Samantha Leith Made Up, 28 Feb 1999

at The Laundry 50 Johnston St Fitzroy until Sat Feb 6, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

When cosmetics become high art, culture has surely reached a low ebb. Samantha Leith's show works from the premise of "make-up as existentialism". Does anybody else feel faint?

In Samantha Leith Made Up, her solo show, cabaret chanteuse Leith literally places cosmetics front and centre. She spends most of her evening of song and banter seated behind a table littered with a cacophony of lip and eye liners, mascaras, gels, powders and foundations. Less is definitely not more for this gal. Leith has no intention of becoming a "cosmetic bulemic".

She is fine belter with a big voice and she is better known in Sydney. This show opens here during Midsumma Festival before going to Belvoir Street Theatre, Sydney during Mardi Gras. Leith's voice has been the theme song for the ABC coverage of Mardi Gras for two years.

While she trowels on the Ivory Bisque foundation she sings, ironically, numbers such as Bette Davis Eyes, Natural Woman, That's Why the Lady is a Tramp and Say a Little Prayer For You.

She reminisces about her childhood while singing Keep Young and Beautiful or Girl You'll Be a Woman Soon then bemoans working for Optus with Working Nine to Five and craves renown with When Will I, Will I Be Famous.

The show builds as she we wait as her character prepares to go on stage. She adds Big Hair which gives her a definite Drag Queen look and finally hits the dance floor with the first physical song, an 80's disco hit, Don't Go.

Leith is engaging and her singing is formidable but her patter, which craves editing, lets her down. She needs either better jokes or more acerbic commentary on cosmetics.

Her accompanist, Steven Ritchie, is a very skilful jazz pianist. He has taken over the Melbourne season this week since Leith's long-standing accompanist jumped ship to join the Navy. Really! Certainly a new slant on "Hello Sailor!"

The feature of the show is the songs. Leith is too inaccessible to us behind her table of cosmetics. Why not stand or at least sit on a high stool. It is too slow to build to its climax and the anticipated show within the show could be longer than a single song.

KH

The Talented Mr Ripley, 24 Feb 1999

 by Phyllis Nagy

 MTC at Fairfax Studio, Feb 24 until March 27, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Tom Ripley is the quintessential psychopathic anti-hero. He appears to be normal but there lurks beneath his stylish, well-mannered veneer, a heartless, egoistic villain.

David Tredinnick (OK) is a cool, wry, petulant and dangerous Ripley in this MTC production of The Talented Mr. Ripley which was adapted by London-based US playwright, Phyllis Nagy, from Patricia Highsmith's novel (1955). Tredinnick may not have the suave sophistication of Alain Delon who portrayed Highsmith's"perfect Ripley" in the1961 film, but he has an oily, menacing quality that works.

Ripley features in five works of fiction by Highsmith who wrote Strangers on a Train, the inspiration for Hitchcock's movie. In this first manifestation he is an amoral, penurious, fraudulent, compulsive liar and unrepentant murderer.

Although Nagy employs theatrical structures, the play feels like a novel on stage with extensive narration and long, linear narrative to convey in 150 minutes.

Ripley diddles the IRS, leaving an innocent friend embroiled in the fraud. He dupes a Park Avenue couple ( Kerry Walker, Frank Gallacher) into believing he knows their dilettante son, Richard (Matthew Dyktynski), and embarks on his anti-hero's journey to Italy where he inveigles his way into Richard's life, home and eventually, his family and inheritance.

The ensemble, performing multiple roles, is excellent. Walker is exceptional and compelling as the dying Park Avenue dowager, the only character who elicits any amount of sympathy. Torquil Neilson, as various Italians, is hilarious and Gallacher is commanding as the New York shipbuilding patriarch.

Dyktynski, Lucy Taylor and Michael Robinson provide strong support. Roger Hodgman keeps the action moving on Tony Tripp's statuesque design that features the silhouette of Ripley's head. Jamieson Lewis's lighting is dramatic and music by Paul Grabowsky evocative but sometimes intrusive.

Most problems lie with Nagy's text. An adaptation must leap from prose to theatrical language. In part, Nagy has done this. However, large tracts of the play stall in self-narration and the second act flags with too much plot to manage on stage. Everything escalates to a rapid ending far too swiftly.

There is little, if any, sub-text and few likeable characters. The text has few surprises and we cannot even care about those who get ripped off or killed. This kind of thriller may be better served by the impending US film although Matt Damon as Ripley defies rationality. Ah, Hollywood!

K Herbert

Chilling and Killing My Annabel Lee, 10 Feb 1999

 by Aidan Fennessy

 Playbox Beckett Theatre until March 6, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert on 10 Feb 1999

A man confesses to a murder. There is no evidence, no body. Well, not for this particular crime. However, the murder of prostitute, Annabel Lee, at a nearby ice-works remains unsolved.

This is the stuff of murder mystery, thrillers and film noir plots. In his play, Chilling and Killing My Annabel Lee, writer/director Aidan Fennessy is influenced by all these related genres but adheres to none. The style is more abstracted, less linear in narrative and distinctly more comical.

There is something rather dreamlike about it, as if the characters are still in the process of being conjured up in the mist of the writer's mind: the minds of both the playwright himself and his fictional, unsuccessful novelist, Edgar(Marco Chiappi).

This style is echoed in the issues of language, plot, memory, romance and loss arising in the crime novels written by Edgar Lancedowne's dead lover, Christina Muzy. Melita Jurisic). Her surname, perhaps too obviously, is reverberant of "muse" while Edgar's name pays respect to Edgar Alan Poe's poignant if morbid love poem.

The plot twists and flaps like a wet fish in the hand. It is not an homage to "noir" movies so it can takes liberties with form. However, any depth or clarity in characterisation is clouded by clever quips and absurdist influences. The female characters are thinly drawn but Jurisic, who plays all four, shifts skilfully from exotic to charming, brusque to fragile.

What might have been maintained more rigorously from "film noir" is the archetypes: vamp, hard-bitten detective, eccentric alternative suspect. It lacks an evil, shadowy character and rich emotional layers in its central characters. But this is being picky. It is not written as a homage..

This production looks beautiful. Phillip Lethlean's lighting is evocative and dramatic, highlighting the mysterious, grim interiors. Matt Cameron's design recaptures grubby offices, bleak apartments and dim streets of the city.

The performances are strong. Robert Morgan as Calminer, the gruff detective, is the most sympathetic character. Wayne Hope is very funny as the mysoginist cop as is Francis Greenslade as Kilty, the publisher. Chiappi makes a feast of the idiosyncrasies of the tormented Edgar.

If your tastes are for hot crime thrillers with dense emotional layering, watch Linda La Plante. Although Annabel Lee emphasises style over content, you should enjoy the jaunty ride.

KH

Kill Hamlet, 4 Feb 1999

Kill Hamlet by Zijah A Sokolovic

at La Mama until Feb 21, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert on 4 Feb 1999

To analyse theatre may be an act of despair or hilarity. Kill Hamlet is both. The actor (Daniel Schlusser) capers and pontificates, chats or declaims, disecting the theatrical process and challenging our pre-conceptions. Such a work could only be the product of years of disillusionment and love for this artificial world.

 Zijah A Sokolovic, an actor from Sarajevo, wrote and performed this cunning, self-reflective solo piece of theatre 2000 times in Yugoslavia.

Acclaimed Austrian actor, Justus Neumann, performed it in German then brought it to Australia where he now lives on Bruny Island creating theatre in an idyllic, remote setting.

Theatre is a fluid, multi-skilled profession so Neumann has switched roles for this latest Australianised production, now directing Schlusser who is better known as a director.

His performance is relaxed, intelligent and very funny. We become intimate friends, responding to his quips about arts bureaucracy, "poor theatre" and the plight of the artist. Some audience members even play a forest while the rest create a storm. The intimacy of the piece works perfectly in La Mama. We can feel the sweat of the actor in this heat..

The love-hate relationship an actor has with his job is highlighted. He craves approval from his father but knows acting is not a "real" job. He lives for his work but it brings him close to madness. After all, he makes up stories and pretends to be other people. Some would call that mental illness.

