Review originally posted at www.suzygoessee.com
Venue: Wharf 1 Sydney Theatre Company (Walsh Bay NSW), Jan 10 – Mar 22, 2014
Playwright: David Williamson
Director: Andrew Upton
Actors: Alison Whyte, Bryan Brown, Harriet Dyer, Russell Kiefel, Emily Russell, Andrew Tighe, Sara West
Theatre review
David Williamson’s 1979 play about a Melbourne couple moving up north, finds new life with the Sydney Theatre Company. Andrew Upton once again focuses attention on people and stories, and keeps visual design to a minimum. Set and props are rendered virtually invisible, except for an effective three tiered curved stage reminiscent of Australian landscapes. Upton’s direction brings out the realism of relationships and characters, creating everyday personalities that we are able to identify and relate to easily. There is a tendency for Williamson’s concepts to appear overly mundane as a result of Upton’s minimalist vision, but the production is kept buoyant by a healthy dose of humour that thrives in the midst of its pervasive simplicity.
Bryan Brown is miscast as the elderly Frank. Brown is charming, handsome and carries an air of magnificence that is completely at odds with the story about a sick man at the end of his days. We love his performance, which is always funny and sometimes poignant, and we understand everything his character goes through, but ultimately Brown’s celebrity gets in the way of the depiction of a regular old “cobber” we should feel sorry for.
Alison Whyte plays Frances with a lovely balance of strength and gentility, and while her role makes life choices that might not be entirely clear, the actor manages enough conviction and solidness to sell us her story. Noteworthy in the support cast include Harriet Dyer who does not miss any opportunity for comedy, and Andrew Tighe who makes good use of his physicality and costumes to carve out a very memorable character. Tighe brings authenticity and lightness to the production, and we anticipate his every appearance.
The relevance of Travelling North‘s staging today is not immediately relevant. Its themes of family, marriage, ageing, and seachanges unify many of our lives, but this 35 year-old play struggles to make a fresh statement about the Australian experience. It does, however, showcase some of our idiosyncrasies as a people, and is an occasion for us to excel at quite a bit of self-deprecating humour.
www.sydneytheatre.com.au
Showing posts with label Sydney Theatre Company. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sydney Theatre Company. Show all posts
Saturday, 15 March 2014
Noises Off - Review
Venue: Sydney Opera House (Sydney NSW), Feb 17 – Apr 5, 2014
Playwright: Michael Frayn
Director: Jonathan Biggins
Actors: Alan Dukes, Lindsay Farris, Marcus Graham, Ron Haddrick, Danielle King, Genevieve Lemon, Tracy Mann, Josh McConville, Ash Ricardo
Theatre review
Sydney Theatre Company’s new production of the now classic farce, Noises Off, is comedy at its broadest. This comedy of errors is not sophisticated in concept but its execution under the directorship of Jonathan Biggins is highly accomplished and outlandishly dynamic. From men falling off staircases to women sitting on sardines, and girls in gartered lingerie to boys in bell bottoms and mullet hair cuts, Biggins approaches Frayn’s 1982 work with the most basic of motivations. He wants to make us laugh, and he is determined to pull out all the stops to make it happen.
The cast Biggins has assembled shares his vision. They show no qualms in playing for laughs at every available opportunity, which means that not all characters are clearly defined, and some plot lines get lost in all the mayhem, but the entertainment value of their show is guaranteed. Josh McConville as Roger/Garry impresses with his athletic agility and the most exaggerated physical gags in the production. The volume of his performance sets the standard for how extravagant the actors can go on that stage.
Tracy Mann plays Flavia/Belinda with more subtlety, but her use of voice is strongest in the cast. The excessively, and comically, stagey English accent from the era not only assists with a more distinct characterisation, its overt articulation actually provides clarity to the many twists and turns that occur in the busy story. Ash Ricardo as the Vicki/Brooke “bimbo” characters triumphs in spite of the restrictive and narrow scope given. Her energetic interpretation brings a fresh edginess, and the running joke about her contact lens is a big crowd pleaser. Marcus Graham, usually known for dramatically serious roles, is surprisingly effective as Lloyd. Like the rest of the cast, his enjoyment of the show is genuine, and infectious.
Laughter is the best medicine. Theatre goers can often be an uptight bunch. Jonathan Biggins’ Noises Off forces us to open up and it speaks to a different part of our minds. Like the brilliant extended section in Act 2 where virtually no words are spoken, but the biggest laughs are heard, our senses are kept busy. We work overtime to keep up, not with lines and ideas, but by observing all the funny unfold and responding with the thoroughly visceral, and biological, guttural guffaws from deep within… that space which is too often hidden away from the light of day.
www.sydneytheatre.com.au
Friday, 5 October 2012
Call for entries – The 2012 Patrick White Playwrights’ Award and Fellowship
Sydney
Theatre Company is inviting applications from Australia’s talented playwrights
for the 2012 Patrick White Playwrights’ Award and Patrick White
Playwrights’ Fellowship. The prizes are designed to benefit both emerging
and established writers and have a total prize pool of $32,500.
