Theatre: Le Foulard, Bane 2 and Never Mind the Monsters

Never Mind the Monsters

Blue Room

Bane 2 and Le Foulard

PICA

Lucy Hopkins

Lucy Hopkins only made one mistake in her magnetic, witty Le Foulard – its fabulous first line: “You are about to receive something of a very high quality”.

There’s no denying that what followed was. What she didn’t know, however, is that the “about” was redundant; we’d already had “very high quality” twice that night in the Blue Room’s Summer Nights series with Never Mind the Monsters and Bane 2.

Link here to the complete review in The West Australian  

Theatre: The Improved

The Skeletal System

for Fringe World

Written and directed by Will O’Mahony

Designed by Alicia Clements

With Glenn Hall, Andreas Lohmeyer and Will O’Mahony

The Blue Room

Feb 12 - 16, 2013

One of the pleasures of fringe is getting a first look at local work that has the potential for longer runs and other stages. A good example was Rachel Dease’s sombre and exciting City of Shadows, which went on from last year’s Fringe to critical acclaim in the tough New York Fringe and, happily for me, had a short encore run here last week.

So far this time around, Jeffrey Jay Fowler’s Minnie and Mona showed the theatrical smarts and sharp performances to go to the next step, and it’s now joined by Will O’Mahony’s tense, twisting The Improved.

It’s infuriating to hear about shows after they’ve gone. Hopefully, they, and you, will get another chance to get Improved somewhere, and soon.

Link here to the complete review in The West Australian.

Theatre: Three Little Pigs

Devised by Tara Louise Notcutt and the cast

Directed by Tara Louise Notcutt

Performed by Albert Pretorius, James Cairns and Rob van Vuuren

Fringe World

Until February 24

The small but deadly strike force South Africa has sent to infiltrate our Fringe has hit again, this time with a taut, hilarious political allegory about – you guessed it – three pig brothers and a big, bad wolf.

The brothers are pigs of the “’ello, ’ello, ’ello”, as well as the ham and bacon, variety, and two of them have been blown up and blowtorched by a shadowy crime boss (their finger-lickingly delicious autopsy is a highlight). The younger, smaller brother (Rob van Vuuren) knows the bad guys are after him next, and goes squealing to the cops, in particular an Irish goat (Albert Pretorious) and a hard as nails chicken (James Cairns).

They take the case to the head of the Pig Squad the brothers had been members of, Vark Jansen (a gloriously funny name, sounding for all the world like an very impolite imprecation, when said with the appropriate accent), and the hunt for the murderer is on.

It’s great fun, but for all the fun and games, there’s serious intent behind the laughs. I’ve speculated before that the extraordinary history and ethnic, political and economic circumstances of SA have produced an alternative theatre with a particular energy and edginess.

I wonder if any other national theatre can produce work with this fever, and this determination. It’s both instructive and inspirational to have these fine examples of it at our Fringe.

Link here to the complete review in The West Australian.

Theatre: Dirt

Written by Nick Warren

Directed by Jenine Collocott

Performed by James Cairns

Until February 23

I was talking with the all-pervasive Joe Lui, who almost seems to be holding alternative theatre in Perth together by dint of personal effort, about the South African shows at this year’s Fringe.

We were struck by the urgency of these performances. Even a relatively slight rom-com like Love @ First Bite had an edge; and Dirt, a vastly more considerable piece, was savage in its a febrile energy and intensity.

Much of this is due to the phenomenal power of James Cairns, who delivers the theatre performance of the festival thus far, but there’s something else besides. Joe and I thought perhaps, even though the characters Cairns plays in Dirt, like those in First Bite and last year’s Fringe highlight …miskien, are white, middle class, hedonistic and complacent ­– just like us, in fact – South African history is so different, and these characters’ place in its society so much less absolute, that it completely changes the torque of their theatre writing and performance.

Three men are travelling from Johannesburg to Cape Town for the funeral of a friend. They have his dog with them in the car. Like a good road movie, there’s revelation and conflict, tragedy (of the canine variety) and a psychic, as well as physical, destination to reach. The dirt of the title is manifestly that poured into the grave of their friend at the end, but it’s also that which gets dug up and spread on their journey.

Cairns has a terrific ear for voices, and each of his characters is distinct and memorable. As well as the three travellers and the dog – Cairns does him proud – there are incidental characters, especially a hilariously mock-obsequious Indian South African traffic cop, that he switches between without skipping a beat.

