The Crucible - REVIEW - National Theatre at Home ****1/2 (4.5)

Written by Arthur Miller
Produced by National Theatre (2023)
Now streaming on National Theatre at Home
Reviewer: Kate Herbert
Stars: ★★★★½ (4.5)

This review is published exclusively on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 1 Nov 2025.

Erin-Doherty--Brendan-Cowell--Rachelle-Diedericks--Credit-Johan-Persson

Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is a disturbing, timeless and profoundly relevant play. Lyndsey Turner’s 2023 National Theatre production is gripping, intelligent and deeply unsettling.

 

Miller’s 1953 play, though set during the 1692 Salem witch trials, is an allegory for the anti-communist hysteria of McCarthyism in the 1950s. Its themes of fear, suspicion, and mob mentality still resonate alarmingly in today’s world of political polarisation and conspiracy-driven rhetoric.

 

A group of young girls, led by the sneering, manipulative Abigail Williams (Erin Doherty), are discovered dancing naked in the forest, summoning spirits. To deflect punishment, they accuse women—and eventually men—of witchcraft. Abigail’s motives turn personal when she targets Elizabeth Proctor (Eileen Walsh), wife of the man she desires, John Proctor (Brendan Cowell).

 

The town descends into chaos as hysteria grips the Puritan community. The religious, legal and governing bodies fuel the frenzy, condemning the innocent to hang. The escalating paranoia, wilful blindness, and pious cruelty are terrifying in their familiarity. One cannot help but see echoes of present-day America—the MAGA movement, the religious right, and the echo chambers of social media—where delusion and accusation override reason.

 

This is an exceptional ensemble. Brendan Cowell’s John Proctor is powerful, complex, and burdened by guilt over his affair with Abigail. His performance grows in stature as Proctor fights for truth and redemption. Erin Doherty is magnetic and menacing as Abigail, her false piety and vindictive passion chilling to watch. Eileen Walsh gives a tender, grounded portrayal of Elizabeth Proctor, her quiet dignity heartbreaking. Karl Johnson provides texture and humanity as the old farmer, Giles Corey, whose humour and integrity become casualties of the madness.

 

Es Devlin’s austere grey set, punctuated by muted colour and framed by Tim Lutkin’s shadowy lighting, conjures a world suffocated by fear and repression. Caroline Shaw’s eerie score heightens the tension, while Lyndsey Turner’s direction is taut, lucid, and unsparing.

 

Even knowing the tragic conclusion, we yearn for reason to prevail. But in Salem—as too often in our own world—the juggernaut of ignorance and injustice rolls on, destroying those brave enough to stand in its way.

 

Reviewed by Kate Herbert

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Erin+Doherty +cast- Image Credit-Johan+Persson

Cast

Brendan Cowell – John Proctor
Erin Doherty – Abigail Williams
Eileen Walsh – Elizabeth Proctor
Karl Johnson – Giles Corey
Fisayo Akinade – Reverend Marsh
Nick Fletcher – Reverend Parris
Rachelle Diedericks – Mary Warren
Matthew Marsh – Deputy Governor

Creative Team

Director – Lyndsey Turner
Set Designer – Es Devlin
Costume Designer – Catherine Fay
Lighting Designer – Tim Lutkin
Composer/Arranger – Caroline Shaw
Fight Director – Bret Yount

London Tide-REVIEW -National Theatre at Home - 26 Oct 2025 ***

 THEATRE ONLINE

Adapted by Ben Power from Charles Dickens’ novel Our Mutual Friend 

Songs by PJ Harvey & Ben Power 

National Theatre, 2023 

Viewed online via National Theatre at Home – 26 Oct 2025

Running Time: 3 hours 15 minutes (approx.) 

Streaming: National Theatre at Home 

Stars: ★★★ (3)

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 1 Nov 2025. KH

brandon-grace--jake-wood--ami-tredrea- image-marc-brenner

Ben Power’s London Tide, adapted from Charles Dickens’ Our Mutual Friend, is a sprawling and ambitious production that captures the atmosphere of smog-filled Victorian London but ultimately buckles under the weight of its own excess.

