sydney - Whats The Show

The Balloon Dog Bites

01/09/2025 Steve Willems🥈🦉🎭🎬

The Balloon Dog Bites Rating

★★★★★

Click if you liked this article

The Sad Clown trope has been done to death, so it’s very refreshing to get a new type of clown; the type that loves their craft but has to perform for the obnoxious children of a wealthy family while coming down from a wild night and sporting a queer sex injury. Yep. The Balloon Dog Bites is a one-and-a-bit man comedy at the Old Fitz Theatre that manages all kinds of wrong in all the right ways.

Paulie Accio loves being a clown, leaning in to his goofy, fun-loving nature it’s his calling in life. Having studied the craft in France, he now struggles to make a living and often has to resort to accepting children’s birthday parties. It’s a humiliating necessity for a serious artist. That’s where we find him today, reflecting on his training in France and his attempts at being a serious clown while dealing with bratty children and demanding corporate-world parents at a birthday party in Birchgrove. The children and adults alike constantly belittle his occupation, with escalating humiliations culminating in a grim tragedy and moment of cathartic revenge.

I say one-and-a-bit man because while written and performed as a solo act by Michael Louis Kennedy, he employs the use of five audience members to read out the parts of several children at the party, which was a fun and fresh way to expand the story and involve the audience.

While the show is short and sharp, coming in at fifty minutes, the pacing is spot on. The story takes it’s time and is never rushed, with plenty of jokes to keep you laughing. Kennedy has a great sense of timing, not only when he tells the jokes but also in telling the story as Paulie, often mimicking other characters as he brings the events to life. It often felt like a stand-up comedy act, with careful pauses to allow for laughter or dramatic effect.

But the show also has a serious side, exploring how traditional family structures and views on parenthood often disparages the lives of queer or childless people. Anyone outside of a traditional role in a heteronormalized nuclear family is questioned, mocked, and belittled, with children prioritised over Paulie’s dignity. These ideas were never forced or obvious, yet played a vital role as the thematic foundation.

I had a lot of fun, as did the rest of the audience, who couldn’t stop laughing until the end and then jumped to give Kennedy a standing ovation. Be careful though, this clown act is very much for adults only.

The Balloon Dog Bites is playing at the Old Fitz Theatre in Woolloomooloo, Sydney until the 5th of September.

To book tickets to The Balloon Dog Bites, please visit https://www.oldfitztheatre.com.au/the-balloon-dog-bites.

Photographer: Phil Erbacher

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Film Review: The Boy with Pink Trousers (2025 ST. ALi Italian Film Festival)

31/08/2025 Rob McKinnon🌟🎭

The Boy With Pink Trousers (Italian Film Festival) Rating

★★★★★

Click if you liked this article

Film Review: The Boy with Pink Trousers (2025 ST. ALi Italian Film Festival)

The Boy with Pink Trousers is based on the actual story of Andrea Spezzacatena, a fifteen-year-old boy from Rome who was severely cyberbullied and is loosely built on his mother’s, Teresa Manes, autobiographical novel, ‘Andrea: Oltre Il Pantalone Rosa’. The film is an engaging sensitive retelling of Andrea’s story, beautifully acted by the three young leads and is a cautionary tale in this age of social media obsession.

The film begins with Andrea recalling his birth and contemplating what would have happened in his life, shifting then to an older Andrea watching DVDs of him and his family in happy times and wondering when his parents’, Teresa (Claudia Pandolfi) and Tommaso (Corrado Fortuna), relationship began to fail. Moving then to teenaged Andrea (Samuele Carrino) practicing piano as Teresa receives a call from Andrea’s school informing her that he has won a scholarship because of his excellent academic achievement. To celebrate, they go to the funfair with Daniele (Pietro Serpi), Andrea's younger brother.

As the story progresses, Andrea auditions for a choir that will perform for the Pope where he becomes in awe of another student Christian (Andrea Arru) also auditioning for the choir. At the start of the eighth grade Christian, who is repeating a year, and Andrea become classmates. Andrea is befriended by fellow eight grader Sara (Sara Ciocca) after Andrea deliberately gets into trouble in class. Andrea becomes friends with Christian after Christian asks him to help him with his studies but Christian distances Andrea after Andrea is chosen to perform for the Pope, but Christian isn't.

