Girls and Boys, Sydney Theatre Company presents a State Theatre Company South Australia production, Wharf Theatre 1, 17 Sep - 1 Nov

 

(Images by Sam Roberts from the 2023 Seymour Centre production)

Dennis Kelly's "Girls and Boys" is a one woman play that uses some of the techniques of a one-person show in interesting ways - the narrator acknowledges at one point that the characters she's talking to are not really there, and also that she's telling only one side of the story. But it's also a show that builds a story of a relationship and the raising of a young family to a breathtaking conclusion - and offers Justine Clarke a powerhouse role that allows her to live through the story, from the gentle innocence of first meeting to the devastation that shows up in the finale. You certainly feel like you've lived through an experience at the end. 

This is a play that it's worth knowing not-very-much when you go into it, though the trigger warnings for graphic description of violence is absolutely necessary - it's just described, not shown, but you feel it viscerally when it hits. Clarke is magnificent in the centre of this story - not giving away a skerrick of where this rollercoaster is going to go, but drawing us in all the way. Designer Ailsa Patterson gives the setting a gentle abstractness with lots of spaces to manouvre, and director Mitchell Butel guides the way expertly. 

This is a major work with a major actress seizing centre stage in a story both compelling and shocking. It left me gobsmacked.  

A Room with a View, Belvoir St Theatre coproduced with Melbourne Theatre Company and Black Swan Theatre, Belvoir Upstairs, 3 Oct-1 Nov

 Image by Brett Boardman

E.M Forster's novel had a perfectly cast film about 40 years ago, with early roles for Helena Bonham Carter, Daniel Day-Lewis and Julian Sands, alongside Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Simon Callow and Denholm Elliot, with fine location photography and a passionate soundtrack. But in Grace Chappelle's adaptation, it gains in intimacy what it slightly loses in spectacle, with a cast that holds their own against their illustrious predecessors. Forster's novel looks at an Edwardian young woman whose travels in Italy open her up to new perspectives that startle her and discovers that maybe her conventional background does not need to shape the rest of her life. 

Chapple's adaptation rotates the narrative voice around the cast, with various figures commenting on Lucy's journey from her uptight travelling companion Charlotte to an Italian carriage driver  to Lucy's snobbish rebound guy, Cecil Vyse, and also interrogates some of the values underpinning the material - in particular, Forster's life as a closeted gay man gets reflected in the material (just as it was in the last big stage Forster's adaptation, The Inheritance) - as does elements of Forster's own reflections on English culture and politics. There's also a very Belvoir approach to staging - Hannah Goodwin uses elements of music by Grace Ferguson and loose play, with the assistance of Elle Evangilista's choreography, in constantly surprising in her storytelling. The set is a relatively wall of doors and windows, designed by Zoe Atkinson, that has a few bonus twists up its sleeves. 

The cast are a solid ensemble of performers, with all cast members getting at least one key role as well as blending into the ensemble. Nathalie Morris is a compelling heroine, with a sense of idealism balanced with nervousness about wandering off the beaten path, with Luke Wiltshire being suitably compelling as her suitor George, and Charles Wu inhabiting the snobbish ridiculousness of Cecil admirably. Tomas Kantor is playful as her brother Freddie and Tom Conroy is a delightfully reserved Reverend Beebe. Hayley McElhinney delights in all of Charlotte's perskitiness and joy of gossip, and Kate Atkinson enjoys her distracted authoress Mrs Lavish and her generous Mrs Honeychurch about equally. And Patrick Williams has a nicely zen quality as the ethical Mr Emerson who's open-ness provokes so much from other people

In short this is a delightful telling of a classic romance with a bit more depth behind it than may be expected-  it's a show that goes for the heart and embraces it in looking at what freedom may in fact mean (including a just-after-the-happy ending moment that makes the not-entirely-romantic-consequences of  the character's choices obvious, along with ways that those choices are not open to everyone). It's a nice feat for the heart and the brain. 

The Unfriend, Sydney Theatre Company, Ros Packer Theatre, 29 Sep - 31 Oct

 Image by Prudence Upton

Before he was the centre of British Cult TV for much of the mid 2010s, running both "Doctor Who" and "Sherlock" from 2010-2017, Steven Moffat wrote the sitcom "Coupling" in the late 90s and early 2000s, which included a number of episodes that approached classic theatrical farce in their speed, wit and ability to juggle multiple situations. Two decades later he premiered an actual theatrical farce at Chichester, subsequently running two west-end seasons of a comedy-of-extreme-manners as a couple on a cruise find themselves inadvertently inviting a serial killer to stay in their house and finding themselves unable to find a way to ask them to leave again. If you want to go for a deeper meaning, you could decide this is a play about the relationship between the UK and the US in the post-Trump era as Britain tries desperately to disentangle itself from the special relationship with the Americans - but really this is just an excuse for Moffat to play with a different form, creating a killer part for a leading lady and a range of interesting supporting roles from trying-to-be-effectual-husband to boring-neighour to bemused-policeman. 

