Signorinella: Little Miss (Italian Film Festival) Rating
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When they began migrating to Australia pre-World War II, Italianâs were given plots of land in the harsh outback to call their own. From there, they worked hard to ensure the land would thrive, build their businesses, and their families. Even while they were labelled as a threat by Australians in 1939, they didnât let this stop them from building the best version of their lives.
âSignorella: Little Missâ explores how Italian women have contributed to the history of Australia, from fashion to politics, food to art, and almost everything in between. With feminism as the core theme, the interviewees are charming, lively women reminiscing on their stories in Australia, and showing a resilience that can only come from having to repeatedly explain to their friends and acquaintances that good food is so much more than just a Sunday roast of potatoes and carrots.
Through the documentary, we are treated to family pictures â some of which are brought to life, and animated to show smiling faces and happy interactions â showing the lives of the young Italians while they tell their stories. Some of these women were not allowed to leave Italy without first being married, and were married by proxy, with their husbands waiting patiently for them in Australia. We are treated to a beautiful story from one interviewee deciding to come to Australia after seeing a picture of her future husband, and creating a beautiful family together.
â⊠sometimes destiny takes you there whether we believe it or not.â
Some viewers will find it amusing that even then, through well-written letters and years-old photographs, men were catfishing women into marriage. So not many of these proxy weddings were meant to last.
We hear not only from Italian migrants, but also from politicians, activists, magazine editors, chefs, business owners, singers, and more. The women on the screen are inspiring, well spoken, and beautifully dressed. Some chose to speak in Italian, some in English, and some a little of both, but they all share the same passion for their heritage, and their homes.
The focus for the documentary is on how Italian women have been quiet, hard-working building blocks in Australia, but we canât ignore the stories of how they have been girl-bossing since they found their way to Australia. From keeping their families afloat while the men were taken away to internment camps, to finding themselves smack in the middle of the âmanâs worldâ and refusing to back down, these proud women are an inspiration to everyone.
Through the documentary we are told, and shown, the Italian outlook on life: Anything is possible. And these women prove that.
âLife is most beautiful when it is diverse.â Tina Arena.
When We Dead Awaken, by Henrik Ibsen, follows the story of Professor Arnold Rubek, his wife, Maia, and his original muse, Irene, as they tackle their relationships, nostalgia, and acceptance of life and death. Ibsen was known to work with self-analytical themes, and When We Dead Awaken is the perfect example; written to make you consider life from the perspective of others, be honest with yourself (and your potentially declining artistic inspiration), morality, and mortality.
True to the time this piece was written, the play has three acts and two intermissions, with the beginning of each act providing a new location, soundscape, and sometimes lighting, for the story.
We join the gravelly-voiced Rubek and his wife as they return to their home country, a lovely soundtrack of birdsong offsetting Frau Rubekâs obvious frustration as she attempts to gain her husbandâs attention. We learn the pair are staying at a Norwegian Spa and Mountain Resort, and Professor Rubek is enquiring after a woman in white being followed by a woman in black, whom he saw walking in the middle of the night.
This woman in white, we learn from the well-spoken Hotel Manager, is another guest from the hotel, but the woman is an enigma to the hotel manager. While the Professor is attempting to speak to the woman in white, his wife is enthralled by the life and stories of the loud, and sometimes not too subtly lewd, bear hunter. When the Professor finally has a chance to speak with the woman, it is revealed that the woman was the Professorâs first muse, the artwork of whom made him famous: Irene.
Irene has a voice of honey, but is not afraid to hold back and raise her voice to scold the Professor when it is needed. During her scenes we are witness to a woman with severe trauma and hysteria (which these days we would recognise as mental illness) doing her best to navigate her way through a life of pain, regret, and lost love, while battling her inner demons.
As the history between the Professor and Irene unfolds, there is a juxtaposition between them reminiscing on the past, and Maia being stubbornly set on future adventures with the bear hunter. The audience is gently rocked between past and present as our eyes ping pong between the characters on stage, glowing under the sunshine-like lights.
The only concern I found was that some of the more intense background sounds in Acts One and Three overwhelmed the voices of those speaking, but I am also aware this was probably done on purpose, because those sounds most certainly achieved their desired effects, and matching sound speaker volume with a human voice is a very fine line.
Each cast member melts into the persona of their character and bounces off their characterâs partner with ease, the emotions weaving off the stage being almost palpable. Boasting minimal sets, props, and lighting changes to keep the focus on the characters, the story unfolds gracefully and ends in a way which will keep you thinking about the characters on your drive home.