This is not a narrative play although the story of the actor who greets us is the thread that holds it. It falls into five distinct sections, some containing references to other plays such as Macbeth and Endgame. This gives the text a slightly clumsy structure but the great advantage is that it allows the actor to shift pace, keeping energy high and the audience involved.

The opening reveals that there will be no big production. Funding was not forthcoming. Actors in the audience giggle or groan in recognition. We must imagine all the trappings and emotions of a huge show in "three long acts". We all know, he says cynically, "The more powerful the catharsis, the higher the ticket price."

Neumann's crisp, clever direction has a strong sense of the pace and rhythm of the piece which obviously comes from performing it himself.

K H

Dusty, Doris and Me, 2 Feb 1999

Dusty, Doris and Me

by Wendy Stapleton At Caper's until February 20, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Singer Wendy Stapleton is the latest musical act to grace the stage of Caper's Dinner Theatre in her peppy new show, Dusty, Doris and Me. Much of the program comprises signature tunes of Doris Day and Dusty Springfield peppered by some of Stapleton's own favourites.

Under the management of Paul Baden, the most engaging host in town, Caper's has taken off in the past eighteen months as a cabaret venue. It boasts warmth, great food, recent renovations and classy acts including Julie Anthony, Jeannie Little and Combo Fiasco who soon do a return season after their hit New York tour.

Stapleton, with her accomplished accompanist Dean Lotherington and directed by Terry O'Connell, fits the bill with an entertaining evening of song.

Dusty, Doris and Me is not a huge theatrical production as was Stapleton's very successful show, I Only Want To Be With You - The Dusty Springfield Story. Here, she does not attempt to recreate the famous songstresses and their lives. It is more 'up close and personal'.

Opening night was a little nervous as rehearsals had been interrupted by renovations. A couple of audiences will solve that. Stapleton relaxed noticeably in the second half and .her smoky voice was in fine form for songs such as My Colouring Book, Windmills of your Mind and Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself.

Stapleton has selected a couple of Stephen Sondheim songs and she sings his work well. Just A Housewife (from Working) and his very witty The Ladies Who Lunch (from Company) were a hit as was Sondheim's hilarious satirical take on The Boy From Ipanema, in which the boy hails from some unpronouncable Hispanic village.

The Doris Day hits include Calamity Jane's Deadwood Stage, Black Hills of Dakota and Secret Love. This is a really a singalong program so we hope Wendy doesn't mind the singing along.

A feature of the show is Dean Lotherington's thrilling and perfectly clear-toned voice. He perches behind the grand piano singing harmonies but his three solos are compelling. He does extraordinary versions of Old Friend (from Getting My Act Together), Kurt Weill's Lost in the Stars and a compelling rendition of Even When I'm Sleeping (by Leonardo's Bride).

Director, O'Connell, might have found a better balance for the show. Its structure is bumpy and the order of songs has no logic and does not ebb and flow well. But this is an evening of great songs and food.

KH

Mates by Tom Lindstrom, 27 Jan 1999

 La Mama at The Courthouse from 26 Jan 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Some old blokes talk about the war. Others stay mute. The three battered old veterans of Changi in Tom Lindstrom's play, Mates, reminisce incessantly. The only worthy interruptions to their chain of memories are a swig of Glenfiddich or the threat of incontinence

The characters and their stories are engaging, if repetitive. It is Anzac Day, 1991. Stan (Cliff Ellen) lies in a private hospital room awaiting an operation to confirm his death sentence: liver cancer it seems. But no digger who marches each year can let the day pass without seeing his mates.

His best mate, Streaky Bacon (John Flaus) appears with a surprise visitor. Sunny (Malcolm Robertson) is well off, pissed off and smells off because of his bowel condition. They are the Musketeers, quips Sunny: Athos, Pathos and Bathos.

Mates, directed by Melanie Beddie and Malcolm Robertson, was originally written for the "Australia Remembers" celebrations. It is character- rather than plot- driven, having very little narrative development Lindstrom relies on the revelation of relationships between characters and the war stories which have obsessed them for 47 years since they were dumped on our shores by our government which was as insensitive to its soldiers at the end of the war as it was at the beginning.

Sunny, played with a fine blend of passion and humour by Robertson, is a tyrannical, tragic, misogynistic, almost brutish boozer who lost his special mate during the war. He rants at the injustice of Streaky and Stan still having each other.

Streaky we know mostly as Stan's mate. He is reflected through the eyes of his friend who faces his own last weeks. Flaus portrays his humanity and steadfastness with sensitivity.

It is Stan who is the pivot of the story. It is the final leg of his return journey from Changi and his making peace with his demons that comprise the body of the play. Ellen's laconic delivery works well but it is his final scene which steals the show. It is beautifully balanced and poignant expresson of friendship and loss.

This last scene is the strongest piece of writing in the play and is worth the wait. The dialogue is less self-conscious and the relationship between Stan and Streaky is finally allowed to be intimate without Sunny's boisterous interruptions. The unevenness of earlier scenes is forgiven.

KH

Masterclass, Jan 5, 1999

By Terence McNally

At The Playhouse, Jan 5 to Jan 30, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

A Melbourne audience being propelled spontaneously and simultaneously to its feet in applause is very, very rare. It demands a breathtaking and masterly performance. Amanda Muggleton, as Maria Callas in Masterclass, fits the bill.

There are moments in Rodney Fisher's stylish production of Terence McNally's elegantly structured play, when Muggleton plumbs Callas' depths of passion and despair and tears splash not only from her eyes.

She stands, isolated, in a narrow spotlight, transported from the opera master class she teaches at the Juilliard School, New York. The tragedy of the woman, the passion of her commitment, the crimson velvet beauty of her voice, transport us, in turn, to La Scala.

This is a peak experience. To be inside the mind of Callas as we hear her dramatic, disturbing voice, takes us to the brink of despair and ecstasy.

In tandem with such beauty and awe, we encounter the bestiality of her lover, Aristotle Onassis, who treated her cruelly. McNally skillfully interweaves the interior and exterior worlds of Callas.

"Poof! I am invisible," quips Muggleton as Callas as the first of her "victims" begins to sing. Double doors swing open dramatically. She sweeps in majestically, music clutched to her chest, black spectacles, head tossed back as if about to sing Lady Macbeth. Callas was never invisible.

Muggleton captures her vanity and insecurity, commitment to teaching, passion for character and her craving to be, once more, the diva. When her voice began to fail in 1959, after a stellar, if controversial, career as diva at La Scala, her confidence was shattered.

In masterclasses, she could risk occasional vocal glimpses of the old Callas before a doting audience, often as large as a thousand.

Muggleton is supported by a fine cast. An unassuming musical accompanist, (Andrew Ross) three singers, (Natasha Hunter, Toni Powell, Domenico Canizzaro) and a stagehand (Laurence Coy)

Callas ached with the need for love and recognition. She may have talked about technique, about meaning, diction and feeling, but her talent was driven by her intense emotional need, her need to be the best, to overcome the "fat girl" image, the rivalry with her pretty sister and other divas.

 "Ho dato tutto at te," she sings. "I gave everything to you." To Onassis, to music, to composers, students and audience  Muggleton also gives everything. It is a consummate performance of a very difficult role.

K Herbert

What Do They Call Me?, 21 Jan 1999

 by Eva Johnson

at Trades Hall until January 30, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

One of the roles of theatre has always been to educate its audience. Eva Johnson's autobiographical play, What Do They Call Me?, adheres to this philosophy perhaps more than it does to art.

The play is comprised of three monologues performed by Marie Andrews. The quality of the writing is variable but the intention is clear. Johnson presents us with the story of Connie Brumbie, an ageing aboriginal woman who speaks to her cell mate after she has been arrested for assault.

The two characters who follow this tight little characterisation are her two 'stolen' daughters. Regina, a "White Bread" social worker who was adopted by a middle class Adelaide family, is now struggling to come to terms with her recently discovered aboriginality.

The other is Alison,  "a radical feminist amazon warrior lesbian" with a white lover who is ostracised by parts of the female aboriginal community because she "does not look oppressed ".

German playwright, Bertolt Brecht, wrote screeds on the positive impact of didactic theatre but Eva Johnson seems bent on lecturing us more than is necessary. Connie's story manages to maintain a potent dramatic core as well as being informative about the plight of women in her position Her tale is compelling and could be woven throughout the following two monologues to hold the play together.