Helen Thomson gets the leading lady role and delivers with aplomb - loud, cocky, a force of nature who reshapes the world around her and makes it impossible to argue with her. She's a compelling centre and draws all the attention when she's onstage, justifiably.  Tim Walter as the hapless husband gets a major Mofffat Rant in act two and otherwise is mostly looking bemused or being steamrollered, and he scores laughs as both, as does Alex Lee as his not-very-much-bolder wife. Huw Higginson as the un-nervingly dull neighbour makes the role just the right side of disconcerting rather than boring. 

This is not necessarily the best thing Moffat's ever written - some of the writing gets a little flabby and he does stretch a few jokes a little too long rather than moving on briskly - and Simon Phillips directs a lavish production that occasionally lapses into some of that flabbiness - it does hit the hysterical heights occasionally but there's a little too much air in there that means this doesn't quite build to farcical greatness as it might. Isabel Hudson's design is suitably grand for the Ros but feels a little incongrous to the suburban home it's supposed to be - it's a little too grand-manor. 

This is a play that should be a delight but instead is more an occasional giggle rather than a hysterical night out - I'm not sure whether it's entirely the production or also inherent to the script (and it could also be that the Ros Packer is an awfully big venue for a light comedy), but this doesn't quite fly as it might. 

Strong is the New Pretty, A Brisbane Festival, Sydney Theatre Company and Trish Wadley Productions Co-Production, Canberra Theatre Centre, Playhouse, 24 – 26 September (and subsequently at Geelong Arts Centre (8–11 October) and Sydney Opera House (22 October–5 December))

 

Image - Morgan Roberts

Suzie Miller has done a rare thing in Australian Theatre - recently getting a cover story in the Australian Women's Weekly, after a couple of years writing plays that get international hit productions (between "Prima Facie" and "Inter Alia"), and also developing strong commissioned works to wide Australian audiences ("RBG" most recently). "Strong is the New Pretty" is a dramatisation of how the WAFL came together and the first season, looking at some of the challenges and its eventual success, and has a lot of the same strengths, together with a virtuoso staging by Sarah Giles. 

The narrative is abstracted through three main characters - an AFL administrator (Tara Morice) who believes strongly in pushing the code to find ways to incorporate women, a high profile lawyer who joins the board of commissioners (Lucy Bell), and an eager coach (Amber McMahon) - with the remaining cast playing a mix of roles from players to board members to commentators to whatever is required (at my performance with assistant Director Julia Robertson fitting in smoothly for an indisposed Contessa Treffone). There's some strong staging here - the simple design by Christina Smith has an over-head videoboard to provide titles, locations, scores and commentary (video designed by Craig Wilkinson). Kelley Abbey provides movement that lets the cast move as blocks and to re-enact gameplay, and the narrative moves slickly. If there is a slight complaint, it's that, being a history play, the success of the WAFL does feel inevitable almost from the second the ball starts rolling - there isn't a lot of space spent on resistance (though certainly the uglier side of football fans does get shown). 

Miller has another hit on her hands - even if more of a local one (I can't see this having the international potential of "Facie" and "Alia" due to its topic), but it's definately a play that will resonate strongly and loudly. 

Daisy Pulls It Off, Canberra Rep, 10-26 Sep

 

Photographer: Ross Gould.

Denise Deegan's 1983 play is a loving tribute to the post-war Schoolgirls novel, in which an all-round talented young woman faces trials and tribulations in a private school, involving achievements academic and sporting, plus a spot of treasure hunting and plucky adventurism, before finally winning the acclaim of all around her. It's the lightest of light entertainments, offering not much of significance beyond the enjoyment of a good old-fashioned adventure, with maybe a minor lesson about snobbery and good-old-british pluck, and is full of delightful period britishisms like "Scrummy" and "top hole". 

Kate Blackhurst's production gives this an all female cast (for a play where all but two of the roles are female anyway), bouncing around Grangewood School for Girls in quick manner, from dorm to classroom to playing fields to hallways lined with secret clues. Ashleigh Butler narrates and plays the titular Daisy as a delightful charmer, the perfect heroine, with Elaine Noon romping delightfully as her sidekick Trixie. Up against her are Alex McPherson as the sneaky, snide Sybil, relishing all her worst qualities and Kara Taylor as her sneaky sidekick Monica. Lily Welling as prefect Claire Beamont attempts to keep everyone in line, plus Azerie Cromhoult's firm-but fair Miss Gibson as principal, and a staff varying from Antonia Kitzel's strict Miss Granville to Sue Gore Phillips' resolutely foreign-accented Mr Scoblowski who very successfully red-herrings his way through the plot. 

Annie Kay designs the school, giving it a solid historic-oaken look with a charming set of school uniforms, while Nathan Sciberras lights to help us around the various locations and Neville Pye adds a few somewhat modern musical stings to help with the empahsis.

All in all this is a jolly fun romp of a play, with a rich team rolling us through Daisy's first student year as she faces perils, triumphs and a few surprise secrets on her way to a resolutely super-joyous-happy-ending. 

