Theatre - Whats The Show

Sincere Apologies

13/07/2025 Claire Mulcahy⭐

Sincere Apologies Rating

★★★★★

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Sorry, Apologies, My Bad… There are myriad ways to express regret when one has stuffed up. These are some of the expressions I pondered as an audience member of Bondi Festival’s show Sincere Apologies. Billed as an interactive experience, I will admit I felt a small degree of trepidation in attending; however, curiosity got the better of me and I found myself perched on a fold out chair on a very chilly July evening in the Seagull Room at Bondi Pavilion. The circular arrangement of chairs around strategically placed microphones created an Alcoholics Anonymous-esque atmosphere, as if we were all there to lay bare our deepest regrets.

After a delayed start, the essence of the show started to make sense. Like children at a birthday party, a brown envelope was passed around from chair to chair. When the music stopped, an audience member read aloud instructions to everyone present. Fifty envelopes were to be distributed among the audience. Unfortunately on the night I attended, the audience was quite small. This meant we doubled (or tripled) up on envelopes. This is a show that definitely works more effectively with a full audience.

Based on an original concept by Roslyn Oades and David Williams, the show’s writers Dan Koop, Jamie Lewis and David Williams, have created what proves to be an incredibly reflective and enriching experience. Within each envelope was an apology ranging from the very famous (does anyone remember Kanye West’s social media apology to Taylor Swift after his MTV awards rant?) through to the very personal (an excerpt from an email to Dan Koop’s mother apologising for his decision not to have children). Within the three envelopes I was assigned was an official apology from Eddie McGuire to Adam Goodes in 2013 when he compared the AFL player to ‘King Kong’; another featured part of the apology of a Japanese son apologising to Chinese people for his father’s war crimes. There were even stage directions to bow (deeply) after I recited the apology.

Themes of racism, environmental degradation and social justice run strongly throughout the apologies curated by Koop, Lewis and Williams for Sincere Apologies. At a time when deadly flash floods and heat waves seem to be fast becoming the norm, re-hearing apologies such as the one offered by the Exxon Valdez captain after the infamous 1989 oil spill was a reminder of how little we seem to have learnt from the past and perhaps, how little apologies mean when they are not made sincerely.

The culmination of the hour-long show proved to be quite moving; indeed, I would say even, disturbing. We are invited, through imaginary apologies, to speculate on the state of the world in fifty or even one hundred years time; a state that is pretty dystopian if we continue to live as negligently as we do now. I truly felt a sense of regret as I returned into the cold night, walking past the now dark Bondi Beach, that those imagined future scenarios may very well come true.

Sincere Apologies is a timely reminder that apologies matter and we must make them sincerely and genuinely, whether to those we love or to whole generations of people whose lives will never be the same. It is only when we are truly sorry that we can change the future.

To book tickets to Sincere Apologies, please visit https://www.bondifestival.com.au/event/sincere-apologies/.

Photographer: Mark Gambino

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An Unlikely Couple

12/07/202511/07/2025 Jenni Peters⭐

Waterloo Rating

★★★★★

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‘Waterloo’ is modern day theatre from clever performance artist, Bron Batten, a multi award-winning Australian performer, theatre-maker and producer, in collaboration with non-artists and audience members. (Outside Eye Direction by Gary Abrahams.)

From the people who created ‘Onstage Dating’, ‘Waterloo’ turns their observations inward, exposing us to Bron Batten’s ill-fated affair and deconstructing the ideological distance between right and left.

This unique show explores what happens when a self-confessed “lefty, Greens voting, almost vegan theatre artist” dates a right-wing, cigar smoking Margaret Thatcher-loving Tory soldier. Batten met this “2nd protagonist” when she was on an arts residency in Paris in 2015 – and he turned out to be a conservative, highly decorated, high-ranking UK military official. Clearly, they had different political views yet found an intense connection and their time together formed the core narrative of Waterloo.

Batten tells us this story as one would tell a friend about her unlikely romance, a couple obviously drawn to each other in ways just as unknown as the violence we bury our heads in the sand about daily. With her warmth, creativity and truthfulness, often heavy themes of love, war and politics prove easier to digest than they first sound.

