Tomfoolery

Tomfoolery: The Words and Music of Tom Lehrer
Melbourne Theatre Company
25 November 2006
The Arts Centre, Playhouse

From its unexpected and explosive opening, Tomfoolery is a thoroughly enjoyable night of song, dance and comedy. As expected of the Melbourne Theatre Company, it is designed, directed and performed very well, but it fails to be the challenging and irresistible theatre that should be produced by our local flagship company.

Tomfoolery was adapted by Cameron Mackintosh and Robin Ray in 1980, as a cabaret of loosely linked Tom Lehrer songs. Lehrer’s work remains funny - very funny. How can you not laugh at 'The Masochism Tango', 'The Vatican Rag' and 'I Got It from Agnes'. His writing is intelligent and witty, but it has become nostalgia rather than the contemporary and shocking satire that it once was. The inclusion of very recent material referencing Korean nuclear testing, Dick Cheaney and murdered KGB agents, reinforced that the absurdities of politics and war really never change. Nonetheless, it didn’t comment on Australian society, apart from proving that we are more aware of US and UK politics than we are of our own.

I also have to question why it was performed in the “original American”, apart from to set up a couple of jokes. Were the accents necessary? Would anyone perform a translated Asian language work with a bad “oriental” accent? The American accents just seemed to distance it further from our own lives.

Then again, I may have been the only person in the audience thinking like that. Tomfoolery is a perfect choice for the (slightly) conservative MTC audience, who were happy to enjoy the show for the nostalgic song and dance night that it was.

The stand out performance of the evening was Mitchell Butel. In fact, it is worth seeing Tomfoolery just for Mitchell. He understood every nuance of the material, supported the ensemble and never let his energy or concentration drop. Keep an eye out for his Elmo in Act 2.

Melissa Madden Grey continued to prove herself to be one of the most versatile, disciplined and funniest around, and Gerry Connolly and Bert LaBonte were contrasting and ideal additions to the ensemble.

The show is, however, being marketed on Rhonda Burchmore. Rhonda is one of our best, but her performance was disappointing. Her energy was low, she didn’t seem to be enjoying herself and failed to reach the standard set by the rest of the cast. She may have been having an off night, but there is no excuse for constantly rearranging jewellery and costume (please just cut the train off that frock), looking at your feet when you move, and failing to stay in character when not “in the spotlight”. The contrast between her and the younger members of the cast was especially noticeable. Learn from those who still love every moment they get on a stage.

If you want well-performed, light-hearted fun for your holiday season theatre outing, Tomfoolery is a good choice, but there are funnier, more relevant and just as well performed cabaret shows next door at the Speigeltent.

This review originally appeared on AussieThearte.com.

Tina C: Sometimes I Frighten Myself

Sometimes I Frighten Myself
Tina C
The Famous Spiegeltent
1 November 2006

Saddle up cowboys and girls, as Tina C is in the Spiegeltent, and she may just be the best ride in this lil’ ol’ town.

Tina C is a true superstar. With politics as sharp as her stilettos and material as tight as her hotpants, she shines as garishly bright as the rhinestones on her Elvis inspired cape.

All the way from Throat Holler, Tennessee, Condy Rice has sent her on an anti-anti-American tour. She tells us she is an example of the soft power of America, rather than their hard power; because cultural imperialism is better than “What did it used to be called? Oh yea – war”.

She proves that white trash has nothing to do with colour or income; it’s a state of mind, nay a state of grace. Remember – to quote the title of Tina’s first album – “It ain’t easy being easy” and, just like the Virgin Mary, we can all open our hearts and feel like we have a little Jesus inside of us. Makes me kind of wish I’d married a cousin when I was 12.

Moonee Ponds is a long way from a Tennessee trailer park, but Tina C has a lot in common with our own superstar Dame Edna. Outstanding taste in clothing and amazing legs aside, she knows that the only thing funnier than relevant political satire is a count joke (pronounced as in country) and I do want the “No Dick is as Hard as My Life” cd and t-shirt.

Tina C is the creation of UK actor and writer Chris Green and she is always “she”. Like Barry Humphries, the performer never lets the actor interfere with the character. Tina C may be a parody of American-white-trash-conservative-country-music-singing-Christians, but she is real and completely believable. I had trouble accepting that she isn’t really American.

