Year: 2017

Photo by Rupert Reid Outhouse Theatre Co presents, BU21, by Stuart Slade, at the Old 505, Eliza St. Newtown, 9 February – 25 February. BU21 is a play by British writer, Stuart Slade, first produced in March, 2016, in Bristol and then in London, in February, 2017. It concerns the downing, the shooting down of a plane, BU21, by a rocket missile, over the suburbs of London – into posh Fulham. We meet six survivors of this act of terrorism who appear on stage and welcome us and directly contact us – no fourth wall here – talking eye-to-eye to…

This is the third year of The Lysicrates Prize for playwriting. Two philanthropists, husband and wife. John and Patricia Azarias, founded The Lysicrates Foundation “with the aims to encourage and promote Australian creativity, particularly in playwriting; to help restore the beautiful Lyscicrates Monument in Sydney’s Royal Botanic Garden; and to foster an appreciation of both Australian history and our living heritage from classical Greece. …” To this end the Griffin Theatre has been ‘recruited’ to assist in the organisation of the playwriting objective. An invitation was sent out to established writers to submit a first act of a play that…

Photo by Tracey Schramm ATYP (Australian Theatre for Young People) present, INTERSECTION – a collection of short scenes/monologue by 10 young writers in the ATYP Theatre, Wharf 4. Walsh Bay. 1st February – 18th February. INTERSECTION is a program from 10 playwrights: Peter Beaglehole, Angela Collins, Thomas De Angelis, Izzy McDonald, Charles O’Grady, Suzannah Kennett Lister, Zoe Ridgeway, Jordan Shea, Lewis Treston and Honor Webster-Mannison. 19 actors under the Direction of Katrina Douglas tackle seven duologues, one trio and two monologues. The material is mostly dealing with the journey of adolescence in this decade of the twenty-first century. Ms Douglas…

Photo by Photo Bob Seary New Theatre presents, THE LITTLE DOG LAUGHED, by Douglas Carter Beane, at the New Theatre, King St, Newtown. 7 February – 4 March. THE LITTLE DOG LAUGHED, by American writer, Douglas Carter Beane, has had a previous outing at the Ensemble Theatre in 2009. The play had been nominated in 2006 for a Tony Award, in New York, and, I, based on the Ensemble production that I saw, could not understand why. It appeared to be one of those New Yorkie glib ‘homosexual’ plays about the cliche shallowness of being ‘gay’ and of the cliched ugly…

Opera Australia presents, LA TRAVIATA, an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, Libretto by Francesco Maria Plave, in the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House. Selected dates between 3 February – 1 April. LA TRAVIATA, was first performed in March, 1853. Verdi first saw the play adaptation, by Alexandre Dumas, fils, of his novel, THE LADY OF THE CAMELLIAS, in Paris and was inspired to write an opera on these themes – he wrote the score in just under a month – a wonder. Violetta, a demi-mondaine, renounces her life of pleasure for the sake of Alfredo; but is…

Griffin Theatre Company presents A STRATEGIC PLAN, by Ross Mueller, in the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross, 27 January – 11 March. A STRATEGIC PLAN is a new Australian play by Ross Mueller. Andrew (Justin Smith) is a rock ‘muso’ working in the industry for hire – session guitar etc: a gig with Powderfinger, for god’s sake! But he can’t play live any more: tinnitus, migraine… a health spiral is enveloping him. The art/craft of his passion can’t cover his financial responsibilities, and he wants to marry, so he applies and is recruited to take on a full time job…