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Parramatta Girls

Riverside Productions present PARRAMATTA GIRLS by Alana Valentine in the Lennox Theatre at the Riverside Theatres, Parramatta. PARRAMATTA GIRLS is an Australian play written in 2007 by Alana Valentine, and first performed at the the Belvoir Theatre, directed by Wesley Enoch. The play concerns eight inmates returning to an Institution for a reunion after some forty years. That the Institution was the now infamous Girls Training Centre (GTS) at Parramatta, and that the play was a sensation of revelation in 2007 that was timely and important and necessary (check out my observations of an Australian cultural favourite, DIMBOOLA), despite the…

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Clybourne Park

The Ensemble Theatre present CLYBOURNE PARK by Bruce Norris at the Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli. Look, Edward Albee is my favourite living American writer, I want to see everything he has written. Now, next to him, Bruce Norris has become my next favourite, living American writer. More than Sam Shepard, David Mamet, Theresa Rebeck, Beth Henley, Suzan-Lori Parks. So do go to see this play at the Ensemble, if you can. I read, first, his family comedy, THE PAIN AND THE ITCH (2004) – flawed but arresting; then, PURPLE HEART (2002) – a brilliant play about the effect of war on…

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Dreams In White

Photo by Brett Boardman GRIFFIN THEATRE COMPANY presents the World Premiere of DREAMS IN WHITE by Duncan Graham at the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross. DREAMS IN WHITE by Duncan Graham is directed confidently by Tanya Goldberg. Her cast comprising Lucy Bell, Mandy McElhinney, Andrew McFarlane, Steve Rodgers in multiple roles and Sara West in a solo requirement, as the young daughter, give performances of great commitment and skill, switching from one persona to another without hesitation, from demand to demand made by the writing. The Design by Teresa Negroponte, of a charcoal grey floor and walls with white opaque…

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The Story of Mary McLane by Herself

  Griffin Theatre Company, in association with Malthouse Theatre, Merrigong Theatre Company and Performing Lines, present Ride On Theatre’s THE STORY OF MARY MACLANE BY HERSELF by Bojana Novakovic with Tim Rogers, after the writings of Mary Maclane at the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross. RIDE ON THEATRE is a company co-founded by Bojana Novakovic and Tanya Goldberg. The work that the company has presented over the past few years has mostly been curated from interesting international writers (WAY TO HEAVEN, AN OAK TREE, DEBRIS, FAMILY STORIES etc), engaged in highly important social and historical issues. Challenging and worldy in…

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Way to Heaven

    RIDE ON and GRIFFIN INDEPENDENT presents WAY TO HEAVEN by Juan Mayorga, translated by David Johnston at the SBW Stables Theatre, Kings Cross. WAY TO HEAVEN introduces the Sydney audience to an award winning Spanish contemporary playwright, Juan Mayorga. It is an interesting introduction and one that raises my curiosity about his other work. This is a good reason to go to the theatre to meet this mind. Another good reason to go is to catch a performance by an emerging young artist, Nathan Lovejoy that is fascinating and seductive to behold. This play (translated by David Johnston)…

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Women in Theatre

From the moderator: “There has been a recent explosion in the blogosphere in response to Company B’s 2010 season launch and the lack of women represented as writers and directors… Joanna Erskine – Dear Company B… Sydney Arts Journo – Where are the women? 7-on Playwrights – What is going on here? Laura Scrivano – Female Writers and Directors As a response, here is an excerpt from Kevin’s review of UNDER ICE which was posted a week before the event…”Just a note. This is the second work by Kellie Mackereth I have seen this year. Both have been highly satisfying.…

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