Tina C is appearing on November 8, 15, 24, 25 and 26 at the Spiegeltent. Her show was a delightful surprise to me. I didn’t stop laughing. She is one of the best who deserves her “whole” (rather than just her parts) loved by many.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

The Opera Burlesque

The Opera Burlesque
19 November 2006
The Famous Spiegeltent

Review by Christina Cass

“Opera singers can sing but they sure as hell can’t act”, are mutters often heard while the audience files out of Carmen or La Traviata. That’s what keeps many people away from embracing the opera format – the stiffness of the performers we often see (which, by the way, has loosened up quite a bit lately). Ah! But the music is so dreamy that watching Pavarotti poke around the stage barely physically connected to the text of the story – much less barely resembling the character – doesn’t matter.

Not so with Ali McGregor’s The Opera Burlesque triumphantly back from the Edinburgh Festival for another Melbourne engagement at the Famous Spiegeltent. Ali McGregor, Antoinette Halloran and Dimity Shepherd make up the trio of lovely laced-up vocalists who can also act! That’s what struck me about halfway through their show – how wonderful it was to enjoy beautiful, classically trained voices wrapping their delicious vocal chords (not to mention corset chords) around uniquely mixed interpretations of Puccini, Madonna, and AC/DC all while being fully invested in their characters.

Okay, okay, bad boys and horny babes -- love gone murderously wrong and songs about tongue-tied ‘cunning linguists’ may not bring these ever-so-slightly-tarnished lilies a Tony Award, but to see a well-structured kabaret performed with polish is a great treat. This cheeky burlesque business can sometimes be just haphazard, titillating vaudevillian fare – which in itself can be very fun, don’t get me wrong, The Opera Burlesque has plenty of that but it also has a bit more structure than just getting down and dirty.

McGregor, who also directed the show, was apparently inspired by a late 19th Century group of opera singers who used to creep out of the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, dash across to the East End and perform their arias in corsets and drawers for the vaudeville loving public. Parodying popular theatre of the day, these ladies gave the audience a taste of opera that they may not otherwise either experience or care for and that’s exactly what The Opera Burlesque ladies are leaving its audience today.

The Opera Burlesque has one final show, November 20, 2006 @ the Spiegeltent 9:15pm – try not to miss it!

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com

Babes In The Wood

Babes In The Wood
Malthouse Theatre
18 November 2006
Merlyn Theatre, CUB Malthouse

There has been more media coverage of Babes In the Wood over the last couple of weeks than most Malthouse productions receive for a season. Why? A song about Steve Irwin. It has been misquoted and taken out of context by every story I’ve read (including one on AussieTheatre).

Before September, Irwin was been a ripe target for satire, but now we have to be careful. (If you have just woken from a coma – Steve Irwin died in September). I’ve seen the great controversy. It’s a loving, kind, funny and totally respectful song about an iconic Aussie bloke who sings that we should all try doing the thing we love. He then dies doing what he loves, when three ridiculous stingrays come dancing in. If anything it is satirising the public response to Irwin’s death – who didn’t find themselves saying, “At least he was doing what he loved.” The only person who should be offended is Germaine Greer. Her character is the one singing all the misquoted lines.

There we go – another 170 words devoted to one of the best publicity calls made by a theatre company. I’m sure many tickets will be bought just to see this scene. It’s a good reason to go - it’s funny, respectful and relevant. In fact, it stands out as one of the better moments of Babes In The Wood.

If you saw the 2003 production of Babes In The Wood, don’t expect Babes 2 (in the city). This is the same production, with some new material. I missed the original, so cannot compare the two.

It is good old-fashioned pantomime, created intelligently. The opening scenes are enticing and captivating. It is great to openly laugh and enjoy “serious” theatre. How many other mediums allow you to boo at a John Howard joke and scream back “Oh no he isn’t” when the panto dame declares he’s a bold and visionary prime minister.

Sadly the show loses momentum and never recaptures the opening energy (except for the Steve Irwin number). A lot of material would read well in the script, but slows the show down on the stage. I know its hard to cut your good lines, but some people didn’t come back after interval. Much of the material is still relevant, but has lost the impact and power that it had in 2003. Tamper/children overboard, un-Australian, war on terror - is this political comment for 2006?

There is new material, but it seems to have been forced into the old script. The Rumsfeld “known and unknowns” joke was most welcome, "Under the Milky Way" at least referenced the Commonwealth Games and, if you look carefully, you may notice a reference to Steve Irwin.