 

At a hefty three hours and 15mins, this is a marathon of a play. Around forty-five minutes could be trimmed without losing either plot or character development.

 

The story follows multiple threads exploring the lives of Londoners and their differing relationships to the River Thames: the impoverished underclass who rely on the river for survival, and the wealthy who live far from its fetid banks.

Condensing Dickens’ intricate narrative and his vast array of characters into one stage production is a formidable task. Power’s script strives to encompass too much, resorting to narration to explain plot points that could be shown more effectively through performance. The dialogue can be verbose, and as the play progresses, the tone edges toward melodrama.

 

The ensemble is committed and versatile. Bella Maclean brings vitality and wit to the ambitious Bella Wilfer, while Ami Tredrea lends quiet dignity and emotional depth to Lizzie Hexam.  Accolades must go to the petite and vivacious Ellie-May Sheridan who steals the stage when she appears as Jenny Wren, Peter Wight is a warm, generous Noddy Boffin, and Joe Armstrong exudes menace as the crooked Rogue Riderhood.

 

Ian Rickson’s direction is fluid and imaginative, and Bunny Christie’s sparse yet evocative design conjures the grimy, shadowed streets of 19th-century London. The river itself—through lighting, sound, and movement—emerges as a living, breathing presence: murky, dangerous, and unrelenting.

 

PJ Harvey’s songs, unfortunately, are the production’s weakest link. They neither illuminate the characters nor advance the story. Too many sound alike, many are sung in unison, and the limited harmonies expose the cast’s uneven vocal skills. As the production wears on, the arrival of another song becomes wearying.

 

London Tide is striking to look at and often beautifully performed, but it needs judicious editing of script and score to become a more cohesive and compelling work and to achieve the emotional clarity and narrative drive Dickens deserves. 

 

By Kate Herbert 

Bella-Maclean in London Tide-- image-marc-brenner

 

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Creative Team/Production Details

 

Writer / Adapter: Ben Power
Based on: Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens
Songs by: PJ Harvey & Ben Power
Director: Ian Rickson
Set & Costume Design: Bunny Christie
Lighting Design: Jack Knowles
Music Direction: Ian Ross
Sound Design: Tingying Dong & Christopher Shutt
Movement Direction: Anna Morrissey
Video Design: Hayley Egan
Fight Direction: Terry King
Casting Director: Bryony Jarvis-Taylor
Voice & Dialect Coach: Simon Money
Associate Set Designer: Verity Sadler
Staff Director: Yasmin Hafesji

 

Cast:

 

Brandon Grace as Charley Hexam,

Scott Karim as Bradley Headstone

Bella Maclean as Bella Wilfer

Tom Mothersdale as John Rokesmith,

Ami Tredrea as Lizzie Hexam

Peter Wight as Noddy Boffin

Beth Alsbury as Lavinia Wilfer, Joe Armstrong as Roger Riderhood, Crystal Condie as Miss Potterson, Laura Cubitt as Nancy, Miya James in the Ensemble, Stephen Kennedy as Reg Wilfer, Joshua Lacey as Inspector Bucket, Penny Layden as Mary Wilfer, Eric Mok as understudy Charlie Hexam, Liam Prince-Donnelly in the Ensemble, Georgia Silver as understudy Bella Wilfer, Ellie-May Sheridan as Jenny Wren, Jonathan Dryden Taylor as Mr Cleaver, John Vernon as understudy Reg Wilfer/Noddy Boffin/Mortimer Lightwood, Jamael Westman as Eugene Wrayburn, Jake Wood as Gaffer Hexam and Rufus Wright as Mortimer Lightwood.

 

 

KATE HERBERT Arts Weekly 3MBS Sat 18 OCTOBER 2025

In this radio review spot on 3MBS Arts Weekly on 18 Oct 2025, I talk about three shows with Nick Tolhurst and Phillipa Edwards:

 Rebecca, at MTC, based on Daphne Du Maurier’s novel;

 MJ the Musical, Melbourne production; and 

Jane Austen Improvised, by Impro Melbourne.