The director made a creative choice to focus on the relationships between the characters, and some of the charactersâ story arcs in Act three have been intentionally left out for the audienceâs interpretation. If you are familiar with the play, be sure to come prepared to experience a fresh perspective on the story; if you are unfamiliar, allow the characters to carry you through a past-and-present experience of human nature.
This is not your typical Jane Austen show. This is meta chaos.
Act I is what you would expect from anything attached to Jane Austen and the regency era; talks of marriage for both love and gain, a ball (complete with dance), proper introductions being made, and fast proposals. But what happens when the author inserts herself into the story and the characters rebel? Act II is a chaotic ride answering just that ⊠and then some.
Please note I am calling the actors and actresses âperformersâ to avoid any unintentional mis-gendering.
The theatre boasts 120 seats, and at the time of the show starting, I could only spot four empty seats in the U-shaped space. This meant there were plenty of people to distract a performer as they laughed at the well-timed, well-delivered jokes. But the performers were professional, and each of them lost within the scene, not appearing to ever notice the loud, or occasionally scattered, laughter.
The stage was deep, but it was not of a typical size or shape. Performers were sometimes standing less than a metre in front of the front row audience, providing an immersive experience for all involved. This U-shape was paired with a second-storey balcony stage, only a few metres deep and appearing as part of the stage structure if you didnât know any better. The few rows of stairs and the walkways surrounding the seating area were included as part of the stage a few times. Personally, I wish they couldâve had more opportunities from the script to use the walkways and stairs; the creative use elevated and enhanced the experience.
Being U-shaped was also a downfall for the performers. It can be challenging enough for a performer on stage not to turn their back on the audience, but in this instance, it often couldnât be helped. Parts of the audience missed out on the comical reactions, the subtle and not-so-subtle facial expressions, and even important prop sightings. It was infrequent, but some moments were stagnant, with performers seeming to forget half the audience was behind them (yes, this did happen on purpose a few times, and it was well blocked for those particular scenes), and I could see audience members straining to spot the speaker. The first interaction between the author, Laura, and our lead, Emma, was alive and energetic, covering the stage and including everyone around them. Understandably, thereâs only so much you can do with a space such as this one, and this was the only downfall of the performance that this author noticed. I feel it is important to note that even if the performerâs back was turned, at no point did I struggle to hear or understand what was being said; every performer had a clear voice and pronunciation, even if their characters ran their words together.
In saying that, the cast acted and reacted with and to one another spectacularly. If there were a crowd in the background they brought the foreground scene to life with murmurings, rustles, and reactions to the main speaker. Carefully choreographed scenes were executed so in sync that it seemed natural. They brought not only spoken comedy, but also a varying amount of slapstick and physical comedy to keep the audience on their metaphorical toes.
Helping to keep the audience on their toes were the set changes. While each set was minimalist, stagehands werenât the ones changing the sets; rather, the performers were. While this was done well, and background noise over the speakers guided the audience into a scene change, some scenes changed so rapidly that it took a moment to catch up. While this worked with the script, when you arenât expecting it to happen in this style, it can be jarring to begin with. The lighting is perfect for the story, and has few large changes, aside from some spotlights and some coloured choices in the second act, but does little to guide the audience through a set change. As an audience member, we must remember that while Jane Austen would never allow a well-bred member of society to carry their own chair, the meta version of these characters certainly donât mind.
The costumes were beautifully regency era, and aside from the Redcoats, each character was sporting different colours and accessories to stand out to the crowd. If you arenât familiar with the characters these costumes were incredibly helpful in keeping up with who was who. There were minimal costume changes, but the big ones that werenât pointed out by the performers felt like easter eggs for the audience ⊠one or two of the dresses even had pockets! The costumes represented the social standing of each character with elegance, tassels, careful embroidery, and well-chosen shoes.
As for the characters ⊠I am hesitant to say too much and risk ruining anything for the readers. Be prepared to laugh, gasp, sigh, and maybe get a little teary. See the Watson family, in real time, lose some, win some, become appalled, find love, and even lust. Observe the Osborne family derail themselves to become the more interesting, more fulfilling versions of themselves. See side characters take a stand to be more involved in the story, or demand they get to grow and learn their endings; watch a cad find his way in the world; find out that the Redcoats have names; and try to spot Nanny polishing silverware for almost an entire scene.
In summary, everything has been thought of to reflect the (multiple) existential crises happening before you. I found each performer to be captivating, without stealing the spotlight from other cast members â even with some of those spectacular sideburns. Act II has more modern vernacular and is slightly crude (there are content warnings in the programs you can purchase at the ticket booth), but is tastefully done, for the most part. This is meta, this is fourth wall breaking, this is not always polite society, but it is laughing at itself and having fun.
