Category: B Sharp

  Focus Theatre in association with B sharp present BENT by Martin Sherman. The theme of the 2010 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is The History of the World. BENT in my estimation, along with Mart Crowley’s THE BOYS IN THE BAND and Tony Kushner’s ANGELS IN AMERICA are the three most significant Gay themed plays of the last century. All three had an enormous impact on the history of the gay and lesbian communities and to the greater community. BENT first appeared off-Broadway in 1978. In 1979 a production, starring Ian McKellen and Tom Bell opened in London.…

Arts Radar in association with B Sharp presents A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM by William Shakespeare in the Belvoir St Downstairs Theatre. In his program notes Eamon Flack says he “suspects there’s a production of [A Midsummer Night’s Dream] in Sydney every few months”. It is in fact, for me, the fourth production that I have seen this year. In all my theatre going life it may be the Shakespearean play that I have seen most often. In the case of this production Mr Flack and his company of fellow artists set themselves “the task….. to try to shrink the play’s…

  Bareboards Productions in association with B Sharp presents the Australian Premiere of: BLISS, written by Olivier Choiniere and translated by Caryl Churchill, at the Downstairs Belvoir. BLISS written by a Quebecois, Olivier Choiniere, and translated by Caryl Churchill in 2008, is set in a supermarket (an accurately depressingly realistic design by Justin Nardella – other play works by this writer have been site specific [Mr Choiniere’s own company: L’Activite] and the Designer and Director (Shannon Murphy) seem to have taken their design inspiration from that fact – it is truly, wonderfully accurate!!!) and concerns mostly the fantasy of one…

    B Sharp presents SILVER by Matthew Whittet in Belvoir St Downstairs Theatre. What is an actor? A perennial question that is the most asked and the answer, fundamental, to the role of that artist: He /she, the actor, is a story teller. Whatever the medium: theatre, radio, film, television, the responsibility of the actor is tell the story. Using, what is always an innate gift and need, the actor employs all of his talents/skills to tell a story to his “tribe”. The history of the story teller is as ancient as the history of man. “The difference between…

  Arts Radar in association with B Sharp presents THOM PAIN (based on nothing) by Will Eno at the Downstairs Theatre at Belvoir Theatre. For Thom Pain, I read, initially Tom Paine. Tom (Thomas) Paine (1737-1809) agitator, activist involved in The American War of Independence and The French Revolution wrote among other things THE RIGHTS OF MAN (1791-92) and THE RIGHTS OF MAN, Part Two (1794). After falling foul of Robespierre, in France, he was rescued and returned to the USA in 1802, where he was ostracized as an atheist and free thinker and died (1809), alone and in poverty.…

Photo – Alice Parkinson and Conrad Coleby – Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk ARTS RADAR in association with B Sharp present the world premiere of LADY MACBETH OF MTSENSK by Robert Couch, adapted from the novella by Nickolai Leskov in the Downstairs Theatre. Robert Couch and Joseph Couch have taken the 1864 novella by Nikolai Leskov and have adapted and staged it for a 2009 audience. This is a famous story made more famous by the Shostakovitch Opera which we have seen in Sydney this year from the Australian Opera. This version is fairly truthful to the structure of the major…