The
Patrick White Playwrights’ Award offers
a cash prize of $7,500 for a full-length unproduced play of any genre written
by an Australian playwright over 18 years of age. The readers and judges
assessing the scripts seek a work that is original and ambitious with great
potential for staging.
The
Patrick White Playwrights’ Fellowship is
a career advancement opportunity for an established Australian playwright whose
work has been produced professionally in Australia within the last four years.
The winning playwright receives a $12,500 prize in recognition of their body of
work and previous artistic achievements, as well as a commission from Sydney
Theatre Company, worth $12,500.
In
2010 STC increased its contribution to the development of Australian
playwriting with the introduction of the new Fellowship which recognises and
supports established Australian playwrights. The Fellowship runs in addition to
the Patrick White Playwrights’ Award, which has been an annual initiative of
the STC since 2000. The inaugural Fellow was Raimondo Cortese and in 2011
Patricia Cornelius won the prize. Both winners participated in a range of
activities at STC including running master classes and mentoring emerging
playwrights.
Previous
winners of the Patrick White Playwrights’ Award include Phillip Kavanagh
(2011), Melissa Bubnic (2010), Ian Wilding (2009), Nicki Bloom (2008), Angus
Cerini (2007) and Wesley Enoch (2005).
The
closing date for entries to both the Award and the Fellowship is Friday 9
November 2012. Winners will be announced at a special event as part of the
Sydney Writers’ Festival 2012 along with a reading of the Patrick White
Playwrights’ Award winning play.
Further
information about the Award and the Fellowship can be found at the STC website:
Friday, 21 September 2012
Water - Review
I saw Water last night and was quite blown away by it.
It is a difficult work to describe and you will have to see it to appreciate it's brilliance. It is a play about relationships. We are told at the start that Water is a social molecule and that to survive we need to be like water. As the play unfolds you realise that the characters are not like water and so their lives are just not working in a positive way. The characters are lost and unhappy and from that point of view the play is quite depressing. However, it is not the story however, that makes this play it is the actual production. It is very modern in that it uses many modern technologies like Skype, sound effects, computers and more. The sound artist is on stage throughout the performance and you see how the sounds are made like the squash ball being hit around the squash court. One of the actresses creates dripping water. The interaction between what is going on, sound wise and the actual performance of the play comes together to make this piece of work, the timing is superb.
The actors play multiple roles, I have seen performances where this has been an issue as the audience can become confused, not here. Even though there are no real costume changes are you well aware that they are playing a different role.
The funny thing is there is nothing remarkable about the story, it is very everyday. All of us will have experienced what the actors experience, apart from maybe actually diving. For example there is a scene at at an airport and it goes through everything even going through the scanners, the announcements etc The sound you hear when you put the key card into your hotel door, it makes it such as auditory performance.
This production really is thinking outside the box and is pushing theatre perhaps in a new direction. If you are an actor or director you should see this.
Water is a production by A Filter and Lyric Hammersmith Co-production in association with Warwick Arts Centre, England. It is created by Filter and David Farr. David Farr is also the director.
Water will close on the 23rd so do try to get to see it. It is playing at the Sydney Theatre.
It is a difficult work to describe and you will have to see it to appreciate it's brilliance. It is a play about relationships. We are told at the start that Water is a social molecule and that to survive we need to be like water. As the play unfolds you realise that the characters are not like water and so their lives are just not working in a positive way. The characters are lost and unhappy and from that point of view the play is quite depressing. However, it is not the story however, that makes this play it is the actual production. It is very modern in that it uses many modern technologies like Skype, sound effects, computers and more. The sound artist is on stage throughout the performance and you see how the sounds are made like the squash ball being hit around the squash court. One of the actresses creates dripping water. The interaction between what is going on, sound wise and the actual performance of the play comes together to make this piece of work, the timing is superb.
The actors play multiple roles, I have seen performances where this has been an issue as the audience can become confused, not here. Even though there are no real costume changes are you well aware that they are playing a different role.
The funny thing is there is nothing remarkable about the story, it is very everyday. All of us will have experienced what the actors experience, apart from maybe actually diving. For example there is a scene at at an airport and it goes through everything even going through the scanners, the announcements etc The sound you hear when you put the key card into your hotel door, it makes it such as auditory performance.
This production really is thinking outside the box and is pushing theatre perhaps in a new direction. If you are an actor or director you should see this.
Water is a production by A Filter and Lyric Hammersmith Co-production in association with Warwick Arts Centre, England. It is created by Filter and David Farr. David Farr is also the director.
