Ms Julie Gabler: Trapped is a reimagining of Shakespeare’s Othello, set in a modern Australian household with a diverse cast of intense characters.
Handled with an unapologetic honesty, the two act play explores the power dynamic between an interracial, heterosexual couple, delving into unflinching portrayals of domestic abuse and generational racial trauma.
All the characters in the play are professional actors who structure their lives around their love of theatre. The tone of the play is instantly set in the first scene when, while rehearsing for an audition for Othello, Robert actually attempts to choke out his partner Julie, causing her to knee him in the groin to break free. Tensions rise rapidly when Julie receives that role of Desdemona but their friend Mal receives the role of Othello instead of Robert, causing Rob to spiral into a violent rage fuelled by jealousy and paranoia.
Julie, portrayed by Ruth Gilmour, brilliantly expresses the trials of a woman trapped in a bad situation, through sobbing, bribing and desperate pleas towards her partner. Her moments of silence and stillness where Julie has completely emotionally detached herself truly evokes the pain experienced by an unfortunately rising number of women in this country. Gilmour’s role is beautifully balanced by Lenny Cullen Gorman who brings a touch of lightheartedness to his scenes while still maintaining the importance of the messages he is portraying.
However the atmosphere of the entire production is dictated by Sermsah Bin Saad who plays Robert. His erratic, almost constant presence leaves audience members feeling edgy and unsafe, an experience that is amplified by the live soundscape being created in front of them by Cansu Ceren Gonen, Terry Novel and Zac Rose.
Set on a single minimalistic set, the brutal nature of this play and its unflinching portrayal of domestic abuse is sure to linger in the minds of audience members, long after the final curtain.
Stepping through a light haze in Chapel Off Chapel’s Loft, into the twilight world of The Forgotten Songbook instantly transports the audience to bygone era of music-making. The set, dressed simply but evocatively with a piano, a few furniture pieces and faded posters of long-forgotten musicals like Vienna Days and Girl Leaves Boy, conjures a smoky dive bar in the middle of nowhere and everywhere. It’s the perfect frame for a show that unearths the dazzling, almost unbelievable, fragments of composer Wilbur Weissman’s lost career.
What follows is a two-act whirlwind of longing, misfires and brilliance, pulled together by a creative team whose passion for Weissman’s story pulses through every beat.
Emerson Hurley’s compositions form the heartbeat of the show. Sitting at the piano with a relaxed command, Hurley not only plays with casual virtuosity but delivers a score that is tuneful, witty and remarkably affecting. His pastiche writing honours the Tin Pan Alley style while crafting songs that feel entirely fresh. “I’ll Never See Memphis Again” is one of the evening’s most poignant moments, unveiling emotional depths in both character and composition that stop time. Hurley may be at the beginning of his career, but The Forgotten Songbook suggests a voice with the sophistication of a modern-day Gershwin, or dare I say Weissman? Either way, he has the originality to stand on his own.
Co-writer and producer Dylan McBurney brings theatrical structure and dramaturgical clarity to this sometimes chaotic rollercoaster tale. The narrative, full of unexpected turns (a hippo attack??) never wavers in purpose. It’s comedic and poignant in equal measure, an impressive feat that speaks to the balance and restraint of McBurney’s work.
In his debut as director and choreographer, Mikey Halcrow crafts a staging full of flair and control. He uses stillness to great effect, allowing quieter moments to resonate and leans into the physicality of the performers to heighten the absurd and the powerful beats. The rapid pace never falters, but the show knows when to let a moment land and when to let the music speak for itself.
Karla Hillam gives a stellar performance. Channelling the style and swagger of a classic torch singer, she moves with elegance and sings with great versatility. Her character work is razor-sharp, shifting styles and personas with impressive precision. Her natural chemistry with co-star Jonathan Guthrie-Jones anchors the piece. Together, they deliver both belly laughs and broken hearts.
Guthrie-Jones, in turn, feels like a Hollywood leading man of yesteryear brought to life. His rich, beautifully controlled voice wraps itself around the material with ease and his performance is laced with charisma and genuine vulnerability.
Together, the cast form a dynamic double act (or trio including Hurley at the piano), effortlessly slipping between satire, drama and song. Their rendition of The House Un-American Activities Rag is a showstopper. It’s choreographically tight, musically rich and laugh-out-loud funny.
The Forgotten Songbook is more than a showcase. It is an excavation of talent, myth and memory. In a country where new musical theatre often struggles to find space, this piece deserves to travel far beyond its opening weekend. Don’t miss it and don’t miss seeing the work of any of this team in the future.
Bloody and haunting, Blood Wedding is a tale of star-crossed lovers, and the carnage that begets their ill-fated romance. This play is chilling, a glimpse into the isolation in the wake of war and how pain and jealousy can amalgamate into complete and total hatred.
Blood Wedding is an exceptionally well written story, riddled with characters each in a unique state of hurt, so much so that, despite the fore-shadowing of the play’s title, it’s still shocking and saddening to see the final confrontation play out. Director Deborah Leiser-Moore brings the script to life by highlighting this pain and isolation through an attention to motion and the physical division of the set. Key scenes take place without dialogue, with the character’s emotion expressed solely through the body. The play concludes with a bloody fight, played out as if in slow motion, each strike by the male leads aching as they fight for their final act of honour. Creative choices like this allowed the audience to hurt with these characters and crawl under their skin to feel their pain in these titular moments.
