Floating World - Review

Reviewed by Nathan Finger and Sydney Abba
Since its first staging in 1974 John Romeril’s The Floating World, has been largely missing from our stages … until now. Sam Strong’s latest production has just opened at the Stables with the Griffin Theatre Company.

Set on a cruise ship in the 1970s, Les and Irene Harding are enjoying a long awaited vacation, and Les is availing himself of the opportunity by consuming more drinks than would be recommended. In this setting, the pair meets and mingles with other passengers and crew. From here, the play could be seen as a comedy, performing a sendup of such cruises, the people onboard and those that work there. However the play takes a dark turn. Les saw service during World War Two and spent time as a prisoner of war in a Japanese concentration camp. As the play progresses Les begins to have flashbacks to his harrowing experiences and they gradually begin to invade his reality.

The play makes an interesting analysis of a man who has been coping with his inner-demons. Les’ final monologue reveals the true extent of what he has experienced and the horror that he has tried to repress. It is a common story among soldiers: they are made to believe that they should be able to cope with any conditions, to endure and come through – it is what is meant to be a man and a soldier. But these horrors never truly leave; they are always lurking below.

The Floating World represents a fine piece of writing. Romeril has a keen grip on the uniquely Australian style of comedy, which he mixes well with the tragedy; likewise he successfully blends realism and surrealism, making the text rich, layered and engaging. At times the play may suffer from scenes being too long, particularly the closing of both Acts I and II, which continue for longer than necessary once their point is made. However, this is the only drawback from what is otherwise a brilliant piece.

To the actors: Peter Kowitz plays Les Harding, a difficult role, but one in which Kowitz is compelling as this lonely, isolated and suffering man. There is a beautiful weight to his performance – it is as if the world is truly on his shoulders. If anything is to be criticised it is his initial pacing and clarity during the earlier sections of the play. The audience needed more time to settle into his gruff, rather ocker Australian speech patterns. This aside however, Kowitz tackled the colossal monologue at the play’s conclusion with great success.

The supporting cast was just as strong. Justin Smith (as the boat’s comic) did a brilliant job with his intentionally bad jokes and was good fun to watch. Valerie Bader as Irene Harding, Les’ wife was hilarious and touching as a naïve woman in an unhappy marriage. Special mention must go to Justin Stewart Cotta as Harry/McLeod, a particular standout. Cotta is a talented performer with a commanding voice for stage. Cotta has great presence which gives him the freedom to convincingly intertwine his fragmented roles.

This is a fine show from a collection of talented artists and is well worth a look. The Floating World is playing with the Griffin Theatre Company until the 16th of November. For more information see their website: http://www.griffintheatre.com.au/

The Bull, The Moon and the Coronet of Stars

The Bull, The Moon and The Coronet of Stars is written by Van Badham, is it a world premiere presented by Griffin Theatre Company, HotHouse Theatre and Merrigong Theatre Company.

This is an amazing piece of writing and theatre. The play follows Marion's (Silvia Colloca) life as she falls in love with Michael (Matt Zeremes) the publications officer at the Ashmolean Museum. Of course he is married. However he falls for her too when she wear a certain blue dress to work. As there feelings for each other grows so does the number of strange happenings in the Museum, until one night they need to guard the museum together, thus The Bull appears. The scene when they are tied together with a piece of string and the whole theatre is plunged into pitch blackness was a brilliant idea. It immediately heightens the audiences awareness of their voices and you can only imagine what is happening as you can't even see the hand in front of your face.  Marion is ashamed and scorned and so runs away to a tourist Village to become the art teacher for elderly tourists at the resort.  At the resort apart from the elderly ladies is Mark (also Matt Zeremes) he is the sommelier and has an eye for the women of any age! Marion dismisses him and the more she does the more he tries to seduce her. Of course in the end she succumbs as they fall in love.  

It is very well written and flows though the scenes with ease. There is a lot of humour in the writing making it easy to enjoy. Silvia and Matt make a beautiful couple on stage, this was good casting. They brought strength as realism into their characters and really didn't skip a beat from the beginning until the end.

