Virag Dombay - Page 9

Boy Swallows Universe takes to the stage. Queensland Theatre and Brisbane Festival to produce the world premiere season of Trent Dalton's breakout mega-hit novel

No one outfoxes a fox. shake & stir give a new life to Roald Dahl's classic children's book in this new production. For those that aren't familiar with the book, the story revolves around Mr Fox and how he outwits his farmer neighbours to steal their food from right under their noses.

Written by NIDA alumni Lewis Triston, Reagan Kelly explores the story of the titular character, who was once over-achiever in high school but is now a drunken mess who