Year: 2010

DISNEY and CAMERON MACKINTOSH present MARY POPPINS, based on the stories of P.L.Travers and the Walt Disney Film at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne. The Mary Poppins film was made in 1964.It appeared at the cusp of my entering the bigger world of university, when I became a super sophisticate (Oh, yeah- embarrassing to recall! Forgive me, friends?) The school holidays of my earlier life were filled with, usually, two movie going experiences: the latest Jerry Lewis film (CINDERFELLA, lives excruciatingly in my memory bank) and the Walt Disney latest: OLD YELLER and THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, two of my fondest memories.…

    Melbourne Theatre Company in association with Melbourne International Arts Festival presents LIFE WITHOUT ME by Daniel Keene in the Sumner Theatre, Melbourne. Being a Sydney-ite I have had a relatively limited experience of Daniel Keene’s work. However, the work, that I have seen, has always attracted my attention, and the reputation talked about in the program notes as ‘some sort of poet of the streets’ seems to be a good summary of my appreciation. With, the, generally, marginal characters that people his work, the poetry of his vison, expressed in his texts, is always subtle but beguiling. The…

NIDA presents MINCED, A DOUBLE BILL: BLESSED ARE THE WILD and TICK TACK BOOM in the NIDA Parade Studio. “MINCED is a new NIDA initiative for performing artists encouraging them to take risks with their chosen forms of expression.” Two recent graduates from the NIDA Directing Course, Paige Rattray and Nikola Amanovic (both 2009), auditioned a collective of performing artists across many skills, ages and backgrounds: actors, dancers, musicians. In the first piece by Ms Rattray some 26 artists volunteered their time and skills. Mr Amanovic involved some 12 performers. Enthusiasm galore. First, BLESSED ARE THE WILD. Ms Rattray inspired…

    Bell Shakespeare presents TWELFTH NIGHT by William Shakespeare in the Playhouse at the Sydney Opera House. TWELFTH NIGHT is the last of Shakespeare’s comedies and it precedes the appearance of HAMLET. In an essay by Stanley Wells on John Barton’s production of TWELFTH NIGHT – my first remembered experience of this play, a magical one at the old Theatre Royal, in tandem with Trevor Nunn’s THE WINTER’S TALE starring Judi Dench as Viola and Hermione/Perdita- (Manchester University press,1976): “HAMLET is one of the most controversial of Shakespeare’s plays. It has been endlessly discussed, and poses major interpretative problems.…

Sydney Opera House presents THE ANIMALS AND CHILDREN TOOK TO THE STREETS, Created by 1927 at the Studio Space, Sydney Opera House. 1927 are a British theatre company and they presented in 2008, BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA, also at the Studio. 1927 are a “group that concocts the most surreal of fairy tales, combining animation, cabaret, music hall song, dry humour and contemporary issues”. THE ANIMALS AND THE CHILDREN TOOK TO THE STREETS the latest work is performed by three performing artists: Suzanne Andrade, Esme Appleton and piano player, Lillian Henley. They act to musical accompaniment…

  Sydney Theatre Company and UBS Investment Bank present TRUE WEST by Sam Shepard at Wharf 1. First, my prejudices: Sam Shepard is one of three of the great living American playwrights, in my estimation. Edward Albee the greatest and David Mamet, the other member of the trinity. TRUE WEST(198O) by Sam Shepard follows the family sagas of CURSE OF THE STARVING CLASS (1976) and the Pulitzer prize winning BURIED CHILD (1979). It has been regarded as the final episode in a ‘family’ trilogy, although A LIE OF THE MIND (1987) seems, to me, a clincher to the Shepard family…