JMC presents some striking talent in this production, particularly Mia Connoli and Teresa Giansiracusa. I connected the most with these two characters and was blown away by how much each character wore their hearts on their sleeves. Mia Connoli as leonardo’s Wife has a beautiful voice, and her vocals added a beautiful haunt of mystery as the plot reveals itself. Teresa Giansiracusa as the Bride was heartbreaking as the lead, presenting a palpable inner conflict, especially during her monologue she performs in the bath, the morning of her wedding day. Dion Zapantis as Leonardo Felix was also fully committed, and brought an electric physicality to his performance.
My favourite part of the show was the soundscape. Aside from a few more upbeat songs breaking up the tragedy of the performance, the score was a series of evocative, echoing vocals that really dig into your chest. At the start of the wedding scene, these were incredibly powerful, especially watching as each actor flowed silently between the mixed emotions of the wedding. These vocals sprinkle through the show and despite the warm lighting, evoke a cold atmosphere and a fascinating juxtaposition.
I loved the staging choices; the elevation of Teresa Giansiracusa’s character at the beginning, high and unattainable, but feeling severed and alone. I loved how Mia Connoli’s character stayed predominately in the dark, shadowed beneath the platform suspending Giansiracusa and her baby, at the back in the deepest pocket of the stage, long forgotten by Leonardo Felix. Tess Lynch Steele as Mother manning the front corner of the stage with her brutal onion station, mourning the loss of her son and husband but expressing it only through a wish for further bloodshed. The set feels unfinished and raw, complimenting the story and working in favour of the show, allowing the performances and physicality to be what shines through.
Blood Wedding is a show that picks at a wound until it bleeds; a stubborn, yet brutal portrait of masculinity under the patriarchy and its collateral damage.
A hilarious spoof of Agatha Christie’s classic whodunits, written by Cenarth Fox and directed by David Dodd.
In the south-west of England soon after World War 1, the unknown writer, Agatha Crispie, pens mystery stories. In vain she longs for their publication. Agatha’s family despise her writing and ridicule her plots. Agatha gets a lucky break. A body is found in the library. The police arrive as does a grey-haired, cardigan-wearing spinster with a knack for solving crimes. Suddenly the pressure is too much. Agatha disappears. Then a dapper foreigner appears. He too has a knack for solving mysteries. Then a Scotland Yard detective makes a surprise entrance. There is a dead body, a suspect or three, amateur sleuths, red herrings and dithering cops. It’s just like the life and characters of another scribbler, the slightly better-known Agatha Christie. There are surprises, mystery, drama, humour and that infernal, eternal mousetrap!
Once, I had read the promo I could not possibly miss this one. I grew up with my Mum reading an Agatha Christie mystery every chance she got and our holiday house literally had an entire bookshelf dedicated to the famous writer – who is noted on the program tonight as only outsold by Shakespeare and the Bible! Whether or not that is true to date, I’m thinking to myself no wonder my Mum loved her mysteries. I have read over the years those same books and have eagerly seen all the related movies and series’, so I’m fairly familiar going into this play with knowledge of the murderous titles and there are many cleverly interwoven references to the books in this play, including that body in the library.
‘Agatha’ played by Catherine Christensen is wonderful. Yearning to become a published writer in this story, she must convince her husband ‘Archibald’ played strongly and funnily by Neil Barnett, to let her continue to work on her writing or she must find a way to be rid of him and his family so that she can write her mysteries in peace and without the constant put down of Neil’s mother, ‘Lavinia’ played sternly well by Kerry Hollier.
Equal in putting down Agatha is the daughter of Archibald and step-daughter of Agatha, ‘Elvira’ played by Bel Shields – she is so entertaining! Absolutely loved watching her either as the main stage character when she had the floor or on the side; her mannerisms, voice, and everything else about her was a spot on stuck up Daddy’s girl wanting only the best for herself in society. Will she get it? Her ‘divorce’ scene was impeccably delivered.
I highly praise Rob Coulson as ‘Dithering’. It was easy to see he’s been doing this acting thing for quite a while as soon as he entered the room and delved fully into his character; he was very enjoyable to watch and reminded me of my Pop.
The set is fantastic. You feel like you stepped into the pages where Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple might lay down their reasoning on the suspect murderer, but here we will see the excellent dramatization skills of Gilbert Gauci playing ‘Hercule Grey-Cells’ and Mandy Vicsai as ‘Mary Mead’. I found it hard to believe that Mandy is a newbie to the world of acting, she was perfect in her role, as was Gilbert with his magnifying glass out sleuthing to themed music whilst everyone else was out of the murder scene room.
Outstanding casting on all characters, but my favourite was undeniably ‘Pimms’ played by Annie Laurenson. Annie’s comical timing is excellent and she seemed to feed even more into her character off the audience reactions; her performance throughout the show just got better and better right to the end punchline (which is a hoot!).
If you love Agatha Christie, you MUST SEE this show.
Congratulations to the cast and the hard working production team because yes, it is definitely as you promote: a fast-paced mystery-comedy filled with witty dialogue and outrageous characters, a clever parody of Agatha Christie’s famous detectives— perfect for fans of classic whodunits, and certainly an experience of intrigue, humour, and theatrical fun!
Venue: Clayton Community Centre Theatrette 9-15 Cooke Street, Clayton Vic. This is a very comfortable small theatre so don’t worry where you sit, you can see great from all the seats and it has wheelchair access. There is heaps of parking and the welcoming Encore volunteers served us free tea, coffee, biscuits and a glass of sherry at interval.
Playing: 18 – 27 July 2025 with some sold out shows already!
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