Melbourne Theatre

Veronica’s Room

Veronicas Room

Veronica’s Room Rating

★★★★★

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Who is Veronica? Who is Susan? Is it 1973? Or is it 1935?

These and so many other questions are explored and eventually answered in the expertly written psychological thriller by American novelist Ira Levin (many of whom will be familiar with his works as the author of ‘Rosemary’s Baby’, ‘Deathtrap’, and ‘The Stepford Wives’).

Eltham Little Theatre has expertly brought this intricate play to life. Director Drew Mason has done a brilliant job at the helm, both in casting and in staging this intense story.

Veronica’s Room grabs you from the start, with so many twists and turns that will truly make you question everything that has happened. You’ll be on the edge of your seat from the opening scene right up until the very last moment of the play.

The cast of four actors navigated their challenging characters exceptionally, with powerful performances delivered across the board. Susie Sparkes plays ‘the Woman’, George Benca plays ‘The Man’, Briana Collier plays ‘The Girl’ and Joshua Massarotti plays ‘The Young Man’.

The moments of humour written into the script were integrated beautifully by all four actors, giving the audience little reprieves from the otherwise heavy nature of the play. And the character nuances were so lovely to watch, as we, the audience, were drawn into the various complexities of all the characters and their roles within the story.

 

Veronicas Room

The entire play is set inside Veronica’s bedroom. The stage was expertly set, with the most intricate details and beautiful furniture and props utilised. It really brought the play to life, almost acting as a character in its own right.

Veronica’s Room is a play that needs to be seen, as any further details on the story-line would just ruin it for those who are not familiar with the play. This is not a plot you want to give spoilers for; it’s just far too good!

So, whether you know the play well and would like to see a great staging of it, or you are not familiar with it and would like your curiosity piqued; you’ll just have to head out to Eltham Little Theatre and see the show for yourself!

The theatre itself is a lovely space, and patrons have the option of booking classic theatre-style rowed seating towards the front, or cabaret-styled tabled seating at the rear, where you can bring your own snacks and drinks.

From ticketing to the bar/snack station, everyone at the theatre was extremely friendly and welcoming, making for a thoroughly enjoyable night of community theatre.

For tickets, book @ https://www.elthamlittletheatre.org.au/what-s-on

Veronica’s Room is running at Eltham Little Theatre from 6th – 21st of September. Make sure not to miss this brilliant play.

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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Mad Nun Productions Presents Flick

Flick

Flick Rating

★★★★★

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4

From the moment ‘Flick’ (Madelaine Nunn) walked on stage, the entire audience was drawn into her captivating story and exploration of life, love, loss, and grief.

Brilliantly written, with a humanly comedic through-line, this one-woman show is exactly what we want to see in theatre.

The somewhat extraordinary, yet in other ways, quite ordinary and very relatable storyline was so beautifully crafted and conveyed by Madelaine. It felt like we were there with her; every awkward, funny, hopeful, or devastatingly sad step of the way.

‘Flick’ follows the story of a 30-something year old a palliative care nurse, who comedically draws the audience into her world of working with those at the end of their life. All whilst juggling her own experiences of love, lust, friendship, death, grief, and loss through various relationships she has in her own life.

With a blank stage, a single stool, and the most basic of lighting and sound, Madelaine’s performance alone took us deep into Flick’s world. The only visual hint for the audience, being that she is dressed in her work scrubs. It just goes to show that when the writing and acting is en pointe, there is no need for fancy sets, lighting, or sound. The performance speaks for itself, and the audience’s imagination is enough.

For anyone like myself, who has worked in healthcare (and even moreso, for those of us who have worked in end-of-life healthcare), so many relatable moments were expertly and honestly written into the show (in the often unexpectedly humorous ways that they present themselves in real life).

Flick
Flick
Flick
Flick

And even to those who have not had those lived experiences, the truth and honesty of the storytelling and character relationships were in and of themselves fundamentally relatable to our own human behaviours.

If I wasn’t genuinely laughing at the (often far too!) relatable moments, I was drawn to tears on more than one occasion through the very real moments of the deep sadness that come with grief and loss.

This show brilliantly explores and highlights the dichotomy and often seemingly non-sequitur nature of our human emotions and experiences: how there is so often unexpected humour in the face of death, melancholy in happiness, or how sometimes our behaviour in grief may just be a little bit (or a lot) on the crazy side. And what a wonderful way to remind people that these are all very normal aspects of the human experience.