Developed in Maubourguet France, with Vitalstatistix Incubator Residency in Adelaide, a creative residency at Brunswick Mechanic’s Institute, Melbourne, with an Arts House Development Award and North Melbourne Stalker Residency, and then at Melbourne Fringe in 2019, while still morphing, this edgy piece has won awards in Melbourne and Perth and won the Summerhall Edinburgh Fringe Touring Award, in 2019.

You’ll find Waterloo strangely entertaining and thought provoking. You’ll be thinking on it for days afterward, even questioning your usual beliefs. As the daughter of a Lieutenant Colonel, my beliefs seemed lonely in a room full of students and Arts workers, but Batten wrote her questions to the audience so well, I’m sure they were also surprised at some of the final audience views.

Batten said in a recent interview she “Hoped the work would provoke reflection and discussion amongst the audience and perhaps a healthy debate in the car on the way home.” I believe her hopes have become reality.

That’s the beauty of Waterloo. Moments of divisiveness lead to moments of poignant clarity, followed by moments of humanity and the realisation we are all connected and desire human connection.

This production is not only enjoyable, it’s important, giving those of us on both sides of politics a safe space to debate our differences, respectfully.

Bron’s work has toured throughout Australia, New Zealand, the USA, France, the UK, Germany, the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Romania and has been presented at festivals and venues including The Soho Theatre London, Summerhall Edinburgh, Komedia Brighton UK, The Prague Quadrennial, Performing Arts Festival Berlin, RISING, Darwin Festival, Brisbane Festival, Dark MOFO and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Founded in 1979, Theatre Works is an independent theatre group with a lot to say. Check it out. Waterloo plays at Theatre Works – 14 Acland Street, St Kilda – from 8th to 12th July, 2025.

To book tickets to Waterloo, please visit http://theatreworks.org.au/2025/waterloo.

Photographer: Lucy Parakhina

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Pursuing Pleasure

10/07/2025 Anastassia Gerakas🚀🎭🎬

Pursuing Pleasure Rating

★★★★★

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“Pleasure” is a concept humanity has pursued, defined, and debated for millennia—from Early Greek philosophers musings to Freud’s theories, from ancient Chinese philosophy to Egyptian mysticism.

In her deeply personal and compelling one-woman show, Pursuing Pleasure, opera singer Piera Dennerstein steps into this lineage of inquiry, offering her own story as both case study and celebration. Through an eclectic mix of musical selections—from Puccini to Cardi B—Dennerstein examines the rigid structures of her profession, the silencing of her voice, and the hard-won rediscovery of her personal joy.

The moment the audience enters the small, intimate theatre, they’re immersed in a world that feels equal parts boudoir and dreamscape. Soft pink lighting bathes the space; feathered chairs and velvet accents suggest sensuality and softness. A lone piano waits like a co-conspirator in the corner. The atmosphere is one of warmth and openness, setting the tone for the confessional yet theatrical journey ahead.

Dennerstein makes her entrance like a vision: glamorous, confident, and possessed of a voice that commands immediate attention. She opens with an aria from Carmen, a dramatic choice that immediately showcases her operatic prowess and establishes her as a powerful stage presence. Her voice—a heavy soprano—fills the room with depth and resonance, but it’s her storytelling that truly pulls us in.

As she begins to speak, Dennerstein draws back the velvet curtain on the world of opera, revealing a system that to outsiders can feel like an elegant but arcane secret society. With sharp wit and heartbreaking clarity, she explains how singers are typecast according to vocal “fach”—a system of classification that determines what roles a singer can audition for. It’s a rigid framework that values tradition above individuality, and Dennerstein invites us to see how such a system is also a gatekeeper of artistic expression. In this world, a single note sung incorrectly can mean losing a role; personal taste, emotional connection, or daring interpretation are often secondary to the mechanics of tone and volume.

