Melody Rachel is a magnetic performer, and ‘I Wanna Be Mark Wahlberg’ gives her an opportunity to flex her muscles both literally and figuratively. There’s space within this show for movement, words, hair-flips and perfectly timed smirks to explore masculinity with a light touch and perfectly placed pair of Calvin Klein briefs.
By her own admission, this show changes every time Melody performs it, and this particular iteration for Qtopia’s Pride Fest 2025 is striking and fun. Between feats of endurance and the interplay of body and shadow, there’s stark observations and crushing moments of vulnerability.
Some of the most moving moments come from the exploration of physical expressions of gender; femininity as performance particularly has real pain, especially in contrast to the moments of comedy drawn out in the pre-show and intro investigating how men move. There’s real subtlety in this show; small movements tell us a lot, and provide both their own arc and the bedrock for the retelling of people’s reactions and assumptions (both in queer spaces and outside of them).
The intimacy of the Substation theatre space helps the energy of this show to hit straight to the heart. There’s a vulnerability for both performer and audience to be in such close proximity, and this show does crackle with energy because of this. Qtopia has fitted their spaces with precision; it’s one of the most exciting spaces to see theatre in the inner Sydney buffet. The rest of Pride Fest this June offers a collection of opportunities to see new works here. The raw walls and high ceilings allow for Melody’s use of shadow and light to feel cinematic and huge, despite the intimacy of the place.
To march so directly into the breach of navigating maleness and masculinity, femaleness, femininity and everything in between is only possible in the hands of a performer willing to put their neck on the line, which Melody does. There’s real stakes here, real laughs, real tension and a whole lot of interesting questions.
Unfortunately, this show has closed after a limited number of performances at Pride Fest this year, but should the opportunity to step into Melody Rachel’s world arise in another context, this reviewer would recommend that you do so.
Madame Martha’s Parisian Cabaret is a campy, quirky, delightful emotional roller-coaster ride, that will hit you in all of the feels, over a truly captivating hour of queer joy.
What better place for my first theatre review than my beloved Old Fitz, which I fell in love with with “Cut Chilli”, and have since frequented as a viewer, and even performed in their “Senseless & Fitz” Shakespeare night. The vibe is funky and atmospheric. The bartender very accommodating of requests for a “lemonade top up” when I realised that Negronis may look cool, but taste rather vile.
The welcome is warm as we enter the theatre. The set is very much in line with Parisian cabaret. Deep burgundies and mixed glass lampshades, doorways adorned with “show lights”. I sit in the second row, knowing all spots in this delightfully intimate theatre are a winner.
Then our beautiful trio enter; graceful, careful, flowing and enchanting as they fill they space with their bodies and soon their harmonic voices. With Meg Hickey having absolutely no limits to what can be achieved with those vocal pipes… and an accordion to boot. Their costumes are gorgeous and each artist moves with their own unique elegance as they dance and sing a rendition of “Bad Guy”.
It becomes clear their physical freedom, poetic exploration and musical gifts feed off the shared talent of the trio and their reverie is only broken by the omnipresent, fearsome watchful eye of “Madame Martha”.
The choreography is stunning. Every movement is full-bodied and intentional. There is a collective heart between this troupe that keeps you captivated, entranced and SAFE as deep themes are tackled through the many facets and layers of “cabaret” with a touch of Vaudeville. Be prepared for tits and tips (well, more than that, but I couldn’t resist the alliteration). The actors bare themselves both literally and figuratively on the stage with full abandon and celebration of their forms.
My eyes filled with tears as Iva Rosebud delivered a deeply moving “What Makes A Man A Man” taking us on a heartfelt musical journey.
Jens Radda is giving “Mother” energy and keeping the three of them connected and intertwined throughout.
The crowd favourite was clearly the extraordinary “Pink Pony Club” where the harmonies slayed, and the audience were ready and rearing when it became clear we could now sing and clap along.
This show lets you all the way in and touches you in deep places. It was a delight!
From the moment I was handed an interactive pendant at the door of the Alexander Theatre, it was clear Night Night was no ordinary night at the theatre. What followed was one of the most inventive, heartfelt and boundary-defying performances I’ve ever experienced.
Created and directed by the trio Arielle Gray, Luke Kerridge and Tim Watts, Night Night tells the story of Pip, an Antarctic scientist on a quest to uncover the origins of life. What begins as a familiar voyage into isolation and scientific frustration soon tumbles into a surreal dreamscape with an albino penguin guiding our hero and glowing entities emerging from unseen dimensions. It’s a world built from ice and wonder, where the veil between this world and the beyond feels paper-thin.
The compelling narrative unfolds not just on stage, but across a variety of mediums. The set is deceptively simple, consisting of a large projector screen and a small movie studio, fully visible, at the side of the stage. Combined, they become a playground of live cinematography, puppetry, mime, and animation. Gray and Watts deliver a masterclass in physical theatre, coaxing moments of poignancy, whimsy and laugh-out-loud humour from every pixel and prop at their disposal. Their onstage rapport and seamless interaction is the glowing heart of the show. Their performances feel at once effortless and deeply considered.
The sensory layering was delightful from the moment we entered the theatre. Live sketches on an iPad become playful preludes to the show, blending content warnings with charm (beware the show’s loud sounds, flashing lights and wimsy). Messages and images appear on the screen, inviting the audience into the world with a light touch before plunging them into deeper waters.