Disney’s Frozen, The Broadway Musical, Free-Rain Theatre, The Q, 15 September – 11 October

 Image: Ben Appleton - Photox

Disney's 2013 animated film was an instant sensation, winning acclaim for its strong set of songs and its story of two sisters, both isolated from the world and each other and what happens when they emerge into the wider world on the day of Elsa's coronation. In 2017 it was adapted into a Broadway musical by the same team that wrote the script and music for the movie - the stage version wasn't quite as much of a sensation, partially because of the challenges of running a show over the COVID era, partially because the requirements of changing a 100 minute movieinto a two and a half hour stage show means there are extensions to fill in the bonus time that aren't always great (diva Elsa gets an act two ballad to match her iconic "Let it Go", and it doesn't quite) and some storytelling that worked great on screen with cross-cutting and editing looks messy on stage (in particular the last ten minutes, when to cover bits of plot the chorus suddenly show up to narrate some action that would otherwise be confusing). 

  Free-Rain makes a fairly good whack of some messy material, with a fine cast and production design uniting to give it a strong glossy feel. Sonically, it sounds epic from the echoey Sami-inspired chanting at the open across the entire score, with Charlotte Morphett's Elsa absolutely owning "Let It Go" (which, let's face it, is the reason most people are in the theatre in the first place) for a thrilling act one climax. Chloe Stevenson is an endearingly charming Anna, even as her own mistakes and needs put her in more dangers. Joe Dinn is an adorable Olaf, endearing and charming. Jackson Gibbs as Kristoff the ice-hauler is effective as he tries to dissuade Anna while they slide more and more into a side romance, while Joshua Kirk looks and sounds the part as a Prince who is not quite as charming as he appears at first sight. Cameron Thoms enjoys the chance to play with Scandanavian vowels as trader Oaken with his goofy act two opener defining the concept of Hygge (go to Ikea if you're not sure what that is), and Sam Thomson and Kate Lis are a lovely pair of mystic forest-figures for additional magic in the sidelines. Young performers Millicent Fitzgerald and Meadow Kuske ably reflect their older counterparts as the young Anna and Elsa.

This is a rare chance to see a show led by two strong female performers and it absolutely gives both of  them lots to play with, with a lot for the rest of the cast to enjoy too. And there's visual spectacle in the set design of John Nichols and Ethan Henderson and the lighting desing of Jono Gerdes, and a real feel of the wide outdoor Scandinavian ranges in Chris Neal's sound design. My main nitpick is in some of the adaptation choices in the original material - with some tighter storytelling and a better act two ballad for Elsa, this would be a 10 out of 10. Instead, it's a great team carrying a slightly limping vehicle. 

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Presented by LPD Productions in association with Hayes Theatre Co, 28 Aug-27 Sep

Image by John McRae

Frank Loesser and Abe Burrows reteamed 11 years after their hit "Guys and Dolls" - again, Burrows wrote most of the script after someone else's script was deemed not entirely useful (but the other writer got a credit anyway), with Loesser on music and lyrics duty. This time round, moving on from gangsters, showgirls and Salvation Army members to the far more dubious world of Big Business,  the duo told the story of the rise of J. Pierpoint Finch through a series of sketch-like scenes as he goes from mailroom to executive suite through a mix of charm, nerve and some gratuitous good luck when the plot requires it. It won the Putlizer prize over the likes of Tenessee Williams' "Night of the Iguana", Ossie Davis' "Purlie Victorious" and Paddy Chaefsky's "Gideon", and has recieved multiple revivals ever since, but this one serves it quite well - director/choreographer Cameron Mitchell gives it a jazzy, slinky style that suits the era, with a cast of 15 jazzing it up all across the Hayes stage. 

Primary among the cast is Jake Speer as the butter-wouldn't-melt-in-his-mouth Finch - a smooth singer and a smooth talker. Another member of the inexhaustible Laga'aia clan, Georgia, plays his love interest, Rosemary, who sells her blithe conviction that she and Finch belong together even as Finch only occasionally takes interest in her.Simon Burke plays the boss, JB Biggley, with an endearing mix of arrogance and stupidity. Elsewhere in the cast, Wayne Scott Kermond goofs it up in two separate roles, Noni McCallum is both intimidating as the queen bee of the secretaries and knocks her solo during "Brotherhood of Man" into a cocked hat, Kaeng Chan is wonderfully flip-flopping as the yes-man Brat no matter who he's saying yes to, Max MacDonald is glorious sneaky villainy as Bud Frump, and Lucy Lalor is a great dumb-like-a-fox Hedy. 

Musical Supervisor Damon Wade and musical director Kim Gilbert mostly makes a band of four sound a whole lot bigger, set Designer Dominic Foffani adapts various office locations from mailroom to washroom to boardroom very well, and Chrisitne Muutton gives them that professional sheen in a great set of outfits. 

This is a classic show that feels fizzy, fun and fresh 65 years after it first performed. Yes, it's definately of an era but it's a slightly acidic look at that era which knows both the flaws (the gender politics) and the glories (the outfits and the tunes).