matters of life: August 2012

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Review: Fame (Lilydale High School)

In the outskirts of Melbourne’s east, where the metropolitan train line comes to a halt, Lilydale High School’s 60-strong cast have been strutting the boards in the school’s annual musical production.

Fame, heavy on individual roles, tells the well-trodden school tale of wannabe stars. Highlights included the crowd-pleasing chorus number Fame, Can’t Keep it Cool featuring Year 10 student Sebastian Carr (Joe) who can really work a crowd, and the anguished performance of In L.A. by Year 8 student Jess Konic (Carmen Diaz). I also appreciated the singing contributions of Eden Burke (Serena), Jess Downing (Mabel) and the fancy-footed Riley Powers (Tyrone). Continue reading

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Review: Sweet Charity (Ringwood Secondary College)
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Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Review: Sweet Charity (Ringwood Secondary College)

You’ve got to love a show that inspires teenage boys to dance. And dancing is certainly a feature of Ringwood Secondary College’s Sweet Charity, from formal suits, hats and canes, to hippie groove-moves, and marching band. Not to take anything away from the girls, who sizzled in the dance hall scenes.

Wonderful characterisation and impressive solo singing by all today's confident leads (each lead has a double) were a definite highlight. Winning over a mainly primary-school audience is a big feather in their collective cap.

With the preview performance now behind them, the cast will no doubt settle even further into their roles, applying greater gravitas to their dialogue.

After interval The Rhythm of Life, the biggest and brightest chorus number, did not disappoint with dazzlingly groovy-baby costumes, inspired dance choreography and infectious energy. Other highlights included I Love to Cry at Weddings, and Big Spender. Continue reading

Watch the Production Camp 2012 trailer here.

Ticket bookings here.

Photographer: John Nichol

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Helpmann Award Nominations for 2012

Melbourne MC Bert LaBonte

Last night the 2012 Helpmann Award nominations were announced simultaneously in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney.

In Melbourne around 100 theatre industry bods gathered in the beautiful Amcor Lounge at Arts Centre Melbourne to hear the nominations read.

Music Theatre Royalty - Nancye Hayes

Winners will be announced at a glittering ceremony at the Sydney Opera House on Monday September 24th. The awards night will be televised on Foxtel the following evening.

For the full list of nominations and more photos of the announcements visit Stage Whispers here.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Review: Mademoiselle (Forty Five Downstairs)

Mademoiselle is a whirlwind of political incorrectness. Michael Dalley’s witty hour-long script had the packed audience in Flinders Lane laughing and gasping in its assault on the “lower middle-class”.

Michael Dalley and Paul McCarthy feature as two effeminate man-servants of a certain Mademoiselle, who get creative in her absence in “an orgy of ridicule” and “a litany of abuse”. The irony of their relentless and superior sneering is that it’s dished out at the expense of their own social class, even as they attempt to position themselves above it.

Irreverent songs linked by spoken segues, cover subjects including the secrets in people’s garbage, human faecal waste, debutante balls at suburban function centres, telling the truth, passive-aggressive Amway sellers, Sub-Continental call centre operators, “creative” name-spelling, and.…, well…, things I daren’t write here. Continue reading

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