Jane Austen Improvised REVIEW 10 Oct 2025 ***

IMPROVISED THEATRE

By Impro Melbourne

Melbourne Fringe Festival 2025

At Impro Melbourne venue, 21-23 Stanley St West Melbourne until 19 Oct 2024

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Stars: 3***

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 18 Oct  2025. KH

Brenna Dixon & Adam Hembree in Wooings & Misdoings

 

Wooings and Misdoings might well be an unpublished novella by Jane Austen, but it is not. Rather, it is a fully improvised play in the style of Miss Austen, complete with shy ingenue, and her bolder, older sister, their mother ambitious for their them to make good marriages to wealthy and eligible suitors. Fortunately, said suitors are available in the environs of the coastal town of Bath, where the story takes place.

 

Although all the narrative and dialogue is completely improvised, and therefore unrehearsed, there is one scene that benefits from a little well-placed preparation prior to performance: a structured 19th century dance that allows couples to talk in snatches as the dance progresses.

 

The Misses Edwards, retiring and socially anxious Cassandra (Brenna Dixon) and her outgoing, supportive older sister, Abigail (Jess Lu), are the belles seeking partners.

 

Their ambitious mother (Jenny Lovell) smooths their path in society, while their gouty father secretes himself in his study until he is required for a merry carriage chase.

 

Captain Campbell (Adam MacKenzie), a sea-faring chap, loses out to the taciturn Mr Preston (played by the honey-tongued, Adam Hembree), who is erudite but unversed in the ways of love.

 

Wealthy Mr. Brunswick (Katherine Weaver) seems untouched by love or lust, until he meets feisty Abigail.

 

Yes, this entire narrative and all the characters and dialogue are totally improvised ,and this fine cast captures a style, period and wit of an Austen novel. Every show, every night has a different cast and a completely new narrative based on a a simple title, such as Wooings and Misdoings.

 

 

Cast

Brenna Dixon as Casandra Edwards

Jess Lu as Abigail Edwards

Jenny Lovell as Mrs Edwards & Marguerite Boulier

Adam Hembree as Mr Preston

Adam MacKenzie  as Mr Edwards & Captain Campbell

Katherine Weaver as Mr. Brunswick

 

MJ the Musical REVIEW 8 Oct 2025 ***1/2

MUSICAL THEATRE
Music by Michael Jackson. Book by Lynn Nottage
At Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne, until Sun 1 Feb 2026
Reviewer: Kate Herbert
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️½

This review appears only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 18 Oct 2025.

MJ The Musical_credit_Daniel Boud_

Michael Jackson’s dazzling catalogue of hits is the true star of MJ the Musical, which bursts with energy from its opening number and never lets up. Songs such as Thriller, Bad and Beat It! are delivered with infectious vitality by a slick ensemble and a vibrant band that channels the pulse of Jackson’s unique sound.

 

Ilario Grant carries the weight of portraying Michael Jackson, a monumental task that he shoulders with skill and commitment. He replicates Jackson’s dance moves and vocal style convincingly, his physicality capturing the singer’s signature blend of fragility and precision. Grant’s singing is outstanding, but his limited acting range and sometimes muffled dialogue detract from a fully nuanced portrayal.

 

As the show’s narrative anchor, Derrik Davis is exceptional. He brings warmth and empathy to Rob, the loyal director of Jackson’s Dangerous tour, while delivering a blistering turn as Joseph Jackson, the domineering patriarch whose greed and brutality scarred his son for life. Josslynn Hlenti Afoa provides balance as Katherine, the devoted mother who turns a blind eye to Joseph’s violence, her bold voice lending emotional heft to the family scenes.

 

Director and choreographer Christopher Wheeldon drives the production with seamless, high-octane dance numbers that echo Jackson’s iconic video choreography. The ensemble shines in these moments, executing Wheeldon’s complex routines with precision and flair. However, the spoken

 scenes are static and lose momentum, highlighting the musical’s uneven rhythm between spectacle and storytelling.

Derek McLane’s elaborate set and Paul Tazewell’s vibrant costumes elevate the production visually, conjuring the glitz of Jackson’s world. The framing device—a behind-the-scenes look at rehearsals for the Dangerous tour—interweaves with flashbacks to Jackson’s childhood, his early fame with the Jackson Five, and his struggle against an abusive father and an insatiable appetite for grandeur.