Dennerstein’s own experience as a dramatic soprano—destined to sing the tragic, the regal, the doomed—becomes a metaphor for confinement. When she delivers a searing excerpt from Wagner, it’s clear she inhabits these roles with mastery. But when she speaks of her desire to sing something joyful, light, or flirtatious—and how the opera world deems these pleasures off-limits for her voice—we see the emotional cost of that confinement.

In the show’s second half, she shifts from analysis to revelation, sharing stories of rejection, emotional abuse, and the slow, courageous return to herself. Through pop music, humor, and fierce vulnerability, Dennerstein stages a rebellion against the rules she was trained to follow.

Pleasure is more than a performance—it’s a quiet revolution. In just an hour, we witness an artist stepping out of the roles the world assigned her and into the one she’s written for herself. By the end, Piera Dennerstein doesn’t just sing—she reclaims her voice. And that, in every sense, is a pleasure.

To book tickets to Pursuing Pleasure, please visit https://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au/pursuing-pleasure.

Photographer: Olivia Charalambous

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Loving The Alien

07/07/2025 Oscar Bray🌟🎭

Loving The Alien Rating

★★★★★

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David Bowie was an icon in every aspect of his art. Through music, shows and myriad personas, the iconic rockstar remained relevant for decades as an icon of glamorous, theatrical spectacle. The show Loving The Alien juxtaposes itself with this history, interweaving songs and anecdotes to tell a story not of Bowie The Rockstar, but of Bowie The Narrative. In the process, creator and performer Karlis Zaid aims to answer the deceptively simple question: who was David Bowie?

The show’s stripped-back aesthetic complements this quest well. It’s unusual for a show about one of the most ostentatious rockstars to ever live to take place in a black box with four smartly dressed performers, their instruments and some slightly more elaborate lighting design. This may explain why the audience seemed awkward at first, but Zaid and co-star Aurora Kurth did an excellent job at easing us gently into the show’s world. Their easy banter created a nerdy superfan vibe, and the vocal performances were dramatic while still feeling natural and fun. The cast’s passion was their greatest asset, there were more laughs and vocal reactions from the audience as the show went on and by the end, we were all out of our seats, clapping and singing to ‘Heroes’.

The songs themselves, performed by Andrew Patterson on keys and Aaron Syrjanen on guitar, are lovingly crafted arrangements that feel familiar and welcoming while still offering surprises. ‘Sound and Vision’ is retooled into a smooth ballad, ‘Changes’ and ‘Let’s Dance’ start softer and build to great climaxes, and ‘Fame’ and ‘Ashes To Ashes’ used beautiful harmonies to highlight how well Zaid and Kurth’s voices work together. They’re also placed very well throughout the runtime, not always chronologically but mirroring the stories told in between to create a subtle emotional arc. The last two songs in particular hit with a sombre tone that feels earned and cathartic. Nothing feels out of place, though with a repertoire as strong as Bowie’s it would be difficult to put a foot wrong.

The lack of visual references makes it clear that the show is for people who are already fans of David Bowie. We know the songs, and we may know some of the stories, so it’s up to Zaid and his team to put them in a new context. The story of Bowie’s life is told in quite broad sweeps and given the show’s theme of finding the man underneath the image, it may have been nice to examine and with more of Bowie’s personas – the only one who gets significant discussion is Ziggy Stardust. However, the show is clearly not trying to be a straight biography. When specific events are focused on, they’re often less known or more controversial details about Bowie’s life, such as an exploitative contract he was under or the role he may have played in the breakdown of his marriage to his first marriage. Due to its personal nature and willingness to explore all sides of Bowie’s narrative, the script steers clear of hagiography and ensures that most people will learn at least one new fact about their favourite rockstar.

Loving The Alien lives up to its name by inviting us into a heartfelt, thought-provoking dive into Bowie’s story. The love and care is clear in the music, performances and writing, and while it may not be the Bowie tribute you may expect, fans will find a lot of joy and pathos in it. Whoever Bowie was, as a person and performer, this show demonstrates why we still care, and why it will always be important to celebrate uniqueness and otherness wherever it flourishes.

To book tickets to Loving The Alien, please visit https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/event-archive/2025/contemporary-music/loving-the-alien.

Photographer: Angel Leggas

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