The device of having each character talk to an unseen listener is less effective for Regina and Alison. There is less dramatic content and much of the emotional content is described to us rather than enacted. The moment when Alison meets her birth mother Connie is the most moving scene in her monologue.

The piece makes a statement but is repetitive and slow moving with limited dramatic appeal. However, its content is important and Marie Andrews, whose day job is as a barrister, is a warm and engaging performer, particularly as Connie.

Her other two characterisations are less successful perhaps because of the preaching quality and awkwardness of the writing. This may also have contributed to the cause of a couple of 'blanks" Andrews suffered during the show.

Theatrically, What Do Thy Call Me? needs some tighter direction and dramaturgy on the script, but it is a strong example of didactic theatre.

KH

The White Rose by Steven Dawson, 20 Jan 1999

 Out Cast Theatre at David Williamson Theatre until Feb 14

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Has the Sydney Mardi Gras ever have a Nana Mouskouri float? She was once a gay icon in the same way that Patsy (Absolutely Fabulous) is now. Picture dozens of men dressed in lush dark wigs, enormous spectacles, flowing skirts and big bosoms. Nana was the Greek Dolly Parton in the 60's.

She was also known as The White Rose and Steven Dawson's latest play of the same name has a Nana look-alike at the centre of its comic plot. It is a farce, complete with slamming doors, mistaken identities, gender-bending and secret lovers.

The difference is that most of the characters are gay or lesbian. Ben (Robert Parlavecchio) has been avoiding his gay mates for months and is about to marry Angela (Katerina Kotsonis) the Greek-Australian lesbian from his gym who has temporarily abandoned her girlfriend. (Rosemary Johns).

His friend, Hal (Peter Edmonds) is astonished and horrified when Ben, now known as Demetri, tells him they are marrying 'for the presents": namely lots of white goods, a third share in the family car- wrecking business and a $500,000 dowry. Jackpot!

So where does Nana come in? Angela, to prove Demetri is a worthy catch, has convinced her mother and grandmother (Mo'ria Limberis) and two brothers (John Mandoukis) that he is related to Nana.

Hal is dragooned into doing his Nana impersonation for the wedding. Edmonds in drag is hilarious. He minces, and poses and smiles his Nana smile until Nikkos, the thug brother, falls in love with him.

And the twists go on. This is a clever premise for a comedy with plenty of scope for farcical confusion and role swapping. There are some clumsy directorial choices and the dialogue of most of the characters is undifferentiated but the pace is swift and, particularly in the second half, the jokes come thick and fast. The predominantly gay and lesbian audience hooted throughout.

The performances are uneven but Kotsonis plays the feisty Angela with relish and Limberis bubbles and seethes hilariously as granny and mum. Edmonds becomes the feature as his Nana gets drunker, lustier and more out of control and jumps the straight brother.

The play is better structured and more appealing to the general public than previous plays by Dawson and is an appropriate contribution to the Midsumma Festival.

KH

Some shows that opened January, 1999

Some shows that opened in January, 1999

I didn't see all these:

• The White Rose, Outcast Theatre, Wed Jan 13
• Razor Baby, Club Swing, Friday Jan 15
• Homme Fatale, Theatreworks, Saturday Jan 16
• What Do They Call Me?  & CLIT, by Eva Johnston, Trades Hall, Jan 2I
• Samantha Leith,  Jan 27
• Shirley Billing, Jan 28
• My Life as  a Dyke, Jan 29

The Misanthrope, MTC, Jan 2, 1999

By Moliere,  MTC

At Fairfax Studio, Jan until February 13, 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

"The Function of comedy is to correct the vices of mankind," said Moliere, the 17th century French satirist: a noble sentiment however unlikely.

Simon Phillips' production of The Misanthrope may not correct anybody's vices, but it is intelligent, classy, cunning and uses a witty modernised translation by English playwright, Martin Crimp.

The text is pacey, provocative, hilarious and peppered with contemporary references to post-modernism, feminism, technology and the ridiculously pretentious language of the intellectual arts world.

There are teasing references to the 17th century throughout and the masquerade ball is a feast of baroque brocade. If Crimp takes liberties, it is in order to be true to the original intention of Moliere, a man of the theatre who would, no doubt, approve.

The Misanthrope, written in 1666, was one of Moliere's acerbic looks at the superficiality of Baroque Parisian society. He was in the invidious and confusing position of becoming the darling of the court a few years after a scandal surrounding three of his plays caused him to be accused of obscenity and atheism.

Alceste, a playwright (Martin Jacobs) renowned for his unexpurgated comments on society and other artists, represents Moliere in the play. His is the only name retained from the original play.

He is accompanied by his temperate friend, John (Humphrey Bower), and is enamoured of a narcissistic, juvenile actress (Sophie Heathcote) who surrounds herself with admirers: her agent (John Stanton), a critic (Kim Gyngell), a juvenile male lead (Richard Grieve), a journalist (Pamela Rabe) and her acting teacher. (Catherine Wilkin).

Finally, Alceste's venomous attacks and brutal criticisms, in comparison to the dissembling and back-stabbing of his compatriots, is seen clearly as simple, even naive, honesty

This superb cast addresses the audience, preens, taunts and poses to evocative musical soundcape (Ian McDonald) and on a vivid gold set(Shaun Gurton) which replicates a gaudy suite at the Sheraton.

Jacobs seethes and spits as Alceste, cutting a swathe through his superficial environment. Gyngell's critic perfectly blends the fawning and supercilious, Wilkin is hilariously idiosyncratic as the faded acting mentor and Rabe maintains a still dignity as Ellen.

Phillips, the next Artistic Director of the MTC, is known for his vigorous and innovative treatment of classic both comic and tragic. His Julius Casesar, pared down to ninety minutes, was a gift. The Misanthrope is equally provocative and entertaining.

Kate Herbert

Much Ado About Nothing, ASC, Dec 29,1998

 By William Shakespeare

Australian Shakespeare Company

 Botanical Gardens, Gate F from December 29, 1998 until March 1999

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Much of Shakespeare's original work was performed in inn yards or open-air theatres. His bawdy comic glee flourished in the bold style that is still required by outdoor theatre. Glenn Elston's Much Ado About Nothing, in the lushness of the Botanical Gardens, cocks a snoot at more staid traditions of Shakespeare.

Much Ado is almost a rock concert. Everybody plays electric guitar and belts out a mean rock tune with the support of an exceptional off-stage musician, Randy Bulpin. It's more entertaining and truer to Shakespeare than Berlioz's opera, Beatrice and Benedick.

After an intro by clown security guards/policemen, Dogberry and Verges (Peter Hosking and Evelyn Krape), the opening image is a babe band: four guitar-weilding, leather and lace-clad women singing a hot rock number. The atmosphere is literally electric.

The songs keep on coming with music written by Paul Norton and lyrics by Shakespeare with help from Elston. The popular style, comic daring and improvisational pizazz of this fine ensemble complement Shakepeare's wit and poetry.

Shakespeare's Much Ado is a romance with the acid wit of Taming of the Shrew. When Sicilian soldiers return from battle, Governor, Leonato, (Phil Sumner), his daughter, Hero (Rachael Tidd) and sharp-tongued niece, Beatrice, (Nicole Nabout) greet commander Don Pedro (Michael Fry) and his villainous brother, Don John (Brendan O'Connor) 

Beatrice renews her seductive squabbles with confirmed bachelor, Benedict (Richard Piper) and Hero is reunited with her betrothed, Claudio (David Davies).

In Elston's production, the men are more like a rock band returning from a world tour with a big contract and huge egos. The girl band does its gigs nearer home. No wonder Beatrice is snipey.

Richard Piper is a commanding and adorable Benedick, marrying impeccably the poetic, comic, improvisational and dramatic. Davies lends Claudio a richness of voice and character and O'Connor is a perfect smiling villain. Nabout is suitably feisty and versatile as Beatrice but seems miscast against Piper.

The first hour is slick and fast but, before interval, the pace slackens. The show has an irregular rhythm but this does not diminish its entertainment value. Some text is lost in the bigger musical numbers but body mikes keep dialogue clear and audible..

This is a bold, cheeky and courageous production that should pull in the crowds.

