CRIME AND PUNISHMENT (PLAY)

 

Adapted by Marilyn Campbell-Lowe and Curt Columbus

From the novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Directed by Caroline Stacey

A Street Theatre production

The Street Theatre to 7 July

 

Reviewed by Len Power 22 June 2024

First published in 1886, Dostoyevsky’s ‘Crime and Punishment’ is a classic study of murder, detection, motivation and a murderer’s harrowing journey to enlightenment. It asks searching fundamental questions of human existence that remain uncomfortable and relevant today.

This adaptation by the American writers, Marilyn Campbell-Lowe and Curt Columbus, distils the action and many characters and events of the novel into an interrogation and mind game between the murderer, impoverished student, Raskolnikov, and the police inspector, Porfiry. Flashbacks and an unnerving dream sequence include a prostitute, Sonia, her drunkard father, Marmeladov, and the murdered women, an elderly pawnbroker, Alyona Ivanova, and her half-sister, Lizaveta.

Raskolnikov believes that he himself is above the law and extraordinary to such an extent that he is entitled to decide who is worthy of life and of death. If that death can change the lives of many others for the better, then that is a worthy justification for the taking of a life he believes is useless. Nevertheless, in the aftermath of the crime, Raskolnikov is deeply unsettled by his action and unnerved by the apparently amiable discussions about the murder with the inspector.

Christopher Samuel Carroll (Raskolnikov)

Christopher Samuel Carroll gives a multi-faceted portrayal of the murderer, Raskolnikov. Keeping the character likeable, he almost becomes uncomfortably convincing in his justifications for the killings. The conflict in his disturbed mind is skilful and subtly played.

 

PJ Williams (Porfiry)

PJ Williams gives a wily and formidable portrayal of the inspector, Porfiry. He maintains an impressive and subtle tension under his relaxed, ironic manner in the discussions with the murderer, showing that he is not to be under-estimated. He also plays Sonia’s drunkard father in flashbacks and is a presence in Raskolnikov’s dream.

Josephine Gazard (Sonia) and Christopher Samuel Carroll (Raskolnikov)

 Josephine Gazard plays Sonia with a moving sense of sadness and loss of innocence. Her concern for Raskolknikov’s situation is touchingly played. She also plays the murdered woman and her sister in flashbacks and appears in the dream sequence.

A fine adaptation of the novel, it has been keenly directed by Caroline Stacey. The production design by Kathleen Kershaw of several platforms is deceptively simple and the clever lighting design by Darren Hawkins adds a great deal of atmosphere, as does Kimmo Vennonen’s brooding and troubling sound design. The overall creativity in set, lighting and sound is very effective.

This is a strong, focussed production that entertains on a police interrogation level but also makes us consider deeper, disturbing questions about human existence and interaction.

 

Photos by Nathan Smith

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

AMERICAN IDIOT (MUSICAL)

 

Directed by Bradley McDowell

Book by Billie Joe Armstrong and Michael Mayer

Music By Green Day

Lyrics by Billie Joe Armstrong

A Queanbeyan Players production

Q Theatre, Queanbeyan to 29 June

 

Reviewed by Len Power 21 June 2024

 

A punk rock musical based on the music of rock band, Green Day, the show opened on Broadway in 2010 and ran for a year. Using all of the songs from the band’s ‘American Idiot’ album and additional Green Day songs from their album, ‘21^st Century Breakdown’, the musical focusses on three disaffected friends, Johnny, Tunny and Will who, after broken relationships, drug experimentation and injury in the military, look back with regret at their wasted youth.

Surprisingly melancholy in tone, the show is full of appealing music and songs. With little dialogue, the show is virtually sung through. The songs comment on the mood of the characters at each moment in the slim storyline.

According to the program, this has long been a passion project for Director, Bradley McDowell. His production, including a striking and towering set design by Kyle Maley, successfully captures the grungy atmosphere that the music and songs demand. The costuming by Sammy Marceddo, makeup and attitude displayed by the cast show a fine understanding of the milieu of the music. This musical is not your typical Broadway musical, and it is very powerful in its own right.

Zac Izzard - standing (Will) and John Whinfield (Johnny)

John Whinfield gives a strong performance as Johnny and is matched by Darcy Kinsella as Tunny and Zac Izzard as Will. All three are fine singers and display a notable strength of feeling in their songs. Amongst the large cast there are also fine vocal performances by Declan Pigram as St Jimmy, Shelby Holland as Whatsername, India Cornwell as Heather and Abigail Dunn as Extraordinary Girl. David Cannell shines as Rock n Roll Boyfriend.

