Sydney Theatre - Whats The Show

Mother and Son: Presented By Hunters Hill Theatre

04/04/202523/11/2024 Anastassia Gerakas🚀🎭🎬

Mother and Son Hunters Hill Theatre Rating

★★★★★

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Mother and Son, a masterful stage adaptation of the beloved 1984-1994 TV show, opens in a stereotypical living room of a household that’s been lived in for 50 years.

Maggie, an elderly woman, precariously balances on a ladder, struggling to change a lightbulb. Before disaster strikes, her son Arthur returns home, reminding her with a mixture of exasperation and affection that he had already taken care of it earlier. This seemingly trivial exchange sets the tone for a play that deftly balances humor with the emotional weight of caring for a loved one with dementia.

From the outset, it’s clear that the mother and both sons casting is impeccable. The chemistry between mother and son, be it the eldest – Arthur, or youngest, Robert, and between the two brothers themselves, is nothing short of magical. The family dynamic is all too relatable, with one son being the favourite, despite never actually doing anything to help, while the other being the unsung hero, living with the mother and dealing with the every day, only to feel guilty to take some time for himself. It’s a dynamic many families will recognize, and it provides plenty of comedic moments laced with tenderness.

The script shines with authenticity, navigating the fine line between comedy and drama. The humor is sharp and relatable, never diminishing the emotional gravity of the situation. The everyday absurdities of caring for an elderly parent are captured brilliantly, from Arthur’s constant guilt to the quirky moments of Maggie’s fading memory. One particularly hilarious and universally relatable touch is the series of voicemail messages left by telemarketers on Maggie’s answering machine, offering everything from cheap electricity deals to vitamins — these clever scene change breaks are both funny and poignant, capturing the absurdity of modern life while highlighting the isolation of the elderly.

The direction is flawless, creating a space where the audience feels like they’re watching their own family dynamics unfold. In dealing with such a delicate subject as dementia and caregiving, the production manages to be both respectful and remarkably entertaining. The adaptation, transitioning seamlessly from television to stage, introduces the beloved characters to a new generation while allowing long-time fans to relive the magic.

As the curtain falls, you are left wanting more. Is there a sequel? I already forgot.

To book tickets to Mother and Son, please visit https://www.huntershilltheatre.com.au/

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Anastassia Gerakas🚀🎭🎬

Grand Horizons

04/04/202517/11/2024 Anastassia Gerakas🚀🎭🎬

Grand Horizons Rating

★★★★★

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The name “Grand Horizons” evokes an image of expansive possibilities, a bright future, and a world of untapped potential. It suggests a place where grand things await, a sense of hope and excitement about what lies ahead. In the context of the play, however, this promise is ironically deflated. The “Grand Horizon” is revealed to be not a metaphor for limitless opportunities but rather the confines of a retirement village.

From the very first curtain rise, director Jason Darlington expertly transports the audience into a space that is reminiscent of a sitcom, with musical tunes such as “Love and Marriage” from the TV show “Married with Children”, setting up the scene perfectly. The story is indeed about a married couple with children, only in this tale Nancy decides one day that she wants to divorce Bill, while their two grown up children come to the “rescue” by trying to stop the divorce from happening.

The children’s behaviour is somewhat sitcom-like, with over-the-top acting and facial expressions. Both are oblivious to their parents’ true nature: no matter how many times they ask what the reason for the divorce could possibly be, they never stop to actually let them answer and instead continue on their own trajectory.

It is deep into Act One when we finally hear from Nancy about her rather superficial marriage to Bill. Her confession of long-held desires for an old high school crush feels like a tipping point. It’s here, deep into Act One, that the play shifts gears from sitcom-style comedy to something more poignant, building toward a climactic moment where the walls of the retirement unit—quite literally—come crashing down. This marks the moment when “Grand Horizons” takes a profound turn, offering a raw and vulnerable exploration of the emotional truths that have been buried for decades.

Act Two is the standout, with Nancy’s meeting with Bill’s new girlfriend serving as an acting high point. The final confrontation between Bill and Nancy is both explosive and deeply revealing, a gut-wrenching moment where both characters come to realize how much they’ve actually known about each other’s desires all along.

In his directorial debut at the Castle Hill Pavilion, Darlington wisely lets the seasoned actors take centre stage, and it’s their performances that resonate most strongly. “Grand Horizons” blends comedy with pathos in a way that’s both funny and cringeworthy, ultimately leaving the audience with a bittersweet sense of reflection on life’s fleeting promises and the often-unspoken truths we carry with us.

Grand Horizons is running from 15 Nov – 7 Dec.

To book your tickets, please visit https://paviliontheatre.org.au/grandhorizons/

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Arts Theatre Cronulla Presents: The 39 Steps

04/04/202505/11/2024 Isobel Knight⭐🎭

The 39 Steps Rating

★★★★★

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High-paced physical comedy and a wildly multi-talented cast carry this chaotic and hilarious staged version of Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps at Cronulla Arts Theatre.