The Turn of the Screw, Dec 28,1998

Adapted from Henry James by Barry Lowe 

Performing Arts Projects 

At Ripponlea from December 28, 1998

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Henry James, in The Turn of the Screw, wrote a brilliant and provocative psychological ghost story. Numerous screen adaptations have been attempted, perhaps the most successful being Truman Capote's starring Deborah Kerr.

Far less effective is Barry Lowe's adaptation for Performing Arts Projects, directed by Robert Chuter and performed in the gardens of Ripponlea. This script lacks the emotional drive of James' novel and does not penetrate the murky psychological waters of his characters.

A young governess, (Tanya Burne) arrives at the country estate of a London gentleman to tend his two children, Flora (Felicity Radak) and Miles (Thomas Pitts) with the company of only the housekeeper. (Philippa Chapple). Miles has been dismissed from his boarding school for unknown misdemeanours and seems worldly,even seductive, beyond his twelve years.

The governess is besotted not only with the children's absent father but with the boy. Her obsession escalates into delusion or madness when she sees visions of Quint, (Karl Gorman) the master's infamous valet, and his consort, the previous governess, both of whom are now dead.

The governess's fear, like a juggernaut, sweeps her into a pitiful obsession and compels her to believe that the children are possessed by this wicked dead couple.

It is a pity that James' dense subtext of sexual repression, delusion and abuse of childhood innocence is here dealt with so superficially. Prose is a very different mode from theatre. Lengthy narration and description can enhance a novel but, in theatre, it is deadly.

In this instance, the narrator (Sean Ladhams) persistently interrupts characters with tiresome exposition. He describes their thoughts and actions, explains motivation. This merely serves to eliminate any emotional through-line. Such character detail must be contained in dialogue.

The locations within the grounds are glorious and actors compete with a chorus of show-stealing ducks on the lake and pigeons in the tower. It is a fabulous setting on a summer's evening.

The performances are limited. The jerky script does not assist the actors who struggle to maintain any sense of dramatic tension and, at times, even to be heard. The direction is static in spite of audience's moves throughout the gardens. Outdoor theatre craves physicality. This production needs more.

Kate Herbert

Absurd Person Singular, Dec 18, 1998

by Alan Ayckbourn, by Melbourne Theatre Company

At Fairfax Studio until December 19, 1998

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

The silliness dial is turned up to 110% in Absurd Person Singular, a masterly farce by English playwright, Alan Ayckbourn, directed with comic flair by David Latham, performed with impeccable comic timing on Shaun Gurton's versatile revolving set; and what better time to set the play than during the Silly Season.

Three dysfunctional English couples of differing class and financial solvency, collide on three consecutive Christmas Eves in a bizarre dance of rising and falling social and emotional fortunes. Echoes of Dickens' Christmases Past, Present and Future in three acts map the rapid rise of the tasteless Hopcrofts from social climbing grocers to property developers.

Act One, in 1970, sees the grovelling Hopcroft (Tony Taylor) bullying Jane, his timid, Ajax-obsessed wife (Merridy Eastman) during a Christmas cocktail party planned to impress his dull, conservative banker Ronald Brewster-Wright (Brian Lipson) and his ever-so-politely critical wife Marion (Jane Menalaus).

In Act Two, a year later at the third couple's, Eva and Geoff (Sally Cooper, Robert Menzies) Jackson's home, the previously valium-addled, now suicidally depressed Eva silently attempts suicide as the others sabotage her gassing, knifing, leaping, electrocution and hanging while they mend or clean her kitchen appliances.

The final scene of this act is the most chaotic, absurd and hilarious in as they sing On The First day of Christmas around a laundry-bedecked electrocution victim. Yes, really.

In each home the owners become victims of Ayckbourn's wit. Every horror of these inappropriate but outwardly proper, ordinary marriages is callously revealed. His sardonic attack on these singular characters is unrelenting.

In 1972, the Brewster-Wrights are living in separate parts of an icy-cold house when visited by the others. Marion is drunk, Ronald desperate and lonely. Social decorum cannot stop them hiding under tables from the ghastly, successful Hopcrofts. It ends like a Monty Python Butlands' holiday camp..

The actors teeter sublimely on the knife edge of tragedy and comedy. Menalaus' snobbish Marion and Lipson's awkward twitty Ronald are the perfect mismatch. Menzies is suitably maddening as the cruelly egocentric Geoff. Cooper transforms his despairing wife from demented clown to canny businesswoman. Taylor's Hopcroft is cleverly gauche and Eastman's Jane has her own peculiar twitchiness.

Ayckbourn is a master craftsman. Even his off-stage characters are hilarious. Moderns might scoff but he is the populist writer of England and manages a laugh a minute peppered with acerbic social observation.

by Kate Herbert

Britannicus, Dec 15, 1998

by Jean Racine

La Mama at The New Ballroom, Trades Hall until Dec 20, 1998

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Jean Racine, the 17th century French writer, does not rate a mention in the program notes of Caroline Lee's production of his play, Britannicus. His text is the finest component of what is unfortunately a mediocre production.

Racine, encouraged by his contemporary, Moliere of The Comedie Francaise, was a master of poetic verse theatre. However, he wrote few plays before he abandoned the rivalry and resentment of theatre for the comforts of the court of Louis XIV.

His two masterpieces of tragedy are Britannicus and Phaedre that ran recently in London with the extraordinary Diana Rigg in the title role. The role of Nero's mother Agrippina in Britannicus, is not as substantial as that of Phaedre but it is potentially as gripping in its passionate characterisation and lyrical beauty.

Nero (Luke Elliot), after much conniving by Agrippina (Caroline Lee), took the throne of Rome in place of his step-brother Britannicus, (Ben Grant) Claudius' rightful heir. Three years later, his gratitude and obeisance to his mother has declined and he has all the telltale signs of the tyrant we know him to become.

Everybody feel invincible. All are vulnerable. Nero's mentor, Burrus (David Symons) believes he still influences Nero. Britannicus mistakenly believes Nero intends to release him. Agrippina has no idea of the extent of power over Nero exerted by Narcissus (Anthony Morton) who plots to poison his own master, Britannicus, to gain Nero's favour.

Only June (Kate Allison), Britannicus' sweetheart who is abducted by Nero, understands the danger.

Lee has staged the play in a room at Trades Hall, highlighting the political intrigue of the plot. Audience is seated in two opposing banks of seats as if in parliament and we are faced with three video screens, one huge and two smaller monitors. A sense of constant spying or media attention could be intended, but the videos are inadequately used and pictures are intermittent and fuzzy.

The second half had more emotional impact and connection with text than the first but the performances, apart from Lee and Morton at times, do not do justice to this fine text. Voices are often inaudible, sight lines were poor and casting was inappropriate.

There is so much more in this play. One problem with such a difficult piece, could be the director being on stage. Noone has an overview or an outside eye on the performances or the production.

Kate Herbert

Teatro del Mundo, Dec 5, 1998

(Theatre of the World) by Peter Finlay

 La Mama at the Courthouse until December 19, 1998

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Words cannot do justice to Teatro del Mundo. It is an exquisitely cut gem of small-scale theatre, a splendid theatrical confection created by writer Peter Finlay in collaboration with Mary Sitarenos.

We welcome with open arms these two equally splendid and visionary artists. It is too long since we lost Finlay to Perth. He was a mainstay of alternative theatre as one of the founders of Theatreworks. Sitarenos, who also has an unforgettable theatrical past, has also recently re-appeared both as actor and director in Tess Lyssiotis' Home Trilogy.

Teatro del Mundo was influenced by Finlay's trip to Venzuela in 1992. It is spiced with Hispanic language and characters that spin magical, dream-like stories through poetic language and startling theatrical imagery. It is not only the magic realism of South America that haunts this piece. It also reflects its passionate, sometimes horrific world. "I had learned to feel nothing in a land of everyday terror," says Pedro.

The purity and simplicity of this Theatre of the World and the remarkable, idiosyncratic performances of the two actors make it glitter and resonate. Both have a compelling communication with each other and the audience. Their delightful choices, unpredictable timing and vivid representations of quirky myths constantly surprise us. The performances are well supported by Roger Alsop's sound design, Kari Morseth's costumes and sheaths of rich velvet curtaining.