Abigail Dunn (Extraordinary Girl) and Darcy Kinsella (Tunny)

The large chorus sings and performs a huge amount of the music. Nathan Rutups’ spot-on choreography is showcased well by this cast, who dance it with breathtaking energy.

Musical directors Jen Hinton and Brigid Cummins have achieved a high standard with the singing and the band plays the score with a clarity that brings out the depth of emotion in the music.

At times looking like a rock concert rather than a book musical, the show has an excellent and exciting lighting design by Jacob Aquilina (Eclipse) and a nicely balanced and clear sound design by Telia Jansen (Eclipse).

Whether or not punk rock music is your thing, there’s no denying that this is a fine production by a cast and crew who really understand the era of these songs.

 

Photos by Photox Photography

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (PLAY)

 

Written by Tennessee Williams

Directed by Anne Somes

A Free Rain Theatre Production

ACT Hub Theatre, Kingston to 29 June

 

Reviewed by Len Power 20 June 2024

 

Tennessee Williams’ ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ is a play with a now legendary reputation. A schoolteacher, Blanche, arrives in New Orleans to stay with her sister, Stella, and her husband, Stanley, a tough, loud and down to earth man. Blanche’s airs and attitudes, reminiscent of an outdated Deep South etiquette, and her murky past aggravate Stanley to the point where an explosion is inevitable.

First opening on Broadway in 1947 and filmed successfully in 1951, Tennessee Williams created in Blanche DuBois and Stanley Kowalski two of the most iconic roles in modern theatre. Actors given the opportunity to play those roles would understandably feel intimidated by the succession of famed performances of the past that still live in people’s memory.

Amy Kowalczuk as Blanche DuBois

As Blanche, Amy Kowalczuk establishes an immediate presence as Blanche and maintains it throughout the play. Her version of the character comes from deep within. There’s no playing of surface nervousness, she lives the role. Her vocal performance has a depth that cleverly gives unstated clues to this complex woman.  The thoughtful building of layers of complexity in her character leads ultimately to a mental collapse that is believable, pathetic and tragic. This is an extraordinary performance that is a success on all levels.

Alex Hoskison as Stanley Kowalski

Alex Hoskison has the physical presence for Stanley and plays him with a brute force that is genuinely frightening. At the same time, he gives an innocence to the character which is strangely endearing. His interaction with his wife, Stella, is charged with an animal sexuality but he is also as needy as a child. In his reaction to Blanche, his portrayal of a man used to be the king of his domain and coming out fighting when that is threatened, is cleverly realized. Hoskison’s performance is powerful, unique and vital.

Meaghan Stewart as Stella Kowalski and Alex Hoskison as Stanley Kowalski

As Blanche’s sister, Stella, Meaghan Stewart gives arguably her best performance to date. She displays an unexpected vulnerability in her role and shows a clear understanding of the love of a woman for a man who treats her badly. As Mitch, Stanley’s friend who courts Blanche, Lachlan Ruffy finds an appealing tenderness in his scenes with Blanche that is at odds with his rougher behaviour with Stanley and his card-playing friends.

There is good work in the smaller roles of this large company. Sarah Hull is particularly fine as Eunice, an upstairs neighbour, and the card-playing ensemble successfully create the sights and sounds of a group of rough men. David Bennett is an effective presence as the doctor at the end of the play.

Anne Somes has staged the show simply with a practical, plain setting of the living areas of an ordinary working-class home in New Orleans. She has ensured the actors find the necessary depth in their characterizations. Atmosphere is provided with a good selection of music and sounds by Neville Pye.

Free Rain’s ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ is a rare opportunity to see a fine production of this extraordinary play with actors giving memorable performances. It is not to be missed.

 

 

Photos by Jane Duong

 

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

 

DEAD MAN'S CELL PHONE (PLAY)

Written by Sarah Ruhl

Directed by Kate Blackhurst

Canberra REP production

Canberra REP Theatre to June 29

 

Reviewed by Len Power 14 June 2024

 

With the ever-increasing reliance on cell phones and the many and varied problems that can go with them, what if a playwright asked, “Could your mobile phone survive without you?”

American writer, Sarah Ruhl, takes a curious look at the afterlife when a woman discovers that the owner of an annoyingly ringing cell phone is dead and then starts taking his calls for him. To tell you any more is to give away a clever, surreal and absurdly funny plot that has its own crazy logic.