After Andrea’s parents split, he confides in Christian who shares the contents of their discussion with the rest of the class. As Andrea and Sara move into High School, they discover that Christian, who was going to a different school, has joined their school and is in the same classes as them. Christian plots against Andrea which leads to calamitous bullying.

The Boy with Pink Trousers is director Margherita Ferri second full-length feature film and she and writer/producer, Roberto Proia, treat the subject matter delicately highlighting Andrea's journey in the film sympathetically. Martina Cocco’s cinematography is subtle and warm, adding depth and emotion to the film. The music by Francesco Cerasi sits well with the events in the plot. The main theme is "Canta ancora" performed by Arisa which won Best Original Song at the Nastro d’Argento.

The three young leads, Samuele Carrino, Sara Ciocca and Andrea Arru, deliver excellent performances, particularly Carrino who carries most of the screen time of the film with aplomb. They are superbly assisted by Claudia Pandolfi and Corrado Fortuna.

The Boy with Pink Trousers was the highest grossing Italian movie of 2024 for good reason, it is a compassionate portrayal of a sensitive topic featuring exceptional performances by the young cast that will bring a tear to your eye.

Reviewed by Rob McKinnon

Rating; 8 out of 10
Genre: Drama
YouTube trailer: The Boy with Pink Pants trailer I PÖFF28

To book tickets to The Boy With Pink Trousers (Italian Film Festival), please visit https://italianfilmfestival.com.au/films/iff25-the-boy-with-pink-trousers.

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Courage and Love in The Face of Jizo

25/08/202524/08/2025 Linda Lokhee🏆💎🔥🦉🎭

The Face of Jizo Rating

★★★★★

Click if you liked this article

Japanese playwright Hisashi Inoue’s script must make for some tender reading. Translated by his long-time friend, Australian Roger Pulvers, The Face of Jizo is brought to life onstage inside the intimate space of the Reginald Theatre by co-director and actor Shingo Usami and Mayu Iwasaki. Omusubi Production’s The Face of Jizo delicately unravels the ache in a heart, drawing the audience in for an emotional journey for a sensitive topic.

Set in the aftermath some three years after the dropping of the atomic bomb, the story opens to a severe thunderstorm. Lightning flashes and Mitsue (Iwasaki) umbrella in hand, enters her house, (a neat shack, designed with Japanese authenticity by Tobhiyah Stone Feller) with elevated tatami mats and a small, tidy kitchen. She is terrified. Calling for her father, “Daddy, I’m scared!” her father appears and there, Takezo (Usami) calms her, and we see the first glimpse into a beautiful father and daughter relationship. He tells her, “You got your reasons for being scared and you shouldn’t be ashamed of it. Nobody blames the victim of the bomb for getting shook up over something that flashes, even if it’s just an innocent little firefly.” I loved the significance of Takezo’s reference to a firefly; it beautifully captures how even something as small and delicate as a firefly can traumatise the innocence of the victims, making their pain all the more poignant and justified.

Mitsue’s job as a librarian brings her in contact with Kinoshita, (unseen) a man who collects items related to the atom bomb. Mitsue is in possession of some items, notably the face of Jizo, the guardian of children and travellers, which is half destroyed in war. A blooming relationship appears to be growing, but as the audience hears, Mitsue’s belief in finding true happiness for herself is shadowed with self-sabotage. Iwasaki brought the barbed sharpness of survivor’s guilt pain to the stage in a raw and genuine performance that brought tears to my eyes, and I know I was not the only one in the theatre who felt this deeply.

In this performance, on the 80-year anniversary in August 2025, it felt one message was clear; an act of inhumanity affects everyone - the innocents, for years to come and this unnatural act should never occur again. Despite the tears though, The Face of Jizo is a story of hope, love and courage. Usami’s portrayal of Takezo was captivating; his blending of a wise, paternal presence with a playful, larger-than-life humour added depth, warmth and levity to some scenes.

Composer Me-Lee Hay created a backdrop to Hiroshima in the late 1940’s with some beautiful music to accompany some scenes, as did Zachary Saric’s sound design throughout the play. The lighting by Max Cox captured the horror of the atomic bomb’s flashes, conveying an unspeakable event.