The original music is terrific and supported by an eclectic and illogical soundtrack of 70s and 80s pop hits. The tradition of panto is to use contemporary music, but these retro moments are not contemporary. If it is a commentary on society today, why not use the music of the starettes that fill our media as much as any politician? Kylie’s return, aging rockers on the Countdown tour, wealthy singers trying to make poverty history, Australian Idol and Brittany are all too easy targets. (Amanda Vandstone singing, “Opps I did it again” instead of Nutbush?) Agadoo is funny – but what is its relevance?

What does sustain the production is the terrific cast. Caroline Craig, Diana Emry, Julie Forsyth, Max Gilles, Francis Greenslade, Eddie Perfect and Lucy Taylor. Each one as perfect as Eddie, having a ball on the stage and making sure the audience also enjoy the absurdity and silliness of the panto.

Babes In The Wood is a fun and irreverent night out, but is not the seditious political satire that I expected.


This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Tarnished

Tarnished
The La La Parlour
17 November 2006
The Famous Spiegeltent

Tarnished is ideal Speigeltent fare. It’s tight, sassy, funny and enjoyable, but remains unpolished. The appeal of the La La Parlour is their tarnished acts, but the show lacks the content and substance that would make it an outstanding cabaret.
 
Imogen Kelly, Tiger Lil, Kellie Vella and Neridah Waters are all engaging and fabulous performers. However, they need to decide if they are performing as themselves or as characters. Either way, further character development would create a much more intimate, and I suspect funny, show. There were hints of character and relationships between the four, but not enough to take it from a series of vaudeville style acts and turn it into an ensemble work.
 
Described as a shotgun marriage of circus and burlesque, Tarnished is two genres being forced to work together. Clowning, acrobalance, hoops and aerial are combined with the traditional vaudeville tradition of women getting their gear off. Artists like Azaria Universe have proven that the circus/burlesque marriage can be perfect, and with many female artists positively reclaiming burlesque traditions (Kunst ist Sheisse, The Burlesque Hour, The Town Bikes), it is unusual to see the tradition not being used as a questioning of gender, sexuality, desire and body image.
 
The Marie Antoinette cake strip, the spark spitting vagina and ongoing jokes about the shortest member of the ensemble do fit in the political burlesque category, but could all be developed further. The theme of the night appears to be knickers. The possibilities and power of this theme is endless, but isn’t used anywhere near as much as it could be. The poo/period stained pair of huge grundies is always funny, but how about a stained lacy g-string? Everyone should have left wondering if they were wearing “you know you want me” or “I can’t pick up tonight” undies.
 
Nonetheless, the sold out audience loved Tarnished. It is well worth seeing and totally enjoyable, but don’t go along expecting sharp politics and substance.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Some Faces You Know

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
Some Faces You Know
Ozanam House
14 October 2006
Festival Hub

Some Faces You Know is an outdoor puppet show presented in a cold back alley. This is relevant theatre, sharing authentic and moving stories about people we tend to ignore.

The production is presented by residents at Ozanam House, a crisis accommodation service, and participants of Ozanam Community Centre, a drop in centre for homeless and marginalised people.

They have been involved in a Community Cultural Development (CCD) project, supported by funding from the City Of Melbourne and Arts Victoria. CCD is what used to be called community arts, a practice where the creative process is as important as the final product. Working with artists over four months, the Ozanam House community have created a show that lets us share their stories, their hopes and their dreams. Using a combination of statistics and real stories, it successfully challenges stereotypes and misconceptions about the homeless.

The chosen format of shadow, suit and banner puppets allows participation regardless of previous skill and enables stories to be shared without being put under the personal and direct gaze of the audience.

The choice of venue is perfect. This cold dark alley would normally be actively avoided by the Fringe audience, but we are led in to see that is has been transformed into a welcoming and beautiful space. The extreme Melbourne weather continually reminding us that this is not always such a nice place to hang out.

The joy of open access fringe programs is that this type of show is as valued as the most refined professional production. Presenting it as part of the Fringe has brought a new and welcome audience to this style of project. Some Faces You Know is a genuinely creative, engaging and moving work of theatre that deserves to be seen.

Bash

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
Bash
5Kinds Theatre
11 October 2006
LaVish Modern Cuisine

Neil LaBute’s Bash is a well-known and brilliant piece of contemporary writing. The characters and their stories are complex and compelling. 5KindsTheatre demonstrate a deep understanding and passion for the text, but don’t succeed in sharing this understanding with their audience.