Th Bull, the Moon and the Coronet of Stars is playing at the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross. To book - www.griffintheatre.com.au

Photo: Brett Boardman

Dreams in White by Duncan Graham - Review

Andrew McFarlane and Sara West, picture Brett Boardman

Dreams in White is a world Première presented by the Griffin Theatre Company.  This production is a first for the Griffin Theatre Company as it marks the first writer/director collaboration, uniting the  work of Duncan Graham, with the direction of Tanya Goldberg (Way To Heaven, The Story of Mary MacLane by Herself, The Blind Date Project).
Dreams in White is a dramatic tale of deceit and murder. It is cleverly constructed using grapefruit as a metaphor for Michael Devines bitter/ sweet life; double life.  There are also similarities between Michael and his daughter Amy.  The play is quite sinister and it leaves you wondering what is the relationship between Father and Daughter and is the line between the two going to be crossed?
The play begins almost at the end of the story with Paula Anderson (Mandy McElhinney) and Gary Anderson (Steve Rodgers) trying to come to terms with what seems like an unwanted visitor, Ray Wimple (Andrew MacFarlane). Who Ray is and why they don't want to let him in, isn't clear until later in the play.   The next scene jumps back in time and you see Michael Devine (Andrew MacFarlane) in conversation over some revealing photos of his daughter, Amy Devine (Sara West), which he finds on his computer.  I did wonder about the language used in the Father/Daughter scenes.  She calls him a "Sick Fuck" and "Just Fucking shut up" they just seem to conflict with the obvious respect that she does hold for him.  He plays the concerned father, but what is really playing out in him mind, we never find out.  We then meet Anne Devine, (Lucy Bell) the devoted loving wife, who is preparing for a TV appearance regarding her husbands disappearance. We then cut back to Paula and Gary who are cleaning up after what you guess is a murder. Next, we are introduced to two new characters Julia White (Lucy Bell) and Gary Anderson (Steve Rodgers). They are going to be looking at property, through property developer, Michael Devine. As you will have already noticed the actors played more than one character which takes good directing and acting. The only issue I had with Julia and Gary was that I had no idea how they really fitted with the rest of the story. Their scenes didn't really add anything to play apart from the rather shocking moment when Gary has a break down and ends up semi nude in the middle of the show house.  Mandy McElhinney also plays the Psychiatrist that Anne visits to try to come to terms with what has happened.  There is a good mix of tension, despair, blame and distrust and Anne starts to talk about what has happened.  There are no costume changes in the production, so with the time changes and actors playing multiple characters, and one character with a double persona, it did get a bit confusing, however, if you kept in my mind that it will all become clear in the end it does!
This production will not be to everyones taste, there is cause language, semi nudity, masturbation, not forgetting the violent murder! However, the production was very well directed by Tanya Goldberg and the dialogue was skilfully written. The mobile phone plays a prominent role in this play and called for some very accurate timing.   It flowed well and the play had a good pace about it.  All in all I had  a very enjoyable 80 minutes, which kept me thinking and talking about it for quite some time afterwards.

Dreams in White
By Duncan Graham. SWB Stables Theatre, Sydney.
Tickets $32-$49. Bookings (02) 9361 3817. Until March 23.

Rust and Bone by Caleb Lewis

Sam Smith, Wade Briggs and Renato Musolino (credited to Bob Seary)

The first of this year's programme at the SBW Stables Theatre in Darlinghurst presented by Stories Like These and Giffin Independent.  It is a world premier taken from short stories by Craig Davidson.

Celeb Lewis brings three short stories alive, intertwining them on stage so the audience can see the development of all three, at the same time. This is not an easy thing to achieve, not only do you have to keep the thread of each tale alive but you have to make it clear enough to the audience so they don't get lost.