 

Lynn Nottage’s book offers insight into Jackson’s obsessive artistry and fragile psyche but avoids confronting the darker controversies that shadowed his later life. References to “those accusations” are fleeting, keeping the narrative firmly within the realm of admiration rather than investigation.

 

Ultimately, MJ the Musical is a lavish, nostalgic celebration for devotees of the King of Pop—less a warts-and-all biopic than a pulsating homage to his genius and enduring cultural impact.

Ilario Grant, Josslynn Hlenti Afoa -MJ The Musical_credit_Daniel Boud

 

Cast: Ilario Grant, Derrik Davis, Josslynn Hlenti Afoa, and ensemble.

Creative Team: Director & Choreographer – Christopher Wheeldon; Book – Lynn Nottage; Set Design – Derek McLane; Costume Design – Paul Tazewell.

 

cc
 

   

 

 

 

Rebecca MTC REVIEW 4 Oct 2025 ***1/2

THEATRE

Adapted by Anne-Louise Sarks from the novel by Daphne du Maurier

At The Sumner, Southbank Theatre until 5 Nov 2025

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Stars: ***1/2

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 18 Oct 2025. KH

Nikki Shiels, Pamela Rabe,. REBECCCA MTC Photo by Pia Johnson

Daphne du Maurier’s gothic novel Rebecca steps off the page in this stylish and unsettling stage adaptation by Anne-Louise Sarks for Melbourne Theatre Company.

 

From the opening moments, Sarks evokes an eerie, forbidding atmosphere that seeps through the sparse but elegant design by Marg Horwell. The set cleverly suggests both the glittering luxury of Monte Carlo and the shadowy grandeur of Manderley, the Cornish mansion that becomes the story’s emotional battleground.

 

Nikki Shiels is luminous and affecting as the young, unnamed narrator, whose girlish pride and awkward delight in her sudden romance with Maxim de Winter soon curdle into anxiety and dread. Initially the timid companion to the wealthy and acerbic Mrs Van Hopper (Pamela Rabe), she is swept into a marriage with the sullen, distant widower Maxim (Stephen Phillips) and taken to his estate, Manderley.

 

The ghost of the first Mrs de Winter, the beautiful Rebecca, haunts every corner of the house and every gesture of its inhabitants. Her presence is maintained — even exalted — by Mrs Danvers, played with icy precision and quiet ferocity by Rabe. Her silent scrutiny and barely suppressed contempt create a tension that is palpable.

 

Shiels’ character evolves convincingly from naive young bride to a woman tempered by fear, jealousy and hard-won self-possession. Phillips captures Maxim’s brittle restraint and concealed torment, while Toby Truslove provides a welcome spark of wit as the genial Frank and rakish Jack Favell.

 

As with many literary adaptations, compressing du Maurier’s intricate, psychological narrative into a two-hour stage play presents challenges. The final thirty minutes, built from short, episodic scenes, attempt to unravel the mystery and moral complexity of the novel’s conclusion but feel hurried and theatrically thin.

 

Despite this, Rebecca remains an evocative and atmospheric interpretation, rich with foreboding, desire and danger. Sarks’ production captures the timeless allure of du Maurier’s gothic world where love and obsession intertwine, and the past refuses to die.

 

by Kate Herbert

 

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 nn

Nikki Shiels, Pamela Rabe, Stephen Phillips. REBECCCA MTC Photo by Pia Johnson

Cast:

Nikki Shiels - Woman

Pamela Rabe – Mrs Van Hopper, Mrs Danvers/ Beatrice
Stephen Phillips -Maxim

Toby Truslove – Frank/Jack

Creative Team:
Director – Anne-Louise Sarks
Designer – Marg Horwell
Lighting Designer – Paul Jackson
Composers & Sound Designers – Grace Ferguson & Joe Paradise Lui
Voice & Dialect Coach – Geraldine Cook-Dafner

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KATE HERBERT 3MBS SAT 04 OCTOBER 2025

KATE HERBERT 3MBS SAT 04 OCTOBER 2025. https://youtu.be/zyoGHs_J5N0

In this radio review spot, I talk about three shows with Nick Tolhurst and Phillipa Edwards: 

Comedy Games, a kids' show by Coach Mon; 

work.txt and Instructions by Subject/Object from UK. work.txt is theatre with NO actors, only the audience who create the entire event; 

Instructions has ONE actor who has never seen a script, or even met the director.