Water will close on the 23rd so do try to get to see it. It is playing at the Sydney Theatre.
Monday, 26 September 2011
Sydney Theatre Companies 2012 Season
On Friday 23 September Sydney Theatre Company announced their 2012 season. Click on the title to take you straight there. Sign up for their subscription so you don't miss out.
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
The Threepenny Opera
 |
| Lucy Maunder and Eddie Perfect on stage at Sydney Theatre In Malthouse Theatre and Victorian Opera’s The Threepenny Opera © Lisa Tomasetti 2011 |
The Threepenny Opera - Sydney Theatre Company and Asteron present a Malthouse Melbourne and Victorian Opera production, 4-24 September 2011.
I had the pleasure of seeing this production on Saturday night. I was bowled over. It was a cross between Opera, Musical Hall and the Circus of Horrors.
This is set in Sydney which, with Underbelly and other beliefs and stories of the criminal side to Sydney, the mere mention of The Cross brings to mind the seedy and the whore houses and helps build the mood of the performance.
Saturday, 5 June 2010
11 and 12
Last night I was lucky enough to be present at the opening night of 11 and 12. I have read several reviews this morning and they tend to blab on about Peter Brook and what he did or didn't do with this play. But at the end of the day you want to know whether I would recommend you go and see it!
When I go to see a show of any sorts I like to go in cold, this way I have nothing influencing me about how I should or shouldn't feel. However, I would recommend that you read the story of Tierno Bokar first to give you some background. Peter Brooks has stripped the story to the bare bones and if you loose concentration for a second I think you could be completely lost. Everything is minimalistic the set, the cast and the costumes. This is not necessarily a bad thing; the set served it's purpose, it set the scene, as did the costumes. The cast on the whole played out the multiple characters well. The lack of french accents however did annoy me especially as one of the cast is French. Also, I thought that one of the scenes at the French Administration not true to the period, the way the French Administration slouched and stood with his hands in his pockets and the sudden use of Fuck. Pre WW2 for a person of prominence I doubt this would have been in character.
There was a good use of music (though please cut the singing)throughout the play which helped add to the atmosphere. It was performed live on stage by Toshi Tsuchitori who played an array of Japanese instruments, which I did think was a little odd when the story is set in Africa!
The story of Tierno Bokar by Marie-Helene Estienne is thought provoking. The effect the French had in Africa and the religious conflict. It was something I hadn't even thought of before and if nothing else I feel a little wiser.
I wouldn't say not to go and see it but if you are looking for a great wow factor, leaving you with the feeling of jumping for joy don't go. However, if you want to go away feeling calm and and slightly bemused then this is for you!
When I go to see a show of any sorts I like to go in cold, this way I have nothing influencing me about how I should or shouldn't feel. However, I would recommend that you read the story of Tierno Bokar first to give you some background. Peter Brooks has stripped the story to the bare bones and if you loose concentration for a second I think you could be completely lost. Everything is minimalistic the set, the cast and the costumes. This is not necessarily a bad thing; the set served it's purpose, it set the scene, as did the costumes. The cast on the whole played out the multiple characters well. The lack of french accents however did annoy me especially as one of the cast is French. Also, I thought that one of the scenes at the French Administration not true to the period, the way the French Administration slouched and stood with his hands in his pockets and the sudden use of Fuck. Pre WW2 for a person of prominence I doubt this would have been in character.
There was a good use of music (though please cut the singing)throughout the play which helped add to the atmosphere. It was performed live on stage by Toshi Tsuchitori who played an array of Japanese instruments, which I did think was a little odd when the story is set in Africa!
The story of Tierno Bokar by Marie-Helene Estienne is thought provoking. The effect the French had in Africa and the religious conflict. It was something I hadn't even thought of before and if nothing else I feel a little wiser.
I wouldn't say not to go and see it but if you are looking for a great wow factor, leaving you with the feeling of jumping for joy don't go. However, if you want to go away feeling calm and and slightly bemused then this is for you!
Wednesday, 26 May 2010
The 2009 Patrick White Playwrights' Award
Ian Wilding is the recipient of the 2009 Patrick White Playwrights’ Award for his play, Forever Seven. The winner was announced at Sydney Theatre Company ahead of a
rehearsed reading of the play in Wharf 2 on 22 May 2010 as part of the Sydney Writers’ Festival.
Set in the future, Forever Seven (which Wilding had originally titled More & More) is a darkly funny play which satirises the fetish of youth, the cult of beauty and the impact of the longevity business on a population very much in love with itself. In the disturbingly familiar world of the play, a medical procedure has been developed to freeze the aging process. The practice, which is referred to as ‘coding’, has divided the population into two: those who believe in aging gracefully versus those who are going to be forever young. Amid this climate of division and political unrest, a passionate romance develops between a young man and woman. Forever Seven depicts their struggle to remain connected in a society engulfed in civil unrest.