We meet three characters Ben (Wade Briggs), James (Renato Musolino) and Eddie (Sam Smith).  Each are battling their own demons. Ben has to come to terms with the leg he as lost, James with his infertility and dark love of dog fighting and Eddie a boxer with a guilty conscience. There is little story regarding each character but you learn about their ordeals, what they have been or are going through.  The acting was flawless, they kept up the pace and the timing was spot on. Corey McMahon the Director chose well. Not only did each actor have to play their individual characters but all the minor roles within each others stories; they were on stage the entire time. The directing and music was also excellent. The music was subtle and unobtrusive, some audience members probably wouldn't notice it was there but it was certainly adding to the atmosphere.


It is a tense play with some welcome lighthearted moments. It is very confronting particularly the dog scenes which were very well enacted; though no dogs were actually there you could image the sordid scene, the sweat and the blood.  As an audience member you wanted to sympathise with James but you know what he does, so feel torn. This really is true for all the characters, you want to like them but feel you shouldn't. The writing and dialogue flowed seamlessly up until the last act or phase when I did get lost, not between the stories but exactly what was happening particularly on the ice, I sort of got it at the end but it lacked the clarity of the rest of the play.

Having interview Corey the Director I know he enjoys contemporary plays and developing new ideas. This was so well directed I look forward to whatever he brings to the stage next.

Rust and Bone plays the the SBW Stables until 2 February, click here for more information

The Sea Project - Review

The Sea Project is written Elise Hearst and is playing at the SBW Stables Theatre until 29 September.  Elise was inspired by her Grandmother who came from Poland and the tales of escape she had encountered over the years. Elise says "It is just another boat story" but I thought it was much more than that.

It is the story of Eva, love an intrigue. Eva is washed ashore in a remote part of Australia. She is found by Bob who lives a very lonely existence, in his mothers old house.  He falls in love with Eva and she him. Eva can not remember much of her past. She has somehow lost a finger, she knows her name and how she likes her tea but that is all. Maciek then arrives also from Poland. He claims to know Eva, he has intimate knowledge of her past. Eva becomes torn between the past and the present.

Bob (Iain Sinclair) played a very believable, quite typical quiet Aussie bloke. A bit awkward around women, keeps himself to himself. Eva (Meredith Penman) was also very good. There were some lovely scenes with the two of them especially at the start of the play.  The set was very simple and the performance contain live music by the composer Tom Hogan, which went well with the production.

The Sea Project is not a play that will have you smiling from ear to ear with enjoyment, there are some funny moments and the theme of the play is very good. However, I did feel that it was lacking something, whether it was energy or contrast I am not sure, but certainly I felt that the performance dragged a bit in the second half.  But, as I have already said the concept was great and I certainly would have found it intriguing to know how Eva got to Australia. As with many boat people they have often come for somewhere most of us could not even begin to imagine.