Jess Waterhouse gives an endearing, edgy and frantic performance as a woman trying to please everyone and getting herself into deeper trouble. Bruce Hardie plays two roles – the dead Gordon Gottlieb, who has a dark secret, and his nerdy brother, Dwight, a stationary vendor. His long speech at the start of the second act as the dead Gordon is impressively controlled and he is convincing as the very different brother, Dwight.

Elaine Noon does a fine job as Gordon and Dwight’s hard-bitten and angry mother and Victoria Dixon has a lot of fun as Gordon’s cool, cynical and tough widow, Hermia.

On Cate Clelland’s attractive set that uses projections to indicate the locations of scenes, the director, Kate Blackhurst, keeps the action moving at just the right speed to ensure the audience can keep up with and accept the increasingly outlandish situations and ideas being presented. She ensures that the actors play their characters seriously, which just adds to the fun.

Dead Man’s Cell Phone is a wild and wacky comedy with an underlying serious look at human behaviour. It could make you look at your phone a little differently from now on.

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 15 June 2024.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

  

THE WILL TO BE (PLAY)

 

Written and performed by Mark Salvestro

Co-directed by Sarah Hallam & Phoebe Anne Taylor

Q Theatre, Queanbeyan to June 14

 

 

Reviewed By Len Power 13 June 2024

 

It’s 1962 and homosexuality is illegal. William O’Halloran, a married English lecturer, is packing up his office because he has been dismissed from his position. Recalling the events that led to this moment, William paints a damning picture of a society which does not tolerate love between same sex couples.

The tale of star-crossed lovers in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet reminds him of his current situation and quotations from the play he clearly knows and loves, come ironically to mind as he packs.

Writer and performer, Mark Salvestro, received a Best Theatre weekly award in 2020 at the Adelaide Fringe for The Will To Be. Prior to this, he wrote, produced and performed his debut solo work, Buried at Sea. Most recently, he performed the role of Caravaggio in the Canberra Theatre Centre’s production of Chiaroscuro.

Mark Salvestro as William O'Halloran

Salvestro, in his words and performance gives a very real characterization of a man struggling with feelings for his own sex in a time when society and the law frowned upon homosexuality.  This is a man who has denied his feelings, married and tried to live as society dictated at the time, only to understand his true nature when he meets and falls in love with a male student.

The parallel with Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is well-handled and the show is staged simply with the focus squarely on the character of William. It looks a little lost on the Q’s large stage, and would probably work better in a smaller, more intimate venue.

Only the ending is questionable. It seems unlikely that a man in 1962 would make such a strong statement for gay rights. Taking the action that he plans would have had devastating consequences for himself and seems out of character for a man who has been closeted and admits to self-loathing.

His defiant stand at the end of the play may be upbeat and pleasing to a 21^st Century enlightened audience, but the reality is that nothing he could have done would have changed things at that time. It would have been more powerful to let the audience see and understand the dire situation of being a gay man in the society of the time.

 

Photo by Sare Clarke

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 14 June 2024.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

 

TRAVEL AND CHANGE (CONCERT)

Apeiron Baroque

John Ma, violin

Marie Seales, harpsichord

Drew Ninnis, philosopher

Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest. June 9

 

Reviewed by Len Power

You can always rely on Apeiron Baroque to pair unlikely and interesting combinations of topics and music.

Sublime musical pieces from the baroque era by the composers Veracini, Herschel, J. S. Bach, de Blainville, Roman, Telemann and Schmeltzer were played by John Ma, violin, and Marie Searles, harpsichord. These performers have formidable credits from both here and overseas.

John Ma and Marie Searles

In performance and teaching, John Ma has sought a balance between technique and playful exploration. Marie Searles is known for her engaging and sensitive approach to collaborative playing.

In addition to the music, they were joined by Canberra philosopher and academic, Drew Ninnis, who presented philosophical ideas around travel and change with delightfully dry humour.

Drew Ninnis

After a sensitive performance of Verracini’s Sonata Primo in G Minor had set the mood, Ninnis challenged the audience to consider whether people can change or whether they remain the same.

As the concert progressed, Ninnis posed more ideas to consider, based on writings from various philosophers, both ancient and modern. This juxtaposition between music and ideas added a thoughful dimension to the concert.