I will say, I feel that one content warning is missing: If you are a writer, be prepared to potentially feel personally victimised by some of Lauraâs lines about why writers write.
All in all, the performance begs you to find the answer to the question, âIs that very Jane Austen?â
Oz Comic-Con is not only for comic book fans (although the con does boast a comic book lounge, equipped with bean bags and comic books to borrow), but for fans of any following. As you walk around the showground, you may spot Deadpool and Wolverine hanging out, but you could run into John Wick, the Doctor and his TARDIS, Darth Vader or Captain Rex, Freddy Fazbear, Hatsune Miku, and countless others.
Thereâs a consistent buzz of excitement in the air while like-minded people meet others from within their fandoms during the community space meetups; exchanging fan theories, trading cards, and keyrings at the trading post; giving tips on how to improve your cosplay game at the workshop stage; and meeting the voice actors from popular shows such as âHazbin Hotelâ, âGenshin Impactâ, âFire Emblem Heroesâ, and more. If you ever get lost, the volunteers roaming the space are all very friendly and more than happy to help.
The big names (in alphabetical order) for Oz Comic-Con, with schedules for autographs, photo opportunities, meet and greets, and Q&Aâs, consisted of: Brandon Rogers (âHelluva Bossâ; âHazbin Hotel), Catherine Tate (âThe Catherine Tate Showâ; âDoctor Whoâ), Giancarlo Esposito (âBreaking Badâ; âThe Mandalorianâ), Laila Berzins (âGenshin Impactâ; âHunterXHunterâ), and Ratana (âGenshin Impactâ; âFire Emblemâ). The lines to meet these talented actors and voice actors were so thick, the tables for the talent were not visible, only their official Oz Comic-Con signs on the wall above their heads. Seating for the Q&Aâs filled rapidly for each new guest â if you wanted to see your favourite actor, you had to be sure to line up early!
Along the outskirts of Artists Alley, there is a Comic-Con store, for all your previous Comic-Con guestsâ autograph needs; a space for tabletop gaming, where a collection of games, including âCatanâ and âRummikubâ, are available to play with your friends; the Australian eSports League has a setup of PC and consoles to show off your skills; learn to play âMagic: The Gatheringâ trading card game with friends or strangers; and show off your dance moves on the Just Dance stage. The South Australian chapter of âGhostbustersâ can be found roaming, keeping everyone safe, while Daleks stand on guard next to the main stage, whether they were ready to pose with fans, or pose a threat, remained unclear.
Roaming Artists Alley, be sure to give yourself time to look at each booth, otherwise your neck may snap from trying to take in everything at once! The booths range in size, giving a marketplace, or bazaar-like, experience, with t-shirts, oversized biscuits, anime and manga collectables, Funko Pop Characters, local-made honey and mead (yes, at the same booth), handmade tankards and leather goods, framed insects, handmade jewellery, Melbourneâs Dr. Pickles tattoos, and even the ADF and Beyond Blue, talking to curious customers about how to join or volunteer with them.
The smaller booths consist of six rows of local artists showcasing their talents and merchandise on single tables â some with shelving, some with displays almost six feet high, and some with simple printouts â ranging from keychains to art posters to novels and much, much more. Artists were local, most being from Adelaide, but some hailed from interstate, excited to meet fans and introduce their work to new people. All the artists are more than excited to talk about their work, answering questions and having a casual conversation in general.
Kylie Chan, Queensland author of the âDark Heavensâ series, said she found herself excited to be meeting the next generation of fans. Owen Heitmann, Adelaide comic creator, explained that people come to cons to see and buy what they know, so the con provides an opportunity for local artists to expand their network, without having to rely on social media â a statement that both Keelan Ash of killustrate_illustrations and Lushie from Lushieâs Art both agreed with.
Oz Comic-Con is more than a home base for fans to emerge and converge, itâs an opportunity for local artists to show themselves to a wider audience, and itâs a fun, safe space for exhibitors, attendees, guests, and volunteers alike. Service pets are allowed, the spaces are wide enough for electric wheelchairs and scooters to roam freely (the throngs of people may be the largest obstacle), and the Code of Conduct means Oz Comic-Con protects those of all ages and dis/abilities.
Popular culture is alive, thriving, and ⊠popular! Donât miss out on a chance for those collectables, and a chance to meet like-minded fans.
To book tickets to Oz Comic-Con in your city, please check for dates and times @ https://ozcomiccon.com/.