Bash is four monologues; the last two presented concurrently as different versions of the same night. All are about unexpected and violent murder. This production relied far too heavily on the shock value of the text, rather than letting the audience understand and connect to the characters.

Bash is written to be confessed directly to the audience. Confession fails without an intimate connection with your “confessee”. The design of the space does not help the actors in creating an intimate connection. We were sitting in on two sides of the stage, some on the floor, some on chairs and in full view of each other. It was not only difficult for the audience to focus on the stage, but even more difficult for the actors to focus on the audience. I can see how it was designed to be intimate, but, ironically, it would be more powerful with a traditional stage set up.

Grant Cartwright (Iphegenia in Orem) refused to make eye contact with any member of the audience. Without doubt this is a difficult piece to perform, but it is an empty performance if it is told to various spots on the wall. Grant’s delivery is strong, but he hit an intense level almost immediately, giving his character nowhere to go emotionally. Joshua Hewitt (A Gaggle of Saints) seemed to learn from Grant’s performance and made constant eye contact with one side of the audience. This made for a much more engaging character, but didn’t allow us to focus on the other character in the scene and most of the audience missed out on his connection. Ella Watson-Russell struck the best balance in Medea Redux and to her side of the audience in A Gaggle of Saints.

I can’t help but compare this production to another Fringe show - Debris. Both are violent contemporary texts based on monologue - one is presented by recent NIDA graduates and one by recent VCA graduates. Debris is superb theatre, Bash would benefit from more time at drama school.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Milk

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
Milk
The Town Bikes
10 October 2006
Festival Hub, Lithuanian Club

The Town Bikes have taken their short, sharp, funny dance routines and successfully developed them into perverted pantomime.

The Bikes present two longer pieces based on the theme of milk. Lacteus Praesul is very different from the expected Bike/twin routine. It’s a semi-drag love story between a prince and princess, playing absurdly with classical ballet, pantomime and innuendo worthy of a “carry on “ film. Milk develops directly from the established and loved Bike acts, with a montage of dance routines and competitive interplay between the characters.

John-Paul Hussey directed Milk and appears as Brian of Aberdeen, the MC and stage manager. I have always like the absurd narrative and visual delights of his work, but am unsure about the combination of Bikes directed by Hussey.

As a theme milk has limitless potential. The Bikes play with mother’s milk, breast obsession, milk commercials, milk in pop culture and even death. The rest of the show needs some relevance to create cohesion. Each night there is special guest act, but they appear to have no connection to the theme. Brian is a curious character, but his only link to milk is that he was probably bottle-fed.

The show loses energy and drags during the act changeovers. I love a show that makes the audience participate in its creation, but asking us to talk among ourselves as the stage was reset is a bit lazy and fell flat – despite a very supportive audience. Ironically the Bikes were the perfect interlude between acts during The Burlesque Hour.

The Town Bikes are still an original and fabulous act. Milk is great fun, but a great cabaret show needs a tight structure and a consistent theme.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

I’d Like a Nicer Planet Please

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
I’d Like a Nicer Planet Please
Duff
11 October 2006
Bar Open

Duff declares I’d Like A Nicer Planet Please and proceeds with the standard routine about the evils of capitalism and the evils of any alternative - all oddly combined with prop gags, mime and object puppetry.

There has been much experimentation with form in this Fringe, but none as unique as Duff’s Confectionary Theatre. Object puppetry meets a Seven 11 in Expulsion of Adam and Eve. It’s a tray full of lollies – with the toffee apple of good and evil and God being represented by a pair of lolly teeth. To balance the food groups an apple-based and a potato-based story soon follow. Don’t get me wrong – this is bad theatre, but it is unique.

Duff is rightly angry at the state of the world’s politics. He opening is relevant, with the first Korean nuclear test joke I’ve heard this festival, but the rest of his material jumps from idea to idea, with no consistent (or coherent) theme.

Improvisation is a vital part of a stand up, but needs to be balanced with structure. Duff has some great one-liners - the Big Picture that politicians talk about is really just a 33 inch plasma screen – but their strength is diluted by his sometimes irrelevant improv. His mad rush at the end to include material meant that the material suffered. The final impressions are good; much better than the long improv about fucking a skank at confest. Balance and structure develop as a show runs, but rehearsal also helps.

Duff is appealing and unique, but the show needs a lot of work to be a polished act. See it if you like hanging out at Bar Open and supporting local comedy.

