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Lord Of The Flies: Presented by the Gold Coast Little Theatre

9 September 2024 Monique Molnar

Lord Of The Flies Rating

★★★★★

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Due to budget cuts or in an effort to shield the students from the harrows of castaway life, my school decided to remove Lord of the Flies from the English curriculum. So, Gold Coast Little Theatre’s production last night was the first time I’ve ever experienced the madness of William Golding’s literary classic.

If you, like me, aren’t aware of the full story of Lord Of The Flies, let me give you the cliff notes version, literally:
In Lord of the Flies, British schoolboys are stranded on a tropical island. In an attempt to recreate the culture they left behind, they elect Ralph (Amelia White) to lead, with the intellectual Piggy (Mia Waldron) as a counsellor.

But Jack (Bree Paige) wants to be leader, and one by one, he lures the boys from civility and reason to the savage survivalism of primeval hunters. The disturbing tale portrays the children’s journey into turmoil and indicates that humanity’s inherent nature is barbarous.

To say that this production kept me on the edge of my seat is an understatement. The all-female cast of 13, led by Amelia White as Ralph and Bree Paige as Jack, under the direction of Joshua McCann-Thomson, worked tirelessly to bring this disturbing story and all of its themes to life in the most exciting way. Even though the actors might be young, this story and its dark motif are probably suitable for teenagers and above.

Gold Coast Little Theatre is nestled in Southport, a stone’s throw from Australia Fair, surrounded by pubs and restaurants if you want to make a night of it. It has ample off-street parking if you want to drive, but it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump from Southport South Station if you want to leave the car at home.

Seating for people with disabilities is available for all shows on request to the Box Office (until booked out). These seats can be booked by phoning the Box Office and are not available online. So, if you’re looking for an exciting night out, give Gold Coast Little Theatre’s Lord Of The Flies a go. The show runs from August 21st until September 21st.

Book your tickets for any one of the six remaining shows @ https://gclt.com.au/lord-of-the-flies/

Remaining Sessions
Friday 13 September, 7.30 pm
Saturday 14 September, 7.30 pm
Sunday 15 September, 2 pm

Thursday 19 September, 7.30 pm
Friday 20 September, 7.30 pm
Saturday 21 September, 7.30 pm (Closing Night)

Photographer: TTL Photography

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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Javeenbah Theatre Presents: Kimberly Akimbo

2 September 20242 September 2024 Monique Molnar

Kimberly Akimbo Rating

★★★★★

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To be honest, I am struggling to write this review. Not because it wasn’t an amazing show but because I wasn’t adequately prepared for the emotional rollercoaster that was David Lindsay-Abaire’s Kimberly Akimbo. Even though my therapist would highly approve of me writing to process my trauma, I am pretty sure that she meant it in a private journal and not in a public theatre review.

The year is 1999. Kimberly could be a typical 16-year-old if her life weren’t anything but typical. A rare medical condition means her body’s aged four times faster than it should. Grey hair, failing eyesight and forgoing body glitter for anti-wrinkle cream don’t quite make you Miss Popularity. But Kimberly’s about to make a friend. And just maybe, her life is going to change. If only her pregnant Mum could tone down the hypochondria. Hopefully, her Dad will start keeping his word. And with any luck, her aunt’s new scheme won’t blow up in their faces.

But don’t let the theatre’s fluffy synopsis fool you. This play is as heartbreaking as it is funny. But suppose you are looking for a redemptive “feel good” story about family members adapting and learning to live with someone with a chronic or terminal illness or disability, then you will probably leave impacted with plenty to think about on the trip home.

The story is less about the people in Kimberly’s life supporting her through her challenges and more about Kimberly having to tackle those obstacles entirely on her own. As someone with a chronic illness myself, some of the themes hit a little close to home for me. The show also tackles the challenging themes of addiction, family dysfunction, and mental illness, so it is better suited to audiences 16+.

Having said that, though, the entire cast brilliantly acted out the story. Kimberly is played by Naomi Thompson, who does an excellent job of playing a teenager juggling life and the symptoms of an illness in the most insane circumstances. Her parents, Patty and Buddy, are played by Cassie Baan and Rory Schiele and are joined by Patty’s eccentric sister, Debora, played by Maegan Weir. The cast is rounded out by Jeff, played by Sam Modra, a fellow student from Kimberly’s school who takes an interest in her for a school project. All of the actors put in such heartfelt performances under the fantastic direction of Kaela Gray that left me crying tears of laughter and sadness.

The whole production was extremely professional, and you could tell that everyone poured their heart and soul into bringing this story to life. Everything from the costumes to lighting, sound, and set design was thoughtfully planned and executed, making it easy to get swept up in the story. I encourage you to give Javeenbah a go and support your local community theatre artists.

Javeenbah Theatre is nestled on the corner of Steven and Ferry Street in Nerang, overlooking the Gold Coast skyline. There is ample parking onsite or on the street, and the theatre serves drinks and a small selection of snacks for patrons to enjoy before or during the show.

The theatre is on ground level, surrounded by grass and gravel, but there are no stairs to negotiate for theatre access if you use a mobility aid. The theatre is quite intimate, with excellent views of the stage from any seat in the house, comfortable chairs and ample legroom.

If you are looking for a fun evening on the Gold Coast, I highly recommend attending this show.

Kimberly Akimbo is playing at Jeveenbah Theatre, Nerang, from August 31st to September 14th, and I am excited that there will be an AUSLAN-signed performance on September 7th and a “relaxed, toned-down” matinee performance on September 14th.