 

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work.txt REVIEW 2 Oct 2025 **** (4)

THEATRE

Written & directed by Nathan Ellis

By Subject/Object (UK)

Part of Melbourne Fringe Festival;

At Trades Hall Common Room until 12 Oct 2025

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Stars: **** (4)

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 4 Oct 2025. KH

work.txt _(c) Alex Brenner

work.txt, one of two shows by UK company, Subject Object, in Melbourne Fringe, has no actors at all! The audience does all the work.

 

As in the company’s other show, Instructions, all directions (the instructions) are on the screen for the audience. There is not a single actor in sight. The company’s director appears after the end to say thanks and ask us to spread the word. 

As one, we read the instructions on the screen. Some of the instructions are be read by specific groups: people who woke up early this morning; people who earn under $90,000 a year; people who work at home; people who work in an office; people thinking, “I just spent $32 on a show with no script and no actors”; people who came with somebody else knowing nothing about the show and are really bored and would like to leave.

We all read our relevant bits, feeling a bit awkward but realising that we’re not going to be forced on stage or compelled to do anything weird or embarrassing, apart from admitting we earn too much or too little to be acceptable.

Individual volunteers, then the entire audience are asked to go on stage, pick up a Jenga block and place it somewhere in the space. What evolves as we build, looks like a strange cityscape. This becomes part of a scene in is a contemporary gallery in a city.

As we become more comfortable, the instructions asked for a man or a woman to read a line. A random person just pipes up and reads the line.

The instructions ask for a volunteer to raise their hand, and for that person to come on stage, take the microphone and answer questions about his name. Tonight, he is Bailey: B.A.I.L.E.Y. He spells it out for us.

Bailey is now central to the story. Two volunteers go on stage to read a short scene together. Then another two, hen another two. A narrative is emerging.

Work.txt references work, workplaces and working conditions, social media, brand marketing, social inequity, capitalism, the environment -  the list goes on.

We even sing a Céline Dion song as one. It was like community choir meets karaoke. 

The final long treatise is presented by an AI robotic voice and deals with what happens after a day, a week, a year, 50 years,100,000, years, a billion years after Bailey’s episode at his workplace. (No spoilers here. Well, not many.)

Work.txt is smart and witty, but also extremely challenging: socially, politically and environmentally.

This is worth seeing and it’s really a lot of fun. It’s a show that challenges theatrical conventions and is the sort of show that should be part of the Fringe. Take note, Melbourne!

if you go, participate fully. You won’t see anything else like it in town at the moment.

 Kate Herbert

work.txt @ Soho -(c) Alex Brenner

Cast  Audience

 

Credits

a production by SUBJECT OBJECT

written and directed by Nathan Ellis

creative producers Emily Davis and Eve Allen

dramaturgy by Ben Kulvichit and Sam Ward

technical design by Harry Halliday

lighting design by Danny Vavrećka

music and sound design by Tom Foskett-Barnes

additional dramaturgy by Charlotte Fraser and Grace Venning

producer (AUS) Harry Dowling

 

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions REVIEW 2 Oct 2025 ***1/2

THEATRE

Written & directed by Nathan Ellis, by Subject/Object (UK)

Melbourne Fringe Festival

At Trades Hall Common Room until 12 Oct 2025  

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Stars: 3&1/2

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 4 Oct 2025. KH

Instructions@Summerhall_UK (c) Alex Brenner

 

Instructions, one of two show presented by UK company, Subject /Object, features a single, local actor who knows nothing about the scenario, the script, the form or content. Yes, really! He or she must respond to simple instructions that he sees on a monitor in front of him and which we, the audience see on the screen behind him.

 

We watch him struggle, respond, look anxious the. delighted with not only the liberation of not having to remember any lines or think of any ideas because they are all fed to him.