PS- just a quick note to Duff. I am an active supporter of the Coke boycott, but the brand of water you drank, and referred to, is the Coke owned brand of water, so grab another brand or rip the label off.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Songs for the Deaf

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
Songs for the Deaf
Red Ribbon Productions
8 October 2006
Festival Hub, Lithuanian Club

Songs For the Deaf is three short works by South Australian playwright Caleb Lewis. His writing is fresh, clever and wickedly black. The performances are real and Anna Held’s direction is excellent. So why isn’t this engaging theatre?

I unfortunately missed the first play, due to a rigorously enforced, and possibly unnecessary, latecomers policy. I was going to leave, but a big brown bear convinced me to stay.

The bear appeared in Bunny. Lewis’ work appears to develop from scenario. What if a bear and a rabbit met on a beach?

This bunny and bear have come from a costume party and gradually “take off their costumes” to expose their true selves. The symbolism is obvious, but it works in an absurdist way. Lewis devises some disturbing stories for the characters to reveal and the performances by Andrew Brackman and Carolyn Ramsey are subtle and quite beautiful.

Rocketbaby is divine black comedy with an Australian suburban voice. What if a child died on Funniest Home Videos?

Sarah Lockwood is delightful and believable as Becca. She is 10, lives in Giles Plains and this is her video to her trusted angel – FHV host – Toni Pearen. (Maybe change the suburb to suit Melbourne. Giles Plains means a lot – only if you are from Adelaide.) Becca’s family are having a tough time, but their obsession with FHV is going to save them.

Lewis takes delight in torturing the ever-hopeful Becca. Her story is compelling, even though the introduction of a gun in the exposition does hint that it isn’t going to be a happy ending. Still – I didn’t care about Becca and her fate (or that of the bear and bunny).

This is well crafted writing, but it’s almost too clever for its characters. When you write from situation, rather than character, the voice on the stage is the writer’s, not the charaters’. If the people on the stage are not telling us their authentic story, we don’t believe them, we don’t care about them and the intimate empathy of theatre is lost.

Fringes are about presenting the art you love and seeing if it speaks to an audience. I admired, respected and enjoyed Songs For the Deaf, but it needs the voice of authentic characters to make it captivating theatre.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

The Pegasus Story and DEBRIS

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
The Pegasus Story
DEBRIS
Arts Projects Australia
Ride On Theatre and Black Lung Theatre
7 October 2006
Festival Hub, Lithuanian Club
High St

Picking the right double bill is an important part of the Fringe. This was a good night. I chose this double because they had both had successful productions interstate. Debris was acclaimed in Sydney and The Pegasus Story sold out at the Adelaide Fringe. Both have benefited from their “out of town” runs with tight, well-rehearsed shows. They are very different types of theatre, but both explore the use of monologue to tell their stories.

The Pegasus Story is thoroughly engaging and proves how truth is sometimes far more fascinating than fiction.

Mark De Ionno isn’t a trained actor; he’s just a guy telling us his story. He suffered a psychotic episode in mid 2000. The Pegasus Story is a very revealing and personal insight into Mark’s manic depression. Knowing he came though safely, we can sit back and enjoy the journey from northern Australian desert to Adelaide’s seediest street.

Mark’s story works, because it is not a performance. He easily evokes the empathy and compassion needed to draw the audience into his life. Working with director Daisy Brown has enhanced the story telling by using simple elements of theatre. The props, costumes, slides and perfect live music support the story, never compromising Mark’s affable personality or honest approach.

The strength of this work lies in its truth and I fully believe in moulding facts to tell a greater truth. An opening and reoccurring joke is that his initials are MAD, but he is not credited as Mark Anthony De’Ionno. Another good joke is set up with Mark working as an Indigenously sensitive tour guide, but he refers to Uluru as Ayers Rock. These are tiny, almost irrelevant criticisms, but if they cause the audience to doubt Mark, the veracity of the rest of his story is also doubted.

Debris has a very different creative team. All are recent NIDA graduates and this production is a testament to the outstanding quality of actor, director and designer emerging from the school. The text is also based on a style of monologue, but uses theatrical technique to tell its story.

The design, by the company, arrests you the moment you enter the space. It is so successful that I was initially genuinely horrified and felt very uncomfortable being there - until I realised just how brilliant the design concept was. (However, the risk and safety elements of the design really do need more consideration.) Ailsa Paterson’s costumes also come from a clear understanding of the text and reflect every nuance of the themes and characters.