A word of warning: the two Parade Teatro tents are struggling to cope with our new summer paradigm (thank God global warming is a myth, hey), and the industrial fans being used as part of the solution can be an unfortunate distraction. If you’re going to Dirt – and I hope you will – it’s worth finding a seat where they are as unobtrusive as possible.

An edited version of this review appeared in The West Australian link here

Theatre: Watt

The Gate Theatre Dublin

for the Perth Festival

From the novel by Samuel Beckett

Selected and performed by Barry McGovern

Directed by Tom Creed

Heath Ledger Theatre

Until February 17

When the doors closed at the Heath Ledger Theatre, something happened.

The audience reduced their conversations to a whisper, in anticipation of the arrival of the actor on stage. When, however, some time had passed and the play did not begin, and as if on cue, the whisperers resumed talking at their previous volume. This sudden increase in sound suggested that an incident of some kind had occurred, impelling people to look for it. Others, seeing the direction in which many of their fellows were looking, began looking in that direction as well. People, unable to see for themselves what had occurred (because nothing had), began asking each other what was going on.

It was an auspicious beginning for a night in the company of a writer with an unsurpassed ability to describe what happens when nothing does, and an actor, in Barry McGovern, with the skill and focus to bring it to the stage.

Link here to my complete review in The West Australian

Theatre: The Wives of Hemingway and Birdboy

The best and brightest of Perth's young theatre artists are out and about in force at the Fringe and, even more than the touring acts rampaging through the festival, it's a chance for them to experiment and extend their range.
But, before you read on, remember that no matter how talented and inspired the people behind them are, not every experiment works, not every extension sticks, and that's as it should be. Just saying.

The Wives of Hemingway

Side Pony and Productions Weeping Spoon Productions

Directed by Zoe Pepper

Starring Adriane Daff, Josh Price and Tim Watts

North Perth Bowling Club

Until February 16.

Tim Watts, Josh Price and Adriane Daff

Tim Watts is the kid who wouldn't grow up, and he and his lost boys (and girls) play theatre like others play ultimate frisbee. It may not be theatre for kids, but it has many of the qualities of a game a bunch of them might play in their cubby.

Watts, director Zoe Pepper and the others have delivered some of the most justly admired and popular alternative Perth theatre in recent times (Alvin Sputnik, The Pride, It’s Dark Outside, Pollyanna) and they have earned some pretty major Get Out of Jail Free cards with their audience.

They’ll have to spend one of them this time, though. For all its audacity and smarts, Wives is seriously self-indulgent and more than a bit sloppy around its edges. They aren’t fatal flaws, by any means, and there are plenty of moments to savour, but most of the twists in the story are gratuitous, and there is no, repeat no, take away from the piece.

Link here to my complete review in The West Australian.

Birdboy

by Ian Sinclair

The Wet Weather Ensemble

Directed by Moya Thomas

With St John Cowcher, Alicia Osyka, Ian Sinclair and Moana Lutton

PICA

Until February 16

I could try to tell you what happens in Birdboy, but I have no idea whether it would represent its actual narrative or the intentions of the award-winning – and genuinely talented – collective, The Wet Weather Ensemble (The Bearskinner, Adam & Eve). You may come to an entirely different conclusion. As to any allegorical, metaphorical or cautionary purpose behind it all, your guess is as good as mine.

Birdboy is the result of an impressive development process, both here and in the US, but it feels like there’ve been too many cooks putting way too many ingredients into the broth. I’m sure the ensemble knows exactly what they are trying to prepare, but that’s not much help to us diners.

Link here to my complete review in The West Australian

Theatre: The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart

by David Greig

The National Theatre of Scotland

Directed by Wils Wilson

Composer and musical director Alasdair Macrae

With Annie Grace, Melody Grove, Alasdair Macrae, Paul McCole and David McKay

Little Creatures Loft and The Melbourne Hotel until February 24 (waiting list only)

Last year you could still get a ticket to The National Theatre of Scotland’s pulverising Beautiful Burnout deep into the season. No such luck this time. The company’s third visit to the Perth Festival, The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart, already has a waiting list, and it’s going to get very, very long.

The rush is, in part, because of the company’s well-earned reputation here, and because the festival’s publicity promised “rip-roaring action” set, and performed, in a bar, and that’s bound to pull Perth punters.

The good news, for those of you holding tickets, is that Prudencia Hart delivers all that’s promised for it, and a whole lot besides.