Category: Alicia Clements

The Sydney Theatre Company and Commonwealth Bank present a Sydney Theatre Company and Melbourne Theatre Company production of THE FATHER, by Florian Zeller, translated by Christopher Hampton. August 24 – October 21. THE FATHER, is a play written in 2012, by French playwright and novelist, Florian Zeller. It won the Moliere Award for Best Play in 2016 and has had an international life of some reputation. It has been translated into English, by Christopher Hampton – his play, LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES (1985) being his best remembered work. From the Program notes from the Sydney Theatre Company (STC) the synopsis: Andre…

  Ensemble Theatre present the World Premiere of THE RASPUTIN AFFAIR, by Kate Mulvany, at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli. 1 April – 30 April. THE RASPUTIN AFFAIR is a new Australian play by Kate Mulvany. The play is concerned with the assassination, in December, 1916, of Rasputin, a Russian peasant, semi-literate monk and mystic, who exercised extraordinary power over the last of the ruling Romanoff family: Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra. There is a note in the program: Although this play is based on true people and events, some events and characters in this play have been fictionalised…

Photograph by Helen White Darlinghurst Theatre Co presents, REMEMBERING PIRATES, by Christopher Harley, in the Eternity Theatre, Burton St Darlinghurst, 16 September – 16 October. REMEMBERING PIRATES is a new work by Christopher Harley, who gave us BLOOD BANK at the Ensemble Theatre late last year. The ‘core’ of the dramatics of this new play is similar to the last one by Mr Harley. Two brothers: one of them lost (Michael), the other (John) subsequently traumatised. (In BLOOD BANK, it was Justin that was lost and Michael traumatised). In this instance we also have a sister, Wendy and the haunting playtime…

  Sydney Theatre Company presents Noel Coward’s HAY FEVER, in the Drama Theatre, at the Sydney Opera House, 11 April – 21 May, 2016. Noel Coward, at the age of 25, wrote and starred in THE VORTEX, opening in December in 1924, which settled into a long London run. Sheridan Morley tells us in his biography of Noel Coward, A TALENT TO AMUSE: On the principle that success breeds other successes, once THE VORTEX was an established hit both HAY FEVER and FALLEN ANGELS, which had previously been turned down by every management in London, went into rapid production; by…

Bell Shakespeare present HAMLET by William Shakespeare, in the Playhouse, at the Sydney Opera House, 27 October – 5 December. Belvoir Theatre gave Sydney its last Hamlet in Toby Schmitz, under the Direction of Simon Stone – 2013. Bell has given many Hamlets, the biggest offer being that of Brendan Cowell with Marion Potts steering the task, in a lavish production in the much larger Drama Theatre of the Sydney Opera House (SOH) – 2008. This production is another Bell Shakespeare offer with Josh McConville, directed by Damien Ryan, this being the Director, Mr Ryan’s second offer to Sydney, having…

Photography by Marnya Rothe The Seymour Centre and Sport For Jove present, EDWARD II written by Christopher Marlowe, in the Reginald Theatre, at the Seymour Centre. Christopher (Kit) Marlowe born in 1564, died in 1593. Queen Elizabeth I herself was said to have pronounced Christopher Marlowe’s death sentence (‘prosecute it to the full’) at court. He died from a puncture wound above the eye at the house of a widow in Deptford. The Queen’s Coroner attributed the killing to a quarrel over ‘the reckoning’, a bill for food and drink, but many have long suspected that the murder had other…