Suite Turque by Charles-Henri de Blainville, added an ancient air of mystery, finishing with a rousing final movement. Ninnis then took us travelling to philosophers’ magic mountains, ending with the thought that we should consider who we will be tomorrow. A Sarabande by Bach and, particularly, a reflective movement from Assaggio for Solo Violin by Johan Roman, underlined these thoughts.

In a particularly light-hearted moment, Ninnis related a favourite personal memory of a long-gone family member who is no longer with us, but, whenever that memory is recalled, she is momentarily alive again. Death is the biggest change of all, he said, and we might just as well die in a way that is as hilarious as possible. While we pondered this idea, Telemann’s sensitive Sonata V in G major was played.

Introduced by Ninnis, who reminded us that every moment in our lives we are confronted by choice, the final piece, Sonata Quarta by Johann Schmelzer, was sentimental and melodic.

The music in this unusual and entertaining concert was beautifully played by John Ma and Marie Searles. It was a challenge at times to clearly understand the spoken words, due to the reverberation in the church, but Drew Ninnis was a charming, funny and knowledgeable presenter.

 

Photos by Peter Hislop

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 10 June 2024.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.

 

 

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (PLAY)

 

Written by William Shakespeare

Directed by Peter Evans

Bell Shakespeare

The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre to 15 June

 

Reviewed by Len Power 7 June 2024

 

One of Shakespeare’s most popular plays, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ mixes magic, madness and make-believe with the pain and joy of love, leading to a happy ending. Along the way, we follow the young lovers into a forest, where fairies employ their mischievous magic, and a group of amateur actors are busy rehearsing their play. How these strands amusingly crash together is the fun and delight of this play.

Peter Evans’ production begins, surprisingly, with the opening scenes re-ordered. The mechanicals, an amateur group of performers come together to rehearse the play, Pyramus and Thisbe, to be performed at a wedding. The actors’ actual performance of their play at the end of the show now creates unexpected and successful bookends to the main action, This gives an added dimension to the dream-like quality of the play.

In a moment of theatrical magic, those same performers suddenly become the lovers and other characters now being judged by Theseus, who is only a few days away from his own wedding to Hippolyta. The young lovers choose to escape into the forest rather than submit to the judgement of Theseus.

The beauty of this production is how clear the complex plot machinations are kept as the fairies work their magic on the lovers and the mechanicals attempt to rehearse their play. It’s very funny, but there is a serious side to it all as, at the heart of the play, we identify with the lovers feeling the pain of rejection.

The ensemble of eight play all the roles with great skill and clarity, giving each a colourful life of their own. Ella Price, Ahunim Abebe, Isabel Burton, Mike Howlett, Matu Ngaropo, Richard Pyros, Imogen Sage and Laurence Young deftly perform their roles with a superb command of the language of the play as well as the comic timing, physical ability and energy that the roles demand.

The scene where the lovers’ quarrel escalates while they are under the magic spell’s influence, is a standout of clarity, inventive staging and performance. Played at a furious pace, it’s remarkably successful, making us laugh but still feel the pain of the characters at the same time.

The abstract setting, designed by Teresa Negroponte, is a towering presence throughout the play – a forest one minute and a ruined barn for rehearsals or a court room the next. Charged with atmosphere by the subtle lighting design of Benjamin Cisterne, it works superbly.

The staging of this much-loved play is hugely successful and enjoyable. It’s thoughtfully done, clearly delivered and a ton of fun.

 

Photos supplied by the production

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

HIGHWAY OF LOST HEARTS (PLAY)

Written by Mary Anne Butler

Original Live Music by Smith & Jones

Directed by Adam Deusien

A Lingua Franca in association with Arts On Tour presentation

Q Theatre, Queanbeyan to 7 June

 

Reviewed by Len Power 6 June 2024

 

Simply staged to evoke the atmosphere of regional Australia, this play about a woman’s drive through the heart of the country and the people she meets along the way, is a complex exploration of love and loss, joy and sadness.

The woman, Mot, travels with her dog as a much-loved companion. On the outside, Mot seems gutsy, strong and determined, but underneath the rough language and her fearless inaction with people, there’s a vulnerability that we connect with and warm to.

Written by award-winning playwright, Mary Anne Butler, and performed by Kate Smith as Mot, this is an in-depth character study of a woman searching for her place of happiness in this world. Smith shows every facet of this woman in a finely balanced and truthful performance. Butler’s words are both poetic and down-to-earth.