Pedro, a gauche fisherman, who exists in an earthquake-riddled time and space, meets Capricia, an enigmatic, taunting siren. He dreams a dream in which "a fisherman found a baby floating in an ocean with no fish. The baby was the world..." Out of a wicker basket pops the tiny baby planet and out of his dream world, in which Capricia plays several roles, flood stories.

"God Created Nature", "The Man Who Thought Everybody Had a Gun" and "The Fire-Breathing Dragon" This is a Jungian psycho-emotional landscape in which passion is represented by the tiger and dragon, life by a tiny mewling planet earth, fear and insecurity by an earth tremor.

This is not a linear narrative but multi-layered imagistic theatre with a potent emphasis on the physical and visual elements. It is gloriously, splendidly theatrical and transporting. I beg you to see it.

Kate Herbert

Evidence, Dec 2, 1998

 devised by James Clayden

 La Mama until Dec 20, 1998

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Deconstructed text in the theatre can be like a sculpture assembled from numerous individual pieces: the combination may be greater than the parts. Alternatively, the final product may simply be a conglomeration of unrelated fragments that have no sense, no beauty and do not enlighten.

Evidence, a performance adapted by artist James Clayden from Joseph Conrad's Secret Agent and The Dramatic Symphony by Andrey Bely, has some interesting moments particularly in the latter half of its 45 minutes. It does not, however, quite make it as an effective junk sculpture. It is never a good sign when one needs to read the program notes for an inkling of meaning.

Four actors, (Shelley Lasica, Tom Wright, Peter Green, Helen Hopkins) appear awkward initially with the text which is self-referential repetitive, incomprehensible and totally humourless. It develops a sense of irony and draws further on Conrad's characters in the last 20 minutes that was a great relief. Prior to this, it is, "Effectively communicating the difficulty of effective communication."

The two women read extracts from folders in their hands. the men speak as if in a courtroom, about evidence or about wanting to write something Piles of manila folders are shifted as are large panels of cardboard painted glossy red and black. There is no relationship between characters; indeed there are no characters as this piece works in an abstract and stylised form.

Ironically, Evidence seems to be an attack on text-based theatre and yet it relies heavily on its text having minimal movement, soundscape or design to support it. My concern is that the disconnected components, although layered one upon the other, remain disassociated. There is no greater work of art arising from the welded sculpture. It lacks atmosphere.

Tom Wright is particularly compelling in this piece, both vocally and physically. He projects some sense of humour from the beginning. The two women seem uncomfortable throughout.

My criticism is not an attack on deconstruction in art. It can be an elevating and stylish mode of creating theatre. Evidence is a leap into the obscure which could , in some other form, work as theatre but feels too much like the New York avant-garde of 20 years ago.

Evidence is performing in tandem with poet, Alison Croggin's Monologues for an Apocalypse that has the same director and cast.

Kate Herbert

1998 Reviews by Kate Herbert - Herald Sun

1998 Reviews Herald Sun

by Kate Herbert

The following are all reviews published in Herald Sun during 1998.They are still available through www.newstext.com.au

They will all be uploaded in full soon.  KH

 GHOST STORY A PHANTOM CALL   Herald Sun, 30-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 053, 352 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Turn of the Screw Adapted from: Henry James Where and when: Performing Arts Projects at Rippon Lea; from December 28 HENRY James, in The Turn of the Screw, wrote a brilliant and provocative psychological ghost story. Numerous screen adaptations h...

    YEAR OF THE PIG   Herald Sun, 25-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 044, 933 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Shaunagh O'Connor takes a look back at theatre offerings of 1998 The festival gave us three incredible tales of Aboriginal survival FAIRYTALE characters danced into the woods and this little piggy went to the disco. Audiences sobbed as they heard how...

    TO SEE OR NOT TO SEEE   Herald Sun, 25-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 044, 479 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Must see Luna Park LUNA Park and the Art of Mass Delirium at Heide brings together a diverse range of artistic interpretations of one of Melbourne's most-loved icons. The curly structure of the rollercoaster provided Nolan with the structural basis f...

    FINE WORDS LOST IN SPACE   Herald Sun, 19-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 103, 364 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Britannicus Where and when: La Mama at The New Ballroom, Trades Hall; until December 20 Bookings: 9347 6142 THE 17th-century French writer, Jean Racine, does not rate a mention in the program notes of Caroline Lee's production of his play, Britannicu...

    TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 11-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 090, 512 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Absurd Person Singular Fairfax, Arts Centre until December 19 The silliness dial is turned up 110 per cent in Absurd Person Singular, a masterly farce by Alan Ayckbourn. It is directed with comic flair by David Latham and performed with impe...

    WORLD OF WISDOM FOR ALL TO ENJOY   Herald Sun, 07-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 099, 381 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Teatro del Mundo (Theatre of the World) Where and when: La Mama at the Courthouse, until December 19 WORDS cannot do justice to Teatro del Mundo. It is an exquisitely cut gem of small-scale theatre, a splendid theatrical confection created by...

    CASE AGAINST   Herald Sun, 04-12-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 095, 286 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Evidence Where and when: La Mama until Dec. 20 DECONSTRUCTED text in the theatre can be like a sculpture made from numerous pieces - the combination may be greater than the parts. Alternatively, the final product may simply be a conglomeration of unr...

    TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 27-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 094, 372 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Absurd Person Singular Fairfax, Arts Centre until December 19 THE silliness dial is turned up 110 per cent in Absurd Person Singular, a masterly farce by Alan Ayckbourn. It is directed with comic flair by David Latham and performed with impe...

    BLAST FROM PAST HITS A NERVE   Herald Sun, 21-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 102, 295 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Theatre The Piccadilly Bushman Where and when: Playbox at Merlyn Theatre until December 5 Bookings: 9685 1111 Reviewer: Kate Herbert WHEN we think of writers of Australian theatre classics, we immediately think of Ray Lawler and his Doll trilogy of t...  

  TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 20-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 094, 393 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Quiver Leigh Warren's six dancers are a versatile group. Quiver combines two starkly contrasting works Shimmer and Swerve, in a rich double bill highlighting the technical range of the dancers and the diversity of Warren's aesthetic. In Shim...

    SO ABSURD IT HITS HOME   Herald Sun, 20-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 094, 288 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Absurd Person Singular Where and when: Fairfax Studio until December 19 THE silliness dial is turned up to 110 per cent in Absurd Person Singular, a masterly farce by Alan Ayckbourn. It is directed with comic flair by David Latham and performed with ...

    MUSIC MEMORIES   Herald Sun, 14-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 111, 454 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Countdown the Musical Where and when: Comedy Club Carlton, on now Reviewer: Kate Herbert IF YOU think My Sharona was a little-known Melbourne Cup winner and Molly Meldrum a Play School host, do yourself a favor. Make a cup of tea now. Remember Marty ...

    TASTY BITES NEED SOME MORE MEAT   Herald Sun, 13-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 091, 432 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Legacy and Petroleum Where and when: La Mama until November 29. Bookings: 9347 6142 A SHORT play is like an entree; a good one can be just as satisfying as the main course. Raimondo Cortese's half-hour pieces, Legacy and Petroleum, are both tasty, if...

   LOST FOR WORDS, BUT WHO CARES?   Herald Sun, 10-11-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 051, 408 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Mum's the Word Where and when: Athenaeum Theatre 1, until December 20 MUM'S the Word is critic-proof. People, particularly women with children, will flock to it no matter what is said hereafter. The show is a phenomenon akin to Wogs Out of Wo...  

  NOTHING SINKS BETTY   Herald Sun, 31-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 104, 397 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Dream Kitchen Where and when: Universal Theatre; until Nov 8 Reviewer: Kate Herbert WALLS the color of peach cooler - that's what Betty is considering for her dream kitchen. Or perhaps apricot and olive, the colors of her bridesmaids' outfits 40 or s...

   THE WILDE WOMAN   Herald Sun, 30-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 088, 423 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE The Secret Fall of Constance Wilde Abbey Theatre Where and when: Playhouse until November 1 W E ALL know of Oscar Wilde, brilliant, self-absorbed, razor-tongued, who wrote a swag of classics, but few know about his abandoned wife. Thomas Kilr...