Under the direction of Tanya Goldberg, this is intelligent theatre that engages your brain and your senses. Bojana Novakovic and Thomas Campbell give two of the best performances I’ve seen this Fringe. But does Debris tell a good story?

Before I could write about this show I had to do some serious googling to understand it. The need to research indicates that there is something not quite right with the story telling. Once I realised there was a common criticism in other Debris productions, I stopped analysing the acting and direction and looked at the text.

Debris is Dennis Kelly’s debut work, first presented in the UK in 2003. This is dark, absurd and extreme material. The language is stunning, but appears to be written for its own sake. I want to “read” this play. Unfortunately, the brilliance of the language often confuses and overwhelms the story telling. I was unsure if there were two, four or multiple characters talking to us and, despite faultless delivery, I found myself drifting away during the some of the monologues and losing the narrative thread.

Debris is astonishing theatre. I was shocked by the character’s stories, but it didn’t succeed in making me care about what happened to those children on the stage. By using minimal theatre and maintaining its authentic voice, The Pegasus Story is a more engaging experience because it tells a damn good story.

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

Living On The Edge...Of My Bed

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
Living On The Edge...Of My Bed
The Bedroom Philosopher
Vanilla Productions
3 October 2006
Festival Hub, Lithuanian Club

I don’t know if Living On The Edge...Of My Bed is fumbling improvisation or the base of what could be an ingenious character. Either way, the show didn’t hit its stride the night I saw it.

Justin Heazlewood is The Bedroom Philosopher, but is The Bedroom Philosopher Justin Heazlewood? There was a lot of authentic and original material, but also a lot of confusion between the character and the performer. Neither were consistently on the stage. The Philosopher seemed to sing the songs and Justin appeared in between. I wanted to like either of them, but the appearance of one, made you frustrated by the other.

The Bedroom Philosopher has an active following through his radio and short appearances. He performs some terrific songs. The ones about buying mmmmdoms at the chemist, being over girls and his nan loving Radiohead are very funny and perfect devices for showing the Philosopher and his journey. The physical humour also supports the character (the harmonica gags are very special). Then there is the bizarre and surreal Swan song – all three versions. Bizarre is funny, but it doesn’t add to our understanding of the character. Bizarre needs context to really work.

I’ve said a lot recently about shows that reach a general audience by aiming at a specific audience. I have no idea who The Bedroom Philosopher is talking to. Characters work best when the audience understand them, like them and are taken on a journey with them. We love the fumbly nervous characters because we empathise with their weaknesses, but the empathy only comes though an understanding of who they are.

There are some great moments in Living On The Edge...Of My Bed, but they are just static moments that don’t come together as a full-length show. Letting the Philosopher (rather than Justin) control the show may lead to the cohesion and empathy that are missing.

My next show on this evening was Stephen K Amos – he played a character and then appeared as himself. Each knew exactly who they were when they were on stage. Stand up comedy can and should be this good. He had me at hello and I laughed non-stop with about 400 other people for over an hour. If you love and respect your audience, you can take the piss out of them and they come with you every step of the way.

 
This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.

The Taking of Ramsey Street

MELBOURNE FRINGE 2006
The Taking of Ramsey Street
theatre in decay
1 October 2006
Festival Hub, Lithuanian Club

There is racial tension on the suburban beaches of Australia. An enigmatic and zealous religious leader has convinced a young, hurt and angry teenager that a backpack full of explosives will teach the right lesson. However this leader is a Hillsong Christian and the teenager is a good, white, aussie kid. The Taking of Ramsey Street is the kind of material that theatre in decay do best.

This time it’s done as a satire of Australian soap opera  – complete with commercial breaks – and as a musical. All the elements are wrong, but the combination is so right.

Written and composed by Robert Reid, The Taking of Ramsey Street takes the conservative prejudices of Australia and splatters them in our faces. This is theatre for the young and angry, that plays with the conventions of the older and more jaded.

Presented as a workshop, this show should not be viewed as a completed production. The experience and ability of the performers varies greatly and it is presented in an empty black space. The Taking of Ramsey Street has some serious development ahead. It takes too long to establish the characters and a sense of plot, but once it gets going the tension develops and there are some nice little twists. I’m looking forward to seeing what it becomes.

PS: Have a quick look away from the stage, Reid silently sings along to the whole show. Once More with Feeling Rob...

This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com.