Kate Smith as Mot (photo by Phil Blatch)

Adding greatly to the atmosphere is the music written by and performed by Smith & Jones that accompanies and comments on the action. Their music and lyrics give an emotional truth to this woman’s story as well as evoking the sounds and sense of the country.

Smith & Jones (photo by Hannah Grogan)

Director, Adam Deusien, keeps the action simple and focussed, allowing the woman’s emotional journey to set the pace. The clever set design by Annemarie Dalziel has simple elements that create an atmospheric picture of the places this woman is travelling through.

Kate Smith (seated, foreground) with Smith & Jones (photo by Hannah Grogan)

It is a unique production, performed and sung with skill. This woman’s journey through country and life is readily identified with and is quite memorable.

 

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

 

  

TERROR (PLAY)

 

Written by Ferdinand von Schirach

Directed by Kim Beamish

Lexi Sekuless Productions

Mill Theatre on Dairy Road, Fyshwick to 15 June

 

Reviewed by Len Power 5 June 2024

 

When, on arrival, you’re handed a juror’s badge and, in the lobby, the presiding judge explains her expectations of you, first in German and then easing into an English translation, you realize you will have a serious judgement to make in the “courtroom”.

Tracy Noble as the Presiding Judge

A hijacked plane was heading towards a packed football stadium. Ignoring orders to the contrary, a fighter pilot shot down the plane killing 164 people to save 70,000. On trial and charged with murder, the fate of the pilot is in your hands as jury members.

Written in 2015 by German lawyer, writer and playwright, Ferdinand von Schirach, the evidence is presented by the defence and the prosecution, and the defendant is questioned. Various issues arise regarding the legality of his action, his defence force training and the moral decision he had to make under extreme pressure.

The jurors have a difficult decision to make at the end of the trial. Is the fighter pilot guilty or not guilty?

A simple, but effective design by Kathleen Kershaw sees the entire Mill Theatre re-imagined as a cold, almost forbidding, courtroom. The lighting and sound design add considerably to the atmosphere as the trial unfolds.

There is not much opportunity for major character development, but there are good performances from all the cast, especially Tracy Noble as the Presiding Judge, Lexi Sekuless as the State Prosecutor and Mark Lee as the Defendant.

Lexi Sekuless as the State Prosecutor

Director, Kim Beamish, ensures that the script unfolds at a good pace and the depiction of events on board the plane at critical moments was imaginative and well-played.

This is a play in which moral and legal issues are of most importance. In the lobby after the performance, a spirited discussion continued, showing that the audience had been deeply moved by the play.

 

Photos supplied by the production

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

THE MIRROR (CONCERT)

Flowers Of Peace Project

Christopher Latham, violin

Edward Neeman, piano

Wesley Uniting Church Forrest June 1

 

Reviewed by Len Power

To understand the experience of refugees and displaced persons fleeing the Nazis and the Holocaust, The Mirror examined the creations of composers and artists affected by these events.

As part of the Flowers Of Peace project for the Australian War Memorial, Christopher Latham and Edward Neeman told 12 stories of WW2 refugee composers and internees through their music.

Projections of artworks with narrative provided a smooth continuity. Apart from a brief introduction by Christopher Latham, there was no spoken commentary during the concert.

The experiences of the composers attempting to flee to safety – some succeeding, some failing, none unaffected – was powerfully and emotionally told through their music. The carefully selected artwork added considerably to the program.

Composers Edwin Schulhoff, Pavel Haas and Victor Ullmann perished in the death camps. The beautiful music of these composers poignantly showed the promise of talented people whose lives were brutally cut short.

Amongst the composers who survived or escaped, Boaz Bischofswerder, Georges Boulanger, Henriёtte Bosmans, Erich Korngold, George Dreyfus, Ignaz Friedman and Georg Tintner, it was made clear that they did not do so unscathed. Their stories of displacement, of careers cut short due to illness or the impact on friends and family were devastating.

Christopher Latham and Edward Neeman

The playing of Christopher Latham and Edward Neeman was superb. Allowing the music to speak for the composers and their lives, the concert was a tribute to a group of artists caught up in a horrific time that abruptly ended their careers or seriously affected them forever.

Providing context and preparation for Kaddish: A Holocaust Memorial premiere concert by the Melbourne Symphony in October 2024, The Mirror was a sobering, reflective experience that was still uplifting because of the opportunity to hear the fine music of composers who should not be forgotten.

 

Photos by Peter Hislop

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.