GRIFFIN THEATRE COMPANY ANNOUNCES LEE LEWIS AS NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Griffin Theatre Company Chair Michael Bradley today announced that Lee Lewis has been appointed the company’s new Artistic Director, set to take over from Sam Strong on 1 January 2013.Lewis is currently Associate Director at Griffin and one of the country’s leading directors, having worked for numerous main stage companies, including Sydney Theatre Company (Honour, ZEBRA! and Love Lies Bleeding), Belvoir (That Face), Bell Shakespeare (Twelfth Night), and Griffin (Silent Disco, The Call and The Nightwatchman). She has also directed widely for independent theatre companies in Sydney.Griffin Chair Michael Bradley said “Lee Lewis is the perfect person to take over Griffin at this stage of its development. She has a deep personal passion for Griffin’s mission to be the voice and heart of Australian writing in the theatre. She is also a brilliant director and nurturer of new work. Griffin has enjoyed wonderful success in recent years and is rapidly becoming recognised as a critically important Australian cultural institution. Lee’s appointment marks the beginning of the next exciting phase for the company, its artists and its audience.”Lewis trained as an actor at Columbia University in the United States, working on Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, before returning to Australia to study directing at NIDA. She has been an outspoken advocate for increased cultural diversity on Australia’s main stages, and a leading voice for the representation of female directors and playwrights.Of her new appointment, Lewis said: “I am excited to champion the works of Australian writers on the Griffin stage, around the country and internationally so that the company is increasingly recognised for the vital work we are so passionately committed to: the development and staging of the best Australian stories.”The appointment comes at a time of great momentum for Griffin, with many shows in the last two years selling out, attracting both audience and critical acclaim. The company’s work has recently been nominated for four Helpmann Awards, including two for the 2012 Sydney Festival production of The Boys, and for Paul Capsis’ one-man show Angela’s Kitchen, currently on a national tour. Outgoing Artistic Director Sam Strong will be taking up a new position at Melbourne Theatre Company in the New Year and is thrilled to be handing over the reigns to his colleague. “Lee is one of the country’s finest directors, a passionate and persuasive advocate of new writing, and a person and artist of deep integrity. She has been a vital part of Griffin’s current success and she is ideally placed to lead the company into an even more exciting future” said Sam Strong.Response to the appointment from with the arts has been overwhelmingly positive. Sydney Theatre Company’s Co-Artistic Directors Andrew Upton and Cate Blanchett commented “It’s a wonderful appointment. Lee is a genuine developer of new work and a great collaborator. We look forward to continuing to work with her in her new role.” John Bell, Artistic Director of Bell Shakespeare and director of the first production ever to take place in Griffin’s SBW Stables Theatre in 1970, said “I am delighted to hear that Lee Lewis has been appointed Artistic Director of Griffin. For many years now she has been achieving wonderful theatre and is a great advocate of new writing. Lee’s enthusiasm, energy and freshness of approach will be a great asset to her new role.” Lewis’ most recent directing work includes A Hoax, currently playing at Griffin’s SBW Stables Theatre until Saturday 1 September, Highway of Lost Hearts for Darwin Festival, and School for Wives, currently touring the country for Bell Shakespeare. In 2013, Lewis will direct Rupert for Melbourne Theatre Company, and a new work for Griffin. The Griffin 2013 season will be announced on 3 September.

A Hoax - Review

Love it, love it, love it! I thoroughly enjoyed the opening night.  A Hoax is written by Rick Viede which won the 2011 Griffin Award.
 A Hoax is about an author Ant (Glen Hazeldine) who writes about a young Aboriginal girl called Currah (Shari Sebbens). The problem is that Currah is not really Currah. Ronnie (Sally McKenzie) a literary agent, who was once known to have the Midas touch, is keen to get back her former glory and when she meets Currah she sees gold. Ant is flung aside and Currah is suddenly the person everybody wants to meet.  There is another character Tyrelle (Charles Allen), as he says to Currah he is a "biracial homosexual from a working-class background". He finds comfort in Currah's story and is humbled by her strength so when he discovers the truth it is almost too much for him and you wonder, for a second, how far he will go.
The script and characters are amusing and sometimes laugh out loud.  It has many double standards for example; Ant says he has to sign the contract because Currah has been known to be exploited and when Tyrelle talks about hating the taxi drivers because they are "racist transphobic homophobic towel heads".  The theme of abuse is runs through the play on many levels; Currah was physically abused, Miri (Kurrah) abuses her relationship with Ant, they all abuse the trust of the public that the story is true, hence the title A Hoax.  The end of Act One has one of the funniest lines when Currah declare to an audience that "Life's like a big fucken dick. It's hard."  In some ways that sums up the whole play, life is hard and some people will do anything to get to the top.
All the actors performed brilliantly and I have to say my favourite character was Ronnie. Sally McKenzie seemed very at home playing the slightly drunk, has been, literary agent.
The director Lee Lewis did a great job putting this together is the confines of the SBW Stables Theatre.  The use of music and film added just the something extra every now and then. It was short and sweet, so gave an instant "wow that was cool"!

A Hoax is playing at the SBW Stables Theatre in Darlinghurst until 1 September.