   TEARS FOR BROKEN LIVES   Herald Sun, 28-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 048, 376 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Stolen, by Jane Harrison Where and when: Malthouse, Sturt St, Southbank, until November 14 Reviewer: Kate Herbert AS A whitefella, it's easy to remain at arm's length from the stolen children of the Aboriginal nation, easy to say "Sorry" and to want ...

    NEW WORLD DISORDER   Herald Sun, 24-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 105, 202 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
STAGE Teatro Where and when: Playhouse; closes tonight Reviewer: Kate Herbert AS A nation, we're fascinated by our immigrant backgrounds and the potential to explore the migrant experience as theatre is limitless. Teatro is the third in Renato Cuocol...

   TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 23-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 088, 401 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Disco Pigs This award-winning production from the Corcadorca Theatre Company is bursting with an anarchic vitality which leaves an imprint long after the 70 minutes are up. Enda Walsh's language is extraordinary, though it takes some time to...

    DARK ADDS COLOR TO ARBUS   Herald Sun, 20-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 051, 439 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Where and when: Universal Theatre II; until November 8 Reviewer: Kate Herbert DIANE Arbus should be discovered by 20-year-olds. Her photographs are essential stimulus during that brooding, philosophical period when drugs and suicide seem exot...  

 VISUALS BOOST EMOTIONAL IMPACT   Herald Sun, 19-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 084, 398 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Panacea Performed by: Arena Theatre Where and when: Old Police Garage, Russell St, until November 1 YOUNG people are incessantly bombarded with visual input: imagery from film and television, billboards, computer programs or magazines. They catch lif...

   CHAOS IN NEED OF FILTER   Herald Sun, 16-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 094, 365 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
STAGE Out of Chaos Where and when: Athenaeum Theatre II; until October 24 Reviewer: Kate Herbert PEOPLE in the public eye usually try to keep their personal lives behind closed doors. Choosing to expose one's private life is courageous. Translating p...

    FASHION AND PAIN   Herald Sun, 15-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 065, 300 words , HIT
So Wet by Samantha Bews Where and when: at North Melbourne Town Hall Meeting Room, until Sunday BEING cool usually ends up looking just plain silly. At least if you are under 30 being cool gives you licence to look indulgent, ridiculous and idiotic i...

    FABULOUS, DARLING   Herald Sun, 10-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 102, 299 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
CABARET More of a Little Jeanne Little Where and when: Capers, Hawthorn; Wed-Sat October 7-17. Bookings, 9819 1797. Reviewer: Kate Herbert WITH her broad vowels that go on forever daaaaarling, Jeanne Little is faaaaabulous! I did not expect to be so ...

   TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 09-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 088, 329 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Reason and Folly: The prints of Francisco Goya "There is little doubt about the power of the Francisco Goya exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria. "His ability to communicate across 200 years of painted history is staggering. "Don't...

   PATERNALLY YOURS   Herald Sun, 09-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 089, 335 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Conversations with my Father, by Herb Gardner Where and when: Saltpillar Theatre, St Martins Theatre, until October 18 "ENGLISH don't do the job," quips the Jewish mother when her husband insists she speaks English. English can't turn an answer into ...

   TOO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 02-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 086, 290 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Fringe Furniture While some of the pieces in the exhibition may not find their way on to showroom floors across the suburbs, the Fringe continues to attract designers who are not afraid to challenge the accepted concept of furniture. "If the...

   A NOSE FOR COMEDY   Herald Sun, 01-10-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 058, 246 words , HIT
Cyrano de Bergerac - as Told by Three Idiots, adapted from Edmund Rostand Where and when: La Mama, until October 17 IF YOU don't know the original Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmund Rostand, you might know Steve Martin's film, Roxanne, based on Cyrano. A s...    INFECTIOUS HUMOR SPREADS MESSAGE   Herald Sun, 29-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 047, 378 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
INFECTIOU$ Where and when: Lower Melbourne Town Hall; until October 11 Bookings: 9685 5111 INFECTIOU$ is a psycho/pop/sci-fi/medical satire with songs. Please explain? Megalomaniacal capitalist Mr Sphinx (Karen Hadfield) employs medical researchers, ...

    ONE EYED SOLO SHOW   Herald Sun, 26-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 111, 251 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Where and when: La Mama until October 4 THE balancing of the grotesque, the comic and the dramatic is difficult but mostly effective in American writer, Robert McNamara's comic-tragic monologue, I Cyclops. Cyclops is a sad old creature. He lives, bli...

    TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 25-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 086, 308 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Les Miserables: "Indeed, there was not a shabby performance in this Les Mis. Its crisp diction, superb singing voices, visual joys and sheer energy serve as a pristine model for the modern musical. "Rachael Beck as the tragic Fantine, Natali...

    RISING FISH WRIGGLES FROM THE HOOK   Herald Sun, 18-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 037, 286 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Rising Fish Prayer, by Adam May Where and when: Playbox Theatre, Malthouse; until October 3 THE rising fish of Adam May's title relates to the unlikely return of fish to the polluted waters around the fictional Australian Menzies gold mine in Papua-N...

   TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE   Herald Sun, 18-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 038, 341 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUST SEE Cross Cultures "The revival of Stanton Welch's Divergence, set to Bizet's L'Arlesienne is a masterstroke. "Agnes de Mille's Fall River Legend provided a strong contrast. "Por vos muero is the sort of fluid, soft-shoe, neo-classical work at w...

    SOUPY TITLE BELIES GOOD NIGHT AT THE THEATRE   Herald Sun, 11-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 085, 294 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Shark Fin Soup Where and When: Fairfax Theatre, Arts Centre, until October 10 THE latest play from Michael Gurr for the Melbourne Theatre Company, Shark Fin Soup, offers a really good night in the theatre. Gurr has a couple of hits on his han...

    LEAR JETS OFF IN NEW DIRECTIONS   Herald Sun, 05-09-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 105, 376 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
King Lear, by William Shakespeare Bell Shakespeare Company Where and when: Athenaeum, to September 19 BARRIE Kosky is nothing if not a naughty, irreverent director, and his interpretation of King Lear for Bell Shakespeare is certainly not classical. ..

.    WRITERS STAGE ROLE REVERSAL   Herald Sun, 19-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 045, 337 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Part One of Crossing The Line The Look The Floating Girl and the Man Who Whirled By: Jack Feldstein Where and when: Merlyn Theatre, the Malthouse, until tomorrow THE lure of screenwriting for playwrights is well documented. There is no brain drain in...

    VIRTUALLY NO ROOM FOR PEOPLE   Herald Sun, 18-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 050, 283 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Where and when: Brunswick Mechanics' Institute until August 23 Reviewer: Kate Herbert OUR sense of community is becoming a distant memory. We can bank by phone, shop on the Web, work from home. We change addresses, fear strangers, feel insecu...

    REVIEW   Herald Sun, 08-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 109, 189 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Some Mother's Son, by Jill O'Callaghan Where and when: La Mama, until August 23 THIS play replicates the intimacy of a B&B in Ballymalone, Ireland. But the warmth and cheer of the hearth is not echoed in its residents. Maura Kelly's (Libby Stone) hus...

    CLASS COMBO   Herald Sun, 07-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 084, 274 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Class combo Combo Fiasco When and where: Capers Restaurant, until August 22 "HEY, let's do a show," said three musical escapees from Phantom of the Opera. And so was born Combo Fiasco, a cabaret trio who have been wowing 'em in New York recently at t...

   ROOM FOR THOUGHT ON STAGE   Herald Sun, 03-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 092, 419 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Hotel Sorrento Where and when: Merlyn Theatre, Malthouse, until August 15 Reviewer: Kate Herbert AUSTRALIAN expatriates are an odd breed. When away, they may complain about their adopted culture and defend their homeland to the death. On returning ho...  

 WORTHY DROVER   Herald Sun, 01-08-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 109, 245 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Drover's Boy RAY Mooney's play, The Drover's Boy, deals with one of the many uncatalogued abuses of Aboriginal people. Last century it was illegal for black women to fraternise with white men, so a drover who was attached to an Aboriginal woman t...