Director Cheryl Butler’s production is charming and deft. With a cast of four and a character list of more than 150, this production is a serious ask of its ensemble. The four actors switch accents, attitudes, and hats at pace throughout the play and manage to get both laughs and sympathetic groans from the crowd.

Gavin Leahy’s Richard Hannay is charming and moves almost like Ray Bolger’s Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz film; his pratfalls and facial expressions add jokes to the already enjoyable script. He and Angela Gibson (who play the three key female characters who cross Hannay’s path) both have genuine chemistry and some of the most precise timed visual gags.

The two clowns, Gary Clark and Kathryn Bray have several sequences where the gags are layered as they switch characters and accents with simple movements or costume shifts. These two actors create the groundwork for the moments of romantic chemistry, always following them with a wink and a nudge.

Despite a reasonably long run time for a comedy, the show doesn’t lose your attention. The night we attended, the laughs only seemed to build as the night went along. Using a standalone door as a prop starts slightly funny and grows to be consistently hilarious. The suits are sharp, the staging is mostly minimal, and that’s also worked into the comedy of the thing. The prop work, especially from Kathryn Bray, is excellent.

Patrick Barlow’s stage adaptation takes a loving and goofy approach to the source material. The iconic plane chase appears in shadow puppet relief, and there’s a dramatic and hilarious action sequence on a train that both pays tribute to and pokes fun at the original.

If you’re looking for a faithful Hitchcock adaptation, this is not the play for you, but some passing knowledge of the film will deepen the experience of the show and add a few jokes that might go over the head of someone going in cold. The energy required to convincingly carry off a clowning play is immense, and Cronulla Arts Theatre’s production of The 39 Steps has it and then some. I would thoroughly recommend it.

For Tickets to The 39 Steps, please book @ https://www.artstheatrecronulla.com.au/the39steps

The season runs from 25 October to 30 November, with Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees on 27 October and 3, 17, and 24 November at 2 p.m.

Photographer: Dan Binger, Graham West, Jeffrey Gall, Mark Phillips, Peter Gale

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The Old Fitz Presents: The Female Of The Species

04/04/202504/11/2024 Anastassia Gerakas🚀🎭🎬

The Female of the Species Rating

★★★★★

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Arriving at the Old Fitz for the play, your night is already off to a great start. As the only surviving pub theatre in Australia, this atmospheric venue is a perfect setting for a play loosely inspired by a true Australian story of a feminist writer held hostage at gunpoint by a disgruntled student.

Upon entering the theatre space, the audience is immediately enveloped in the sounds of the Australian bush—chirping birds and buzzing cicadas—creating a vivid backdrop for the intimate setting of writer Margot Mason’s home. The stage is adorned with an eclectic array of books, hinting at the intellectual battles to unfold.

Lucy Miller delivers a standout performance as Margot, a revered feminist writer grappling with debilitating writer’s block. Her character embodies the struggle to stay relevant in a rapidly changing landscape of female representation and sexuality. Her latest book needs a new hook, but what new angle is there to explore on female sexuality?

Enter Jade Fuda as Molly Rivers, the fervent student whose admiration for Margot quickly reveals a darker undercurrent. Initially praising and fanatical, Molly’s obsession morphs into a chilling mission: to kill the woman whose work she holds responsible for her mother’s abandonment and subsequent suicide.

The dialogue shifts deftly between humour and tension as the play explores the evolving definitions of womanhood through the years. Margot and Molly’s banter serves as a comedic dissection of feminist ideals, questioning what it means to be an “ideal” woman—be it a nurturing homemaker, an ambitious careerist, or a childless self-improver. Margot is blamed for altering the “ideal” by swapping and changing the parameters in her every book, a relatable observation into the ever-shifting opinion of our own generation.

With the arrival of Molly’s exhausted homemaker daughter, Tess Thornton, who has disappointed Molly as she chose to dedicate herself to motherhood instead of a career, the three women represent polar opposites on the feminist scale. Who is the most “correct woman” you ask yourself as the story continues with the arrival of three men, equally as polarising and almost caricature like, leaving the audience reflecting on the complexities of female identity and the intersections of admiration and resentment.

The Female of the Species is not just a play but a thought-provoking exploration of feminism wrapped in sharp wit and dark humour.

Overall, with its strong performances, engaging script, and the Old Fitz’s charming ambience, this production is a must-see for anyone interested in the ongoing dialogue about womanhood in modern society.

The Female Of The Species season runs November 1 – 23, with session times as follows: 7pm Tuesday through Friday, 2pm and 7 pm Saturday, and 5 pm Sunday.

For tickets, please book @ https://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au/the-female-of-the-species

Photographer: Noni Carroll Photography

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