Porn.Cake by Vanessa Bates - Review

Porn.Cake is currently play at the SBW Stables Theatre. It is a contemporary work by Vanessa Bates which premiered in Melbourne last year.
It is based around two couples, Ant and Annie and Bill and Bella, and cake. Both couples are middle aged and the play explores the misgivings and feelings you might have when you reach that time in your life. It is a little like a reunion, reminiscing over lost dreams.  We also hear how times have changed and how modern technology, namely the mobile phone, can interfere with married relationships if you let it.  The couples tell the story while eating large amounts of cake, which also leads to more discussions around modern living and food allergies. One of the funnier scenes was with Ben, he doesn't like olives and talked about when you don't like a food, everybody seems to make it their mission to make you like it, this is so true.
The staging and production was very good. Between each scene audio snippets were played from Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Gordan Ramsey and I am sure there were more. The strobe lighting scene was also effective and it wouldn't have been easy for the actors either.  The bringing on and off the cakes and making sure that stage was fairly clear was quite a feat and acting while eating so much cake would not have been easy, I was surprised that nobody choked.
The dialogue is very circular, in that the first couples scene and the second couples scene were almost identical with the dialogue repeated in most scenes after. This was the most bizarre part of the play and in some parts it seemed very surreal. I did think that it was all going to come together and we were going to find that all the odd dialogue was going to join together to make sense, but it didn't.
This production will make you laugh and you will probably wonder what the heck? You will either think is it great or a total waste of perfectly good cake. One thing I can guarantee you will be hungry for cake when you leave. However, I don't think the actors will be eating cake,  for several months after the close of Porn.Cake!

Click here from more information on Porn.Cake

Photo: Georgina Symes

GRIFFIN THEATRE COMPANY TO FAREWELL ARTISTIC DIRECTOR SAM STRONG

Griffin Theatre Company today announces the resignation of Artistic Director Sam Strong, who has accepted the role of Associate Artistic Director at Melbourne Theatre Company. Sam will program Griffin’s 2013 season, which is being announced on 3 September, and then finish up at the end of 2012.

On accepting Strong’s resignation, Griffin Theatre Company Chair Michael Bradley says, “Griffin’s loss is MTC’s gain. While we are very sad to be losing Sam, we are delighted he will be continuing to play a central role in shaping Australian theatre in his Melbourne home.

“Sam has delivered to Griffin everything we hoped and more. The company has enjoyed unprecedented critical success and audience growth, including several sold out productions. Griffin’s reach has continued to broaden with the introduction of innovative programs designed to further the company’s role as a nurturer of creative talent, and particularly new Australian writing which is of course our core. Taking a theatre company to new heights while remaining completely true to its ethos isn’t an easy task, but Sam has achieved that. He leaves Griffin positioned perfectly to continue its journey as Australia’s home of new theatrical writing and we are excited by the prospect of what lies ahead,” Bradley said.

Radio Interviews from The Hubbub

11 June On the Hubbub, Triple H 100.1 fm weekly show 5 - 7 pm

Deborah Bradshaw the Director of Not Quite Cabaret, find out why she created the show and what you can expect in Season Two which kicks off on 21 June at the Exchange Hotel Balmain.

Josef Ber actor in Porn Cake. What is Porn Cake? Find out, playing at the SBW Stables Theatre from 20 June.

The Story of Mary Maclane by Herself

The story of Mary Maclane by Herself is playing at the SBW Stables Theatre in Darlinghust.

This is a production is quite unique it takes the story from Mary MacLane's first book which was all about herself.  It is not an autobiography of Mary's  life but more of snippets and the mood of Mary MacLane.  You are drawn in by her egotistical rambling but at the same time she doesn't really care if you take note or not.