    TAKE A PEEP BEHIND CLOSED DOORS   Herald Sun, 29-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 046, 428 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
theatre Behind Closed Doors When and where: La Mama, until August 2 Reviewer: Kate Herbert TUCKED into La Mama's snugness is a literary and theatrical gem. Howard Stanley's solo show, Behind Closed Doors, is a truly delightful, "must-see" performance...

    A PEEP INTO NINE LIVES   Herald Sun, 25-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 107, 331 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Speaking in Tongues, by Andrew Bovell When and where: Playbox at Beckett Theatre PEOPLE'S lives bleed into one another's, not necessarily by design, but often by accident. In Andrew Bovell's Speaking in Tongues, nine characters played by four actors ...

   GANG OF FOUR UNCONVINCING LIARS   Herald Sun, 24-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 080, 399 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Closer Melbourne Theatre Company Where and when: Fairfax Studio, Victorian Arts Centre, until August 22 EVERYBODY lies in English playwright Patrick Marber's Closer. They are all out of control, but the lack of control relates to love. Dan (M...

    NO FRILLS, BUT THRILLING   Herald Sun, 18-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 114, 347 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Faith Healer, by Brian Friel Presented by: The Old Van Where and when: The Shed, VCA, Dodds St, South Melbourne; until August 2. WHO needs a design with everything that opens and shuts, elaborate lighting, digital sound and a ridiculous budge...    HSUN0798.SRC.006   Herald Sun, 15-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 046, 652 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
"WE WANT theatre to have a sexy future not just a noble past!" La Mama artistic director Liz Jones says. Too right, agree theatre workers. But how do we get it? A recent summit at North Melbourne Town Hall spent two days devising a five-year plan for...

   TRY MEN'S CAKES FOR LUNCH   Herald Sun, 11-07-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 106, 268 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Cakes Men Like When and Where: Athenaeum II, 12.10pm (for 45 minutes), throughout July. Reviewer: Kate Herbert FOR a novel lunch in the city, go to the Athenaeum Theatre in Collins St and watch a half-hour show while supping on soup and bread for $5...

.    VICTIMS FIND A POWERFUL AND DRAMATIC VOICE   Herald Sun, 27-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 114, 409 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Tell Her that I Love Her Somebody's Daughter Theatre Where and when: Beckett Theatre, until July 11. WHEN a child's voice in the audience whispered, "What's dope?", you can bet the characters and some of the actors in Tell Her That I Love Her wish th...

    CHICAGO WILL MAKE YOU THINK   Herald Sun, 23-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 048, 393 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Chicago Chicago System 98 Not Yet It's Difficult Where and when: Athenaeum II, until July 4 MAKING an "old" play relevant is a popular pastime. John Bell dragged Henry IV into soccer-mad England; The Club recently translated easily to our '90s corpor...

   ACTING ON FAME AND FORTUNE   Herald Sun, 22-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 100, 426 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Amy's View by David Hare When and where: MTC Playhouse until July 18 SINCE the late '60s, British playwright David Hare has written full and layered roles for women. His roles on stage and screen have been played by Vanessa Redgrave, Judi Den...

    QUANTOCK STILL A CHARMER   Herald Sun, 15-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 100, 439 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Double Disillusion Where and when: Trades Hall from June 10. YET again we must declare our bias. Rod Quantock is this reviewer's local god of comedy. He is not, he declares, a political satirist but a "political vitriolist" and the Kennett and Howard...  

  HENRY'S HOTHEADS   Herald Sun, 13-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 106, 444 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Henry IV, by William Shakespeare Bell Shakespeare Company Where and when: Merlin Theatre, Malthouse, until June 27. Bookings: 9685 5111 SHAKESPEARE'S Henry IV is a study of the quest for power. It reveals the corruption of rulers, the folly o...

    TELLING IT AS IT IS IN REAL LIFE   Herald Sun, 10-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 049, 436 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Keene/Taylor Theatre Project Where and when: La Mama, at the Brotherhood of St Laurence Warehouse, 97 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, until June 21. Bookings: 9347 6142 IN THIS third series of the Keene/Taylor Theatre Project, the three short plays rely not o...

    KILLER PLAY STRIKES A CHORD   Herald Sun, 04-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 064, 315 words , HIT
Killer Joe When and where: Universal Theatre until June 14 Reviewer: Kate Herbert US playwright Tracy Letts created a seriously dysfunctional southern white trash family whom director Adrian Butcher has successfully translated to the deep north of Au...

    FOOD FOR ART SAKE   Herald Sun, 03-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 046, 284 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
A Cucumber Called Rebecca When and where: Five Square Metres at Matteo's, May 31 RESTAURATEUR, Matteo Pignatelli of Matteo's, is known for navigating a creative course in food service and his contribution to the Arts 2000 Dine Out week is no exceptio...

    SHEDDING NEW LIGHT   Herald Sun, 02-06-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 053, 439 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
TO BE a man and to stride purposefully down to the garden shed in search of a day's peace is healthy, even fashionable. But to stay there? Live there? Forsaking all but a tin mug, a blanket and sanctuary?...

    EYE LOSES WAY BEHIND FOOTPRINTS   Herald Sun, 29-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 083, 281 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Tear from a Glass Eye, by Matt Cameron When, where: Playbox at Beckett Theatre, until June 20 "I'M sorry, I seem to have lost myself," repeats Titus Petra (Peter Houghton), the lead in Matt Cameron's new play, Tear from a Glass Eye. He is a sketchy c...

    NEW HORIZONS FOR INDIGENOUS THEATRE   Herald Sun, 27-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 046, 408 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Horizons & Kickin' up the Dust David Williamson Theatre Where and when: Swinburne University, until Saturday IN RECENT years, Australia has seen the rise of numerous successful Aboriginal artists and companies in mainstream theatre: Jack Davis, John ...

    OBSESSION WITHOUT PASSION   Herald Sun, 25-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 100, 356 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Lucrezia and Cesare Where and when: Ranters Theatre Theatreworks until June A DUBIOUS fascination with sex and violence is the pivot of Raimondo Cortese's early play Lucrezia and Cesare. His character Cesare describes sex as "a despicable ble...

   HILARIOUS FOOTY   Herald Sun, 15-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 084, 435 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Club - Melbourne Theatre Company Where and when: the Playhouse, Victorian Arts Centre, until June 13 IF YOU can get the right blend of footy, jokes and blokes in the one piece of entertainment, you should have a sure-fire hit in Melbourne. Bruce ...  

 DIALOGUE   Herald Sun, 13-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 056, 645 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
KATE HERBERT asks if the Australian National Playwright's Conference has lost direction IT IS bitterly disappointing to discover that you have been at the only Australian National Playwrights' Conference which has not had a memorable squabble. Last m...

   HERE'S A CLASS ACT FOR THE WORKERS   Herald Sun, 05-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 051, 424 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
THEATRE Who's Afraid of the Working Class? Where and when: Melbourne Workers Theatre, Trades Hall Theatre, until May 23 IN AN era when our definition of "neighbors" is a TV soap, a play about human isolation, self-absorption and the loss of community...

    MIRACLES CAN AND DO HAPPEN IN LIFE   Herald Sun, 02-05-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 105, 450 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Miracles by Tobsha Learner When and where: Playbox until May 16 WE have no Aesop but we live in a time which cries out for contemporary fables. We must leave it to our novelists, filmmakers and playwrights. Such is the style of Tobsha Learner's lates...

   TAKING SHARP STICK   Herald Sun, 15-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 047, 432 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
She'll Be Right Lynda Gibson, Melbourne International Comedy Festival Where and when: Melbourne Town Hall until April 26 LYNDA Gibson's comedy is built around her leggy, awkward physique and quirky wriggling. Either that, or her wacko face-pulling. T...

    BRAVE ROD SOCKS IT TO 'EM   Herald Sun, 15-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 048, 288 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Crown of Thorns by Rod Quantock Where and when: Melbourne International Comedy Festival; Melbourne Town Hall; until April 26 IT'S already public knowledge: Rod Quantock is my comedy hero. He is smart, informed, articulate - and seriously funny. What ...

    HILLS ALIVE WITH LAUGHS   Herald Sun, 11-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 109, 423 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Adam Hills - Life is Good Where and when: Melbourne International Comedy Festival; Regent Room Melbourne Town Hall to April 26 LIFE is good . . . "with some sh....