Rachel Claudio’s musical score and sound design deserve particular praise. They don’t just accompany the action, they elevate it, transporting the audience with a soundscape that moves from delicate to dazzling, always in perfect dialogue with the visual storytelling. The audio-visual synthesis is so immersive it’s easy to forget how complex and technical the show must be.
Night Night’s innovation lies in how it wears its complexity lightly. Static and animated visuals are woven with handmade puppets, showing digital magic dancing alongside analogue charm. Every moment feels handcrafted, intentional and lovingly made. The creative team’s meticulous attention to detail is evident in every snowflake, shadow and blink of light.
This is theatre as revelation. An invitation to see the world differently and to feel more deeply, remembering the power of connection to each other, to nature and to something greater. As Pip’s journey becomes more metaphysical, so too does the audience’s, emerging not only entertained, but perhaps even enlightened.
In short, Night Night is a rare piece of theatre that feels both personal and universal, intimate and epic. It’s a reminder of what live performance can achieve when craft, heart and imagination collide. This is the kind of show that lingers long after the lights go out. Do not miss it.
Night Night will be on tour soon and is coming to Geelong Arts Centre in August and Bondi Pavilion in September. To book tickets to Night Night, please visit https://www.thelastgreathunt.com/night-night.
What’s involved in one single day in the life of you?
Do you wake up, have an ordinary and satisfying day at work, return home and feel contented with life? If you do, then you are lucky. In “Fighting”, now performing at the New Theatre in Newtown, Character A struggles through just one day of his life, and we are in the front seat, travelling along his emotional rollercoaster with him.
“Fighting”, written by Xavier Coy, is about the highs and lows of someone with bipolar disorder. Having been diagnosed with bipolar during the 2020 lockdown, the playwright felt that the disease had previously been portrayed on-screen as someone who was “crazy”. Xavier wanted to write a play dedicated to authentically depicting the complexities of living with bipolar. Written as a dark comedy, “Fighting” won the Silver Gull Award in 2022.
Sound designer Mehran Mortezaei’s choice of the opening song was perfect. Nirvana’s “Lithium” with lyrics such as “I’m so ugly”, “I’m so lonely” and “I love you, I’m not gonna crack” hints at the character’s struggles of self-loathing and internal angst, yet also has the strength and will to keep going, to survive.
Character A wakes up and is immediately inundated with noise and voices. Character B, played by Sophie Highmore, is one of hope. She is encouragement; the calm voice of reason who reminds Character A to do the exercises recommended by his psychologist when he feels anxious or heightened. Character C is the voice of melancholy. Played by David Woodland, Character C is easily recognised as one of chaos, self-loathing, destruction, and darkness.
Jay James-Moody as Character A pulled me into his world immediately with his fast-paced self-talk, a dialogue of descriptive analogies of how his body is feeling as he navigates through his workday. He is a Vodaphone salesman at a company owned by a couple, a woman in her sixties named Helga and her older partner Cliff, who have an active sex life and don’t mind sharing details with Character A. This causes him to be very uncomfortable yet, at the same time, provides a lightness to some heavy scenes. Helga, played by Sophie, is a caring boss. Cliff is a pensioner, an elderly gentleman and David’s interpretation of this character is hilarious, right down to his mannerisms – a comedic tongue popping out as he speaks needs to be mentioned!
In the course of his day, he comes across different customers, also played by Sophie and David. These customers add a scatter of comedy amongst some darker scenes. These customers are all different. Some are odd, such as the ‘conspiracy theorist’ (“you lost the sale of someone who came in wanting to buy a phone”- taunts Character Chaos). Another is a nonchalant customer (“Why even bother?”), a young teen reminiscent of a fourteen-year-old bubble tea drinker with clearly no serious plans to purchase a phone or a plan, and a customer Character A in Salesman-on-Fire mode pitches to and convinces him to buy a phone and “Be here! Be now! Be Somebody!”
Character A still holds the pain of grieving the breakup of his former girlfriend, and Jay’s portrayal of this is sharp as he tries to use strategies throughout the day to remain centred in the moment after he sees her when she enters his Vodaphone store and back into his life unexpectedly. An upcoming date and all the customers give the audience a chance to witness Character A’s fluctuating moods, from one scale of calm to the other end, hypermania, along with Hope and Chaos’ responses to these situations.
Throughout “Fighting” there is no silence, no peace for the protagonist, and it is exhausting for him. There is only Hope’s guidance and Character C’s sharp barbs, his pointed and specific insults that result in intense self-loathing. At one point, David’s portrayal of Character C‘s unrelenting mocking and scornful words combined with him physically circling him and the loud fast heartbeats of the sound design combine to create a breathstopping scene. Even Hope’s words, his own voice of survival, is silenced during this scene. The lighting by Robin Legal highlights Character A. This scene is a culmination and very intense, and there is a trigger warning of suicidal ideation in this play.
Director Xavier Coy’s production is emotional, the scriptwriting and acting of the company has successfully portrayed the disintegration of the mind, the feeling of being a stranger in a world always on the outside looking in and a loneliness that comes along with someone suffering from a mental illness such as bipolar. We felt it here, and it is a place that no one would choose to be.
“Fighting” is playing at New Theatre, 542 King St Newtown from 18 March – 12 April 2025.