For tickets, book at https://javeenbah.org.au/.

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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Anywhere Festival: Set Me On Fire

27 July 202425 July 2024 Gareth Macready

Set Me On Fire Rating

★★★★★

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Samara Louise’s play, SET ME ON FIRE, is a deeply moving play about the ugly side of family ties, the angst of artistic temperament, and the longing for a better life.

Through the erudition and articulation of her lead female character, Samara paints a poignant portrait of a girl growing into an excellent example of an independent, free-thinking femme fatale.

The list of Samara’s achievements so far seems enormous, considering her youth. Cale Dennis, the director, is also no slouch when it comes to winning awards. I foresee they both have bright futures in theatre and probably whatever else they decide to address with their talents. All members of The Silent Sky Collective, who produced the play, are emerging artists in their own right.

Rachel McMurray, playing Eden, the lead, did a wonderful job of wrapping her lips around the lines of dialogue she had to deliver, and her transitions between a coy seventeen-year-old and a savvy twenty-something, demonstrate she’s a force to be reckoned with.

Her counterpart, Mannon Davies, as Noah, the lost love interest, gives us a delightful deep dive into the psyche of a boy burdened by a mother clinging to her child. His chemistry with Rachel was obvious, and yet deftly understated, muted by the malignance of his meddling mother.

The play begins near where it ends and then backtracks to fill in the gaps. The reminiscences replicate the back story that brought the two tumultuous teens to where they meet again at the beginning of the play, through complexities that remind us that underneath each of us are layers of human experience that can and often do scar us for life.

Cullyn Beckton and Tim James, the tech team, never missed a beat. The set, sound, and lighting all enhanced the moments that made the story work so well.

It’s a thoroughly watchable work. I’d give it 4 out of 5 stars. Go see these people play now before they get so well-known that you have to pay through the nose to see them.

The production contains very occasional strong language and young adult themes. It’s part of The Anywhere Festival and is staged inside Backdock Arts, a small hall at 103 Brunswick Street, in Fortitude Valley.

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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Equus by X Collective

7 June 2024 Gareth Macready

Equus Rating

★★★★★

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Peter Shaffer’s 1973 play ‘Equus’ has been described in various ways over the decades. One reviewer said the play was a deep dive into psychiatry, religion, and sexuality. The horses serve as both paraphilic loci and objects of ecstatic worship while an emotionally desiccated doctor struggles to find purpose in his practice.

Another said the play confabulates a complex Romantic, Jungian, and Freudian mythos around the depraved acts of this desperately mentally ill individual, positing that (at least in the view of the self-abnegating child psychiatrist who interrogates him) his act was a kind of Dionysian acting out, or a sort of religious ecstasy, motivated by a sublimated homoeroticism that is displaced onto horses rather than men.

If you’re still with me, which I truly hope you are, the deep dive into the psyche of each of the protagonists in the production I watched last night put on by the X Collective at The Holy Trinity Hall on Ann Street in Fortitude Valley was done well.

The play is based on meetings between psychiatrist Martin Dysart, played by Greg Scurr, and his young patient Alan Strang, played by Adam Dobson, with flashbacks and interactions with other characters. It follows the psychiatrist trying to understand why the boy stabbed the horses he was caring for in the eyes while wrestling with his own sense of purpose and the nature of his work.

It’s a richly layered play that draws us into the disturbed psyche of the boy, drilling down into his madness. It’s not so much a whodunnit as a why-did-he-do-it? A puritanical father, an obsessively religious mother, and the boy’s preoccupation with horses. Dysart gets to the truth when he tricks Alan into reliving the events of the night of the blinding. In the process, Dr Dysart is seen to be just as disturbed as his patient.

This is a play for two main actors, depicting a battle between reason and instinct, and an ensemble piece for others who double as people and horses. There is good work from Jules Berry as a magistrate seeking to save the boy as well as stave off Dysart’s breakdown, Stephen Jubber as Alan’s oppressive father, Julia Johnson as his Bible-quoting mother, Roxanne Gardner as the boy’s would-be lover, Caroline Sparrow as the Nurse, and Henry Solomon who plays the roles of The Horseman and Harry Dalton the stable owner.

Performed in a church, the audience sits in the nave, the stage area is in front of the main altar, and the players not on stage sit behind in the apse. The acoustics are suited for facing the pews, and thus, sometimes, during crosstalk, even excellent voices can become slightly lost in the transepts, which, ironically, makes the audience lean in to hear better.

The space is effectively a stable strewn with straw and drawn together with the asylum. The ensemble portraying the horses provides an animalistic physicality that, combined with dialogue, reaches its fingers into the audience’s psyche. The X Collective have done a fine job of harnessing this unruly beast of a play.

It’s a demanding text for the actors playing the tortured adolescent patient and the troubled and complex psychiatrist treating him as they launch into a murky exploration of patient and physician. Dysart’s relaxed façade initially crumbles as he becomes increasingly fixated on the unanswerable questions of his work and more entangled with Alan’s volatile psyche.

Equus is definitely well worth a watch, but don’t waste time, as this unique play only runs for two weekends with sessions as follows:-

Fri 7th June, 7:30pm
Sat 8th June, 7:30pm
Fri 14th June, 7:30pm
Sat 15th June, 7:30pm

This review also appears on It’s On The House. Check out more reviews at Whats The Show to see what else is on in your town.

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