    RODNEY MAKES HIS MARK   Herald Sun, 08-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 055, 415 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Rodney Marks: Hoaxes and Jokeses: A Language Sandwich. Where and when: La Mama, April 3-19 Kindling Does for Firewood Where and when: La Mama, April 1-19 Reviewer: Kate Herbert NO ONE could say the Melbourne International Comedy Festival lacks variet...

    NO SUGAR IN THE `CAKE WOMAN'   Herald Sun, 08-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 057, 264 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Jenny Eclair, Melbourne International Comedy festival When and where: Town Hall, until April 26 R UDE words and naughty bits are the forte of Jenny Eclair (or "that cake woman", as she is now known). The brassy blonde's rapid, wicked, unapologetic no...

   FALLING FOR FUNNY GIRLS   Herald Sun, 07-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 052, 290 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Nualas Melbourne International Comedy Festival Where and when: The Supper Room, Melbourne Town Hall, until April 5 These three women, all conveniently called Nuala, sing, mime, lament and prattle with us and one another. The audience almost immed...

   MID~SIZE THEATRES VANISH   Herald Sun, 01-04-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 047, 414 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
State of Play Victorian Playwrights Conference Where and when: at the Malthouse, March 28-29 But they struggle to survive in an economic and social environment which cares more for profit than cultural enrichment. Almost every discussion at the first...

    HSUN0398.SRC.012   Herald Sun, 28-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 106, 309 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Singsing When and where: La Mama Theatre, until tomorrow Reviewer: Kate Herbert LA MAMA provides artists with the freedom to experiment in a safe environment and the luxury of testing the water with untried ideas. In the case of Kurt Geyer's monodram...

    THEATRE : POIGNANT PARABLE OF DEATH   Herald Sun, 23-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 082, 412 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
White Neda When and where: at La Mama until Sunday Reviewer: Kate Herbert FOLK and fairy tales inevitably deal with the dark side. The Grimms recorded gruesome German folklore and such stories were common in other parts of Europe. The Bulgarian folk ...

    HILARIOUS MTC ON A SHAW THING   Herald Sun, 13-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 078, 441 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Misalliance Where and when: MTC Playhouse until April 4 Reviewer: Kate Herbert IT'S no wonder George Bernard Shaw so accurately depicted both the middle and the upper classes. He married money and was able to indulge his socialist philosophies, moder...

   DIALOGUE   Herald Sun, 11-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 056, 619 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
KATE HERBERT says the Adelaide Festival sets the standard for challenging theatre IT'S inevitable. After every Adelaide Festival, I return exhausted but inspired. The sheer vitality of the place, teeming with artists, international and local, creates...

    SISTER ACT HAS PANTO APPEAL   Herald Sun, 10-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 057, 405 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Sisterella Book, lyrics, music: Larry Hart Where and when: Regent Theatre, Saturday IMAGINE Cinderella as the unassuming daughter of a recently deceased billionaire. Her secretly wicked step-mother has at least two previous rich, dead husbands, a cou...

   NOTHING'S SACRED IN THIS LIFE   Herald Sun, 06-03-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 083, 406 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Nothing's sacred in this Life Natural Life Where and when: Adelaide Festival, until March 14 THE Adelaide Festival audience appeared bemused by Natural Life, Michael Kantor's transformation of Marcus Clarke's novel For the Term of His Natural Life, a...

    THEATRE REVIEW: PULSATING HOUSE OF PAIN   Herald Sun, 27-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 085, 422 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The House of Bernarda Alba Written by: Ferdinand Garcia Lorca Where and when: Malthouse until March 1 THE Spanish produced the first revenge tragedies in the 17th century, and the inherent vengeance was invariably related to defence of a woman's hono...

    PHILOSOPHY AT TOP SPEED   Herald Sun, 21-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 109, 260 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Dialogue Between a Priest and a Dying Man Where and when: La Mama until March 1 THE work of the Marquis de Sade is generally read rather than performed, although, perhaps in the privacy of some homes, who knows? His Dialogue Between a Priest and a Dy...

   THROWAWAY LINES   Herald Sun, 20-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 089, 341 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Keene/Taylor Theatre Project, Season Two, by Daniel Keene Where and when: La Mama at the Brotherhood of St Laurence until March 8 WHEN does despair become the only option? When does someone give up all hope and begin on the tragic path toward degrada...

   LOVE AND AGATHA CATASTROPHES   Herald Sun, 14-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 141, 413 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Agatha Written by: Marguerite Duras Where and when: La Mama; until March 1 For Oscar Wilde it was homosexuality, which is no longer illegal in most places. In Marguerite Duras's play Agatha, it is sibling love, the kind which is still illegal and tab...

 STRONG PIECES NEED SOME NEW DIRECTION   Herald Sun, 13-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 088, 294 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
theatre Confidentially Yours Edited and performed by Deidre Rubenstein Where and when: Playbox, Beckett Theatre, until February 28 T HE dramatic monologue is a perfect vehicle for both playwright and actor. Deidre Rubenstein had the luxury of selecti...

   NO LAUGHING MATTER   Herald Sun, 07-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 095, 863 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
SINCE The Last Laugh laughed its last in 1996, the jokers and their jokes seem to have wandered off stage and on to the airwaves. The closure of the institution marked the end of the boom era of live comedy in Melbourne, indeed in Australia. Initiall...

    UNTIDY SHED FAILS BACK YARD TEST   Herald Sun, 06-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 042, 443 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Shed Where and when: La Mama at the Courthouse, until February 14 A MAN needs a shed! It provides the great back-yard escape from family, responsibilities, workplace and domesticity. The Shed, by Jason Cross, constructs a 4x4 metre garden shed on...

    DIALOGUE   Herald Sun, 04-02-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 042, 598 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
MUSICALS are big business, which means big bucks. Australian producers have fewer bucks and are inclined to take fewer risks than those in the US and UK. We have smaller audiences, shorter seasons, fewer major composers and songwriters. We do wonderf...

   HILARIOUS HAT TRICK   Herald Sun, 28-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 054, 533 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
theatre The Leenane Trilogy by Martin McDonagh Druid Theatre/Royal Court Theatre Where and when: Footbridge Theatre, Sydney, until January 31, as part of the Sydney Festival NINE-AND-A-HALF hours at the theatre, including food and breaks, is heavy go...

   MAORI LEGEND LIVES   Herald Sun, 24-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 099, 371 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Mika Where and when: Universal Theatre 1 until February 1 YOU can get away with murder if you're charming and Mika could charm the pants off a Presbyterian choir. His pastiche of songs, dance and silly banter is hilariously trashy and defying definit...

    TITANIC'S BIG SPLASH   Herald Sun, 24-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 100, 363 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Titanic Theater Titanick Where and when: Forecourt, Sydney Opera House, 9pm, January 20-24; Perth Festival, February 13-19. APOCALYPTIC events take turns fascinating humanity. The "now" catastrophe is Titanic which has us in its inevitably watery gra...

   WONDERFUL WOODS   Herald Sun, 23-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 080, 401 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
INTO THE WOODS - as theatre Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine When and where: Melbourne Theatre Company, Playhouse, Victorian Arts Centre, until February 21 STEPHEN Sondheim's Into The Woods is fabulous in both senses of the word. First, it is an exc...

    NEW LOOK INSPIRES EMOTION   Herald Sun, 21-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 037, 418 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Thieving Boy & Like Stars in My Hands Written by: Tim Conigrave, adapted by Tony Ayres Where and when: Beckett Theatre until January 31 TO BE at the opening during Midsumma Festival of Tim Conigrave's two plays was to see the works twice removed. The...

    PRIM TO PRUDENT   Herald Sun, 03-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 096, 522 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Julie Andrews - A life on stage and screen JULIE Andrews was dubbed Miss Prim and Proper by the venomous New York gossip columnist Joyce Haber. But the singer's shattering of her squeaky clean image would cause her to lose her glittering public profi...

    SHREW IS LACKING IN SUBTLETY   Herald Sun, 02-01-1998, Ed: 2, Pg: 080, 356 words , ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
The Taming of the Shrew Shakespeare Where and when: Botanical Gardens, throughout summer THERE are many ways to interpret The Taming of the Shrew. Playing it outdoors limits the more subtle choices. Glenn Elston's production follows that of A Midsumm...