 

On the night I saw it, the actor was John Marc. Each night will feature a different local actor, all of whom know nothing about what they're about to experience. Other actors. with different skills, might improvise more dialogue, vocalise more fully or be more physical in response to the instructions.

 

The instructions not only tell John what to do, but also refer to how uncomfortable he feels, how strange this experience is, how he is starting to feel better about it and even to enjoy it and take risks. 

 

John is playing an actor auditioning for a film called Love in Paris. His audition is filmed, including his reading of various scenes for the role played in numerous, different styles, modes and emotional states. It feels like a weird acting class.

 

He is instructed to express different emotions: happy, sad, confused, excited, angry, annoyed.  He jumps about excitedly, reaches out pleading, shadow boxes, welcomes someone. It’s like a series of mini acting exercises.

 

A narrative starts to emerge as each ‘Chapter’ passes. He waits to hear if he got the part. Yes, he gets the part! He waits for a starting date. He contacts his agent and  the director. Still no starting date for filming.

 

But what transpires is that the Love in Paris has been made – without him. (SPOILER ALERT!) 

Now you can consider the implications of AI on acting and actors. Actors being replaced by AI?  An interesting and scary concept that is already happening. Be warned!

By Kate Herbert

 

Performed by
October 1 - David Woods
October 2 - John Marc Desengano
October 3 - Tomáš Kantor
October 4 - Shamita Siva
October 5 - Hayley Edwards
October 8 - Vidya Rajan
October 9 - Tom Ballard
October 10 - Ash Flanders
October 11 - Christie Whelan Browne
October 12 - Alex Hines



Credits
A production by SUBJECT OBJECT

text & concept by Nathan Ellis

technical design by Harry Halliday


dramaturgy by Ben Kulvichit and Sam Ward

lighting design by David Doyle


sound design by Nat Noyle

producer (AUS) Harry Dowling

 

PRESENTED BY Melbourne Fringe

CREATED BY SUBJECT OBJECT

WRITTEN BY Nathan Ellis

 

 

Comedy Games REVIEW 1 Oct 2025 *** 1/2

CHILDREN’S THEATRE

Created and performed by Monica Warren (Coach Mon)

At Ivanhoe Library Theatre  until 12 Oct 20205

Melbourne Fringe Festival

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Stars: 31/2

This review is published only on this blog. I’ll present a radio review on Arts Weekly on 3MBS on Sat 4 Oct 2025. KH

The Comedy Games with Coach Mon - image by  Darren Gill

 

Coach Mon (Monica Warren) is a child whisperer. Her crowd control of kids 3 or 4+ is exceptional in Comedy Games. She is warm and funny and authoritative as she coaches her audience through a series of mad, pseudo-athletic games and her solo show is entertaining, educative, physical, musical and gently but cleverly participatory.

 

Children’s theatre cannot be judged on the same criteria as adult theatre. (I worked in shows for children and the under 5s are like aliens. It’s almost impossible to predict what they'll find funny or what will bore them.) Keeping them interested is half or more of the task, Coach Mon does it with alacrity.

 

When Mon’s athletes don’t arrive on stage to the welcoming cheers of the children, she wants to give up, but the children encourage her to carry on without her “invisible” athletes. The brainwave is to use the kids as the athletes.

 

She coaches the crowd wacky Olympic feats such as eyebrow push-ups, tiny weight-lifts, hurdle (“churdles’ in this show), slow-motion running and sychronised swimming with two dads, which was hilarious!

 

Her modes of controlling behaviour were myriad: “Blink six times. Pay attention!” “Show me with your arms and body, not with your mouth.” Genius teaching tricks!

 

Interestingly, it was almost all girls who volunteers to go on stage. One boy went up and did something completely different from the instruction, another ran, looked around then ran back distressed, a third only went up when he heard that he’d get a gold medal. I couldn’t work out why it was the boys who resisted.

 

There are few flat spots in this performance and Coach Mon is a treat to watch and she guides her mini athletes through their Comedy Games. If you and your kids miss this season, hunt for Coach Mon online.

 

 

by Kate Herbert

 

 

Cast

Monica Warren

 

Director

Laura Aldous