Describing winning the Award as “a really wonderful thing” Wilding said “that the Award exists at all has always given me great encouragement during the struggles with the blank page. To achieve recognition and reward in this fashion for something you already love to do is a rare privilege – and one that makes me ever more determined to demonstrate that I deserve it.”
The judges were Louise Fox (playwright), Clare Morgan (Arts Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald), Katherine Thomson (playwright) and Andrew Upton (Co Artistic Director, Sydney Theatre Company).
Andrew Upton congratulated all of the shortlisted entrants and, on behalf of the judges, said:
“We were delighted to find that the quality of the scripts was high again this year. Each of the four shortlisted plays are inventive and unique and represent the great gamut of work Australian playwrights are producing. The rich ideas of Ian Wilding’s ambitious play are expressed with clarity, wit, intelligence and a precise theatrical language.”
The $20,000 Award is an initiative of Sydney Theatre Company and The Sydney Morning
Herald established in 2000 in honour of Patrick White’s contribution to theatre and to foster the development of Australian playwrights. To date, 15 writers have shared in the Award from over 1600 entries. Previous winners include Nicki Bloom for Bloodwood, Angus Cerini for Wretch, Timothy Daly for The Man in the Attic, Patricia Cornelius for Do Not Go Gentle…, Wesley Enoch for The Story of the Miracle at Cookie’s Table and Stephen Carleton for Constance Drinkwater and the Final Days of Somerset.
Wilding is a previous recipient of the Patrick White Playwrights’ Award for his play Even Amongst Dogs in 2003.
His plays Below, Torrez, and October have been produced by Griffin Theatre Company in Sydney and The Carnivores and Torrez have been produced by Black Swan in Perth.
Forever Seven (More & More) was written as a commission for Bell Shakespeare Company
through their Mind’s Eye art form development program. In 2010 Griffin Theatre Company is producing Wilding’s latest play QUACK.
For further information:
Tim McKeough (02) 9250 1703 tmckeough@sydneytheatre.com.au or
Wesley Slattery (02) 9250 1705 wslattery@sydneytheatre.com.au
rehearsed reading of the play in Wharf 2 on 22 May 2010 as part of the Sydney Writers’ Festival.
Set in the future, Forever Seven (which Wilding had originally titled More & More) is a darkly funny play which satirises the fetish of youth, the cult of beauty and the impact of the longevity business on a population very much in love with itself. In the disturbingly familiar world of the play, a medical procedure has been developed to freeze the aging process. The practice, which is referred to as ‘coding’, has divided the population into two: those who believe in aging gracefully versus those who are going to be forever young. Amid this climate of division and political unrest, a passionate romance develops between a young man and woman. Forever Seven depicts their struggle to remain connected in a society engulfed in civil unrest.
Describing winning the Award as “a really wonderful thing” Wilding said “that the Award exists at all has always given me great encouragement during the struggles with the blank page. To achieve recognition and reward in this fashion for something you already love to do is a rare privilege – and one that makes me ever more determined to demonstrate that I deserve it.”
The judges were Louise Fox (playwright), Clare Morgan (Arts Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald), Katherine Thomson (playwright) and Andrew Upton (Co Artistic Director, Sydney Theatre Company).
Andrew Upton congratulated all of the shortlisted entrants and, on behalf of the judges, said:
“We were delighted to find that the quality of the scripts was high again this year. Each of the four shortlisted plays are inventive and unique and represent the great gamut of work Australian playwrights are producing. The rich ideas of Ian Wilding’s ambitious play are expressed with clarity, wit, intelligence and a precise theatrical language.”
The $20,000 Award is an initiative of Sydney Theatre Company and The Sydney Morning
Herald established in 2000 in honour of Patrick White’s contribution to theatre and to foster the development of Australian playwrights. To date, 15 writers have shared in the Award from over 1600 entries. Previous winners include Nicki Bloom for Bloodwood, Angus Cerini for Wretch, Timothy Daly for The Man in the Attic, Patricia Cornelius for Do Not Go Gentle…, Wesley Enoch for The Story of the Miracle at Cookie’s Table and Stephen Carleton for Constance Drinkwater and the Final Days of Somerset.
Wilding is a previous recipient of the Patrick White Playwrights’ Award for his play Even Amongst Dogs in 2003.
His plays Below, Torrez, and October have been produced by Griffin Theatre Company in Sydney and The Carnivores and Torrez have been produced by Black Swan in Perth.
Forever Seven (More & More) was written as a commission for Bell Shakespeare Company
through their Mind’s Eye art form development program. In 2010 Griffin Theatre Company is producing Wilding’s latest play QUACK.
For further information:
Tim McKeough (02) 9250 1703 tmckeough@sydneytheatre.com.au or
Wesley Slattery (02) 9250 1705 wslattery@sydneytheatre.com.au
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