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S-27

Two Birds One Stone and Griffin Independent present S-27 by Sarah Grochala at the SBW Stables Theatre. “S-27 won the inaugural Amnesty International Protect The Human Playwriting Award and was first produced at London’s Fin borough Theatre in June 2009.” Sarah Grochala “draws on prison records and interviews with the handful of survivors of Cambodia’s infamous Toul Sleng prison” run by the Khmer Rouge. 1.5 million of that country’s citizens between 1975 and 1979 were murdered. Hem En, the staff photographer at the Tool Slang prison, has had his story told in a documentary, THE CONSCIENCE OF NHEM EN, nominated…

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How To Act Around Cops

  Darlinghurst Theatre Company & Shaman Productions present HOW TO ACT AROUND COPS by Logan Brown with Matthew Benjamin. Here we have another handsome looking production in a Sydney Theatre, The Darlinghurst Theatre. (See The Only Child; Gethsemane). Jessie Giraud has designed a Set in the black box of the theatre space, that is both aesthetically pleasing (particularly the curious wire sculpture that hangs on the upstage left hand corner) and eminently practical. A car!!- a car that has functional lighting, doors and steering wheel and coverts into other functions, eg a bed in a motel room – most ingenious.…

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Bad Jazz

  Darlinghurst Theatre Company & square the circle present BAD JAZZ by Robert Farquhar at the Darlinghurst Theatre Co. Robert Farquhar the writer of BAD JAZZ says he began with the title and then tried to find a play to fit it. On reading an article about a real actress and her explanation to her partner about the requirement of her, as an artist, to have a real act of fellatio with her fellow artist every night as part of her performance he had found an anchoring idea. (Real and Acting!!!!!! Where is the line? The dilemma of the actor…

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Baghdad Wedding

  Company B presents BAGHDAD WEDDING written by Hassan Abdulrazzak at the Belvoir St Theatre. BAGHDAD WEDING is Hassan Abdulrazzak’s first play and it was first performed at Soho Theatre, London, in June 2007. Mr Abdulrazzak holds a PhD in Molecular Biology and works as a postdoctoral researcher at Imperial College. He has, since this play, also worked for the Royal Court in translation of an Israeli play (603 by Imad Farajin) and is on attachment with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). I mention Mr Abdulrazzak’s background because part of the fascination of this text and production, for…

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pool (no water)

What a pleasure it is to go to the theatre and sit in a seat and have a wonderful piece of writing given to you as a reward for going. After the feebleness and the “slight” writing that we have recently been served up by The Sydney Theatre Company and other companies (notably, the Old Fitz this week: RADIO, the Upstairs Belvoir being a glorious exception: SCORCHED), it was a transcendent experience to be part of the Darlinghurst Theatre audience. This was not a chore of patience that one had to politely endure but an exciting, confronting and stimulating experience.…

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