The vision of co-directors David Lynch and Shingo Usami for this timely production was outstanding, with their insight enhancing the emotional impact for which it was intended.
The Face of Jizo, a Japanese / Australian production in the Seymour Centre is theatre that tenderly addresses generational trauma as well as imparting courage and resilience.

The performance I attended on opening night, August 22, was a sold-out show that concluded with a well-deserved standing ovation. I highly recommend watching The Face of Jizo, as it is sure to continue moving audiences throughout the entire run.

Seymour Centre: Corner of City Road and Cleveland St, Chippendale
Season: 21 August – 6 September 2025
Time: 80 minutes, no interval
Tickets: www.seymourcentre.com/event/the-face-of-jizo

To book tickets to The Face of Jizo, please visit https://www.seymourcentre.com/event/the-face-of-jizo/.

Photographer: Kathy Luu

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

A Thoughtful, Entertaining, And Faithful Rendering Of A Complex Classic

25/08/202524/08/2025 Chantal Harrison Writer🥈🎭😂

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead - Hunter's Hill Theatre Rating

★★★★★

Click if you liked this article

Hunters Hill Theatre’s “Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead,” Tom Stoppard’s legendary absurdist tragicomedy, delivers a warm and lively take on the tale of two minor Hamlet; characters doomed by fate and their own obscurity. From the outset, the greeting from the Hunters Hill Theatre committee sets an inviting tone, matched by the cheerful note of live music wafting through the space as the audience finds their seats; a particularly thoughtful touch that eased the transition into what would be a lengthy but joyful theatrical experience.

Stoppard’s play pivots around Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two bewildered courtiers caught on the fringes of Hamlet’s story, who contort through existential wordplay, philosophical meanderings, and a growing awareness of their own lack of agency. The narrative, fragmented and surreal, weaves in and out of Hamlet, placing our protagonists in a landscape where meaning and momentum are perpetually just out of reach. While in theory this absurdist structure invites playful confusion, in practice it can be a genuine challenge for audience members to follow; something I certainly experienced at times.

The sequence of coin tosses, theatre-troupe hijinks, and discussions of fate and free will were made more powerful by the gorgeous old theatre style setting, the reds of the enticing set, the colourful costuming and light design and the interwoven 90s classics as the soundtrack.

Karen Pattinson’s Rosencrantz anchors the show with remarkable vitality, her presence is infectious, and she brings a buoyant, engaging quality to every scene. With a playful physicality, Pattinson makes superb use of the stage, drawing energy from even the most challenging passages and keeping the audience engaged. She manages the lightness and quick wit the role demands, creating a Rosencrantz who is both affable and deeply sympathetic, maintaining momentum even where Stoppard’s existential riddles might otherwise cause the pace to lag.

Jivan Drungrilas as Guildenstern plays the perfect foil to Pattinson’s cheer, rendering their character with brooding skepticism and philosophical weight. The dynamic between the two is the production’s heart; comic timing and tonal balance keep the core relationship feeling alive, dynamic, and frequently funny.

The supporting cast deserves credit for enlivening the margins with punch and humour, particularly during the play’s meta-theatrical moments and ensemble-driven scenes involving the Tragedians. The use of shadow puppetry adds a whimsical element. Their comic timing and character work bring welcome clarity and relief, heightening the absurdity while never losing the sense of fun.

Practical touches, such as the provision of cushions for the chairs, should absolutely be taken up, as the play’s length is both a testament to the ambition of the company and a point of practical consideration for audiences. These small gestures, along with the committee’s warm welcome, reflect the community ethos that makes local theatre so rewarding.

As with any opening night, there were some small hiccups and moments where the pace snagged slightly, but these did little to diminish the overall energy and connection of the cast. The enthusiasm onstage, particularly in the lead performances, quickly won over the audience and supported the more challenging elements of the text.

The direction of Tui Clark and the well-chosen cast really have taken this piece to the next level. The production offers a thoughtful, entertaining, and faithful rendering of a complex classic.

To book tickets to Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead - Hunter's Hill Theatre, please visit https://www.huntershilltheatre.com.au/.

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Spread the word on your favourite platform!

Subscribe to What's The Show

Connect Online