous. Productions in community theatre are very often insanely good and this one is no exception (at an extremely reasonable ticket price). It’s worth the trip to Mornington even if you don’t live in the area (like me).

Firstly, note-worthy as you go in the door, are the Programs; displayed intriguingly by being in a pile of old-fashioned envelopes complete with a ‘red wax seal’. A very creative member of the team has designed them like a letter of importance at the turn of the century, where this story is set. I love getting the written programs as keepsakes for all the shows I go to and this one is definitely the most unique.

I watched the movie of Daddy Long Legs as a child and, though that was a very long time ago, I remember it well because as a dancer I loved Fred Astaire. There’s no dancing in this musical, but I knew the story well and watching it come to life on stage through script and songs and the art of letter writings recited between the characters made it so beautifully vivid.

Jordi Poyser plays Jervis Pendleton, with his rich family heritage, and Madeline Connolly plays Jerusha Abbott, the oldest orphan in the orphanage, who is given thankful opportunity to study to become a writer with all expenses paid until graduation by an unknown-to-her kindly benefactor ‘Mr Smith’ (of course this is none other than Jervis but she will not discover that for a while). Jerusha will be able to write letters to Mr Smith to tell him how she is going, but he informs in his offer that he will not write to her.

A pitch perfect opening by Madeline (whom I hadn’t seen before) – her gift in voice either singing or speaking to portray any aspect of musical theatre is immediately noticeable and she will only go from strength to strength in this character; she gives it her all from wide-eyed astonishment and giggles to the most real tears I’ve seen on stage this year. She is simply amazing!

Jordi is, as he always is, exceptionally talented (third time I’ve seen him), but this role is definitely more than a little different to the usual script in that the characters are not able to truly inter`act` with each other on the stage. The two of them cannot look at one another directly because they are reading their respective letters in a different place, whereby using their ‘own side’ of the stage set. Both Jordi and Madeline must be sure not to have any actual interaction; this would have been probably quite difficult to get used to. Instead they have to trust one another’s delivery of their lines, lines and more lines until their final scene.

The script is indeed extensive, the art of letter writing is a dying form and naturally Jerusha is an accomplished letter-writer so that in itself is lovely to listen to and yes, Jordi and Madeline have a LOT of lines; in their reading of the letters and also in expressing out loud their thoughts of how the receiver on the other end will perceive those letters. On paper one can envisage anything, but there’s a much bigger story to tell outside of penned words. Both actors get this message across undoubtedly well. Jervis in particular has a number of very funny moments we laugh at in his reaction to reading the words in front of him.

Through her letters to her benefactor, Jerusha will enlighten Mr Smith as to what she is learning in her studies, what she likes and what she does not, who she is friends with and who she is not, what she is excited for and what she is not and how she would love to meet him in person. In return, Jervis (Mr Smith) will eventually respond (through his supposed secretary), but you will need to go and see the show for more answers… will Jerusha find out much about Jervis’ real identity, how will she relate to him if she does one day finally see this ‘old’ man, and, her screaming question – is he bald?

Three exceptional musicians; Damien Mizzi on piano, Frank Nigro on guitar and Lore Burns on cello, make up everyone to be on-stage for the whole show and although you cannot fully see this talented trio at the back of the divided set between Jerusha’s lodgings and Jervis’ accurately dated office, I do think it’s nice to have the music playing live there with a peek at their work close range; just adds that extra personal closeness to what again only community theatre can really provide.

Congratulations to Director, Leah Osburn, and Musical Director, Damien Mizzi, we loved our night out and thank you immensely for taking the time to produce this unusual ‘rags to riches’ show in the way you have. I think that the ‘secret of happiness’ is seeing shows like this one (and I actually do believe you could make it into a musical audio-book). Everyone in the audience felt the connection and I heard another 3-4 guests say in the foyer it was nothing like they expected and was so very good!

Highly recommended: Daddy Long Legs playing 8-16 November 2024

Ticket Link: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1248996

Venue: 4 Albert St, Mornington: The Anglican Centre – Mornington and Mount Martha Anglican Church. Flat floor seating, but the stage is raised. Easy free parking right next door. They operated a canteen at interval and tea/coffee by gold coin donation.

Look out also for the next show and auditions: https://www.peoplesplayhouse.com/home

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