You don't have to know who Mary MacLane was to enjoy the show.  In the early 1900's she shocked populace with her first memoirs. They were honest, abrupt and 100,000 copies were sold in the first month.  She was considered wild and uncontrolled, a reputation she nurtured, she was openly bisexual as well as a vocal feminist.
This play is written by Bojana Novakovic with Tim Rogers writing the music.  It was a perfect combination. The play opens in a very theatrical way almost like a Circus, "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome!
Welcome to the 'Story of Mary MacLane by Herself', an event the likes of which you have never before happened upon! Literary sensation and columnist, writer and recluse, Mar MacLane is here with us tonight, appearing on stage of the very first time....."
All the time the double bass and violin are building the tension, it is very funny and put you in a good frame of mind to start the play.
Mary played by Bojana is captivating, you can't take your eyes off her. There are some great lines "I've given up alcohol as a means of trying to kill myself" and " Few things feel so cosmic as a cold boiled potato at midnight".  The portrayal is quite haunting with Mary's ramblings intertwined with songs and music.  Mary seems to have spent much of her life looking for fulfillment. She wants to marry the devil so conquer her, crush her, hurt her and consume her with love. She views herself as a liar and a gambler but overall you get the impression that she is overwhelming lonely, "kind, Devil, deliver me from Myself, of womankind and thirty one years, a philosopher, a liar, and a fool and unhappy and filled with hopeless despair.
Tim Rogers as well as writing the music plays the guitar and sings as a integral part of the show. As Tim and Bojana are both in the show you might think that it is self indulgent but it did not come across like that. The Stables Theatre was a perfect venue, it really made you feel part of the show, when they asked a question you wanted to answer. 
It is a production that will stay with you a while be prepared for 75 minutes of pure entertainment.

Interviews with Jane Winter and Kate Gaul

12 March on the Hubbub, Triple H 100.1fm we interviewed Jane Winter, the Princess of Sales. If you are in Sales you should listen to this.
Kate Gaul is the Director of The New Electric Ballroom playing at the SBW Stables in Darlinghurst.  There is more in the review further down but find out about the production direct from Kate.

(please note the link will become inactive in about 3 months time, call 02 99403649 if you would like to listen)

The Ugly One by Marius Von Mayenburg

The production brought to the stage by An Arts Radar and Griffin Independent it is a Sydney premiere. This is the last production for the year at the SBW Stables Theatre in Darlinghurst. It was a good play to finish this year, it is funny, thought provoking but above all entertaining.
It is a challenging play with actors playing more than one character, without leaving the stage. The only way you could tell was by the actors body language and acting ability. I know that some reviews had said this was confusing and I agree there were times when I couldn't quite tell who was who. I have to say it wasn't until half way through the play that I realised that the plastic surgeon and Lette's boss were two different people, however, this might not be the productions or Jo Turner's fault this could have been me just being dumb!
What is it about? It is a simple storyline. A guy, Lette (Eden Falk) can't go to a conference to present his invention because he is too ugly. The trouble is that he didn't realise he was ugly. He decides to have plastic surgery, which goes very well, too well as now all the women and men love him. The plastic surgeon is over the moon and creates more like him. So things all get a bit out of hand. Though the story is simple the underlying questions are clear, how much would you sacrifice?  And how as humans have forgotten what is important in life?  The play might make you think twice if you are considering plastic surgery.
Gig Clarke creates the surgery with just a microphone and his voice, this is very funny and makes you cringe at the same time. The scene when Lette's wife tells him that he is ugly is also very funny, but a little sad at the same time. So yes, there are quite a few emotions you go through with this play.
I am looking forward to interviewing Sarah Giles the Director on Monday on our radio show The Hubbub. The interview will be posted on this blog next week.
The show plays until 17 December, so if you want to escape the Christmas cheer head to laughter instead with The Ugly One.

The Brothers Size

The Brothers Size is playing at the SBW Stables Theatre until 16 April. It is written by Tarell Alvin McCraney, if you haven't heard of this writer before, well I think you will be hearing a lot more of him in the future. He has won a load of awards since he graduated from the Yale School of Drama's playwriting program in 2007.  This play is superbly written and is an Australian premier production.
The actual theme of this play makes it sound like it is going to be a bit depressing but there is quite a bit of comedy, music and just the sheer brilliance of it, when you leave the theatre you just go, wow that was fantastic!