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.

Angela's Kitchen

An excellent performance by Paul Capsis. Angela's Kitchen was written by Paul and associate writer Hilary Bell. It is directed by Julian Meyrick.
It is an autobiographical tale for Paul's memories of his Maltese Grandmother Angela. Angela emigrated to Australia with her five children just after the second World War. She built a new life in Surry Hills but her heart always remained in Malta. He recounts stories of his childhood and cleverly reenacting scenes around the kitchen table; playing various family characters and slipping in and out of Maltese.
The staging is simple but very effective. The stage revolves around Angela's Kitchen which is transformed by projected images of Malta and family members at different times in Angela's and Paul's lives.
The whole performance is very moving and informative. Paul managed to keep the audience captivated in this intimate performance.