Each character explored through the lens of Flick was so honest and relatable: from her co-workers, to her the patients, to her best friend, or her mother. I could very easily place real people from my own life into each character.

It’s not very often that you walk out of a show and think that you’ve been a part of something quite special. But walking out of the opening night of ‘Flick’, with a full-house, and a standing ovation, I had that feeling.

For a one-woman-show to draw in and captivate an audience for over an hour through one continuous story arc is a great achievement. Madelaine’s performance did just that, and we all experienced a rollercoaster of emotions and relatable human experiences alongside ‘Flick’.

I would love to say to go and get tickets to this show at La Mama, but being a part of the ‘Explorations’ program, there are only three performances, all of which have unsurprisingly sold out.

But I get the feeling that this is not the last we will be seeing of ‘Flick’ and Madelaine Nunn. So, keep your eyes peeled for where it goes next. And then make sure to get a ticket, as this is a show not to be missed.

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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Thinner Than Water

Thinner Than Water

Thinner Than Water Rating

★★★★★

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4

‘Thinner Than Water’ written by Melissa Ross and directed by Tim Williams, offers a nuanced portrayal of a fractured family drawn together during a time of crisis. The play focuses on three half-siblings—Cassie (Amy Pollock), Renee (Katharine Innes), and Gary (Matthew Elliott)—who reconnect when their father’s health takes a turn for the worse. Renee, the eldest, naturally assumes a leadership role, displaying an authority over her siblings that is both practical and, at times, overbearing.

The other two siblings, though less organized, demonstrate a deeper empathy for those around them. This often puts them at odds with Renee, whose critical nature highlights the tension between them. The strained relationship with their father is apparent from the outset, setting the tone for the family dynamics that unfold throughout the play.

As the story unfolds, we see the shaky ground that Renee’s marriage is standing on. Her husband Mark’s level of criticism one-ups hers. As the play progresses, we find out Mark is not a cold-blooded narcist. The unfolding drama, acts as a catalyst that opens their respective vulnerabilities and provides stable-ground for them to have honest, productive conversations. Katharine Innes and Matt Trubiani take great writing, and deliver it with impeccable timing, humour, and stage chemistry.

Cassie is in an on-again-off-again relationship with Henry (Jerome Meyer) – a stable organised lawyer who is devoted to her, despite Cassie’s inconsistency in their relationship. The two have markedly different personalities and lifestyles. Henry’s similarity to Renee reflects interesting psychological subtext that is implicitly explored throughout the play.

Gary works in retail at a comic book store, and receives notable flack for it. He acts the part of stereotypical stoner meets anxious sweetheart. Like Cassie, Gary also struggles with responsibility. Him and Cassie are at ease with each other, where their mutual understanding anchors their relationship. Gary meets Angela (Nicole Chapman) at the start of the play. Angela is a single-mother looking for a reliable ‘big brother’ for her son.

Thinner Than Water
Thinner Than Water

When Martin is admitted to hospital the audience is treated to some great back and forth between Renee and Martins partner Gwen (Nin Macken), where the ball is largely held in Gwen’s side of the court. Gwen is a self-confessed chatterbox, Renee’s magazines, and forms prove inadequate barriers to deflect this. As the play progresses, we see the relationship between Gwen and Renee shift from superficial and one-sided, to honest and reciprocal, underscored by humour and depth.

There were a lot of set changes, broadcasting voicemails over these did help to alleviate their duration; but the play would benefit from shortening them. The use of the r-word felt unnecessary and could have been updated to something more appropriate. The narrative set-up is slowly drawn out over the first act, then after skipping forwards in time the resolution feels very compressed in the second act. I wonder if there might have been ways to alter this to convey the character growth that has transpired in this time- particularly in the case of Cassie, either through script changes, or acting choices.

Overall, this play is a funny, relatable, subtle, and complex work; supported with strong acting performances across the entire cast. The Alex Theatre was a fantastic venue, with great facilities. ‘Thinner Than Water’ is running 15-25 August at the Alex theatre in St Kilda, I highly recommend you take the opportunity to see it.

For Tickets:- https://alextheatre.au/thinner-than-water/

15 – 25 August 2024, 7 pm – 9:30 pm
Sundays 5 pm – 7:30 pm

Full $45 +BF
Concession $37.50 +BF

PREVIEW PERFORMANCE:
Full $35 +BF
Concession $27.50 +BF

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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Piper: By Frenzy Theatre

Piper

Piper Rating

★★★★★

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7

Seeing the opening night performance of PIPER presented by Frenzy Theatre Co and Theatreworks has renewed my faith in live theatre as a place of exuberance and joy. The show takes the Grimm fairytale, the Pied Piper of Hamelin, and uses it as a springboard for an exploration of power, exploitation and survival in a way that stimulates the audience to engage and think whilst being thoroughly entertained.

Directed by Belle Hansen and co-created by Dora Abraham, Piper is indeed the extravaganza it sets out to be with a vibrant ensemble cast of 20 female and non-binary actors who are also singers, dancers and circus artists. It is a visual and aural feast with so much going on that you will want to come back and see it again.

The pre-show foyer entertainment features the eight rat dancers/circus artists who perform an ensemble floating rat movement. They move as one in their rat pack until one-by-one they spook and run into the auditorium. Inside, the audience are invited to step onto the stage and interact with other cast members – Hamelin town councillors, the children, the townspeople. The costumes by Harry Gill and Jessamine Moffett and makeup signal that this is a very colourful but fractured hyper-real world of Hamelin. We vote on which rats get to live, get a Taro Tarot card reading , receive and write mail distributed by the town florist and play a loaded card game with a town councillor. It is Disney-esque and captivating.

Frenzy Theatre Co chooses to be “pop culture-based, and grounded in its commitment to dynamic physical theatre, ensemble devising and maximalism”. For Piper, this is a commitment well and truly kept. Big moments with a lot of action (including an aerialist on a rope) and pumped music beats contrasted with quieter, poetic text-based scenes that take inspiration from Greek tragedy and chorus.

Jack Burmeister’s sound design and composition is integral to the success of the transitions and story-telling as is Sidney Younger’s lighting design. Hannah Jennings’ beautiful cinematography adds to the mood and spectacle. Despite the dark nature of the themes, overall the tone of this thought-provoking show is light and humorous. Rats will die, but why and how? In this version, there is no Piper. Then the children want their turn in the limelight but end up exploited by a different power altogether.

Piper
Piper

Despite a cast of 20, each performer has their moments to shine and all give solid performances. There is a cohesiveness within each ensemble group (rats, children, townspeople and councillors) so that no one performance steals the limelight. Rather, each performer supports the unity of purpose of their group which in turn supports the performance as a whole. This is remarkable and would have to be a strength of Frenzy’s approach to group devised theatre and ensemble development.

Frenzy Theatre Co was established in 2020 by Belle Hansen and Matilda Gibbs and are now joined by Jack Burmeister and Anna Louey as Company Artists. Their youth is their strength and they dream big. But they also have years and a depth of experience which means their crazy big ideas actually come to fruition! It is worth noting that Frenzy are committed to nurturing and up-skilling early career artists. If you love theatre, you should keep an eye on them.

I absolutely loved the experience of watching PIPER. I had been smarting from seeing a very bland, wordy production with no subtext at unnamed state’s flagship theatre company. I was bored out of my brain. It was predictable and all the loose ends were neatly tied up so there was nothing to have to think about. But PIPER exploded with life and had me hooked every minute. My mind was filled with things to discuss and mull over. So if you want to see the full gamut of what live theatre can be, go and see PIPER!

Disclaimer – I had the privilege to work with Frenzy Theatre Co in their last production, The Roof Is Caving In, as an actor/musician. I know first-hand how professional, inclusive, respectful and nurturing they are and also their incredible work ethic. These people work hard and still have to have day jobs. Yet they produce work far more compelling than some of the work that comes out of flagship companies. But that’s just my opinion.

Tickets available at https://www.theatreworks.org.au/2024/piper

DATES + TIMES
Tuesday 13 August – 7:30pm
Wednesday 14 August – 7:30pm
Thursday 15 August – 7:30pm
Friday 16 August – 7:30pm
Saturday 17 August – 7:30pm
Tuesday 20 August – 7:30pm
Wednesday 21 August – 7:30pm
Thursday 22 August – 7:30pm
Friday 23 August – 7:30pm
Saturday 24 August – 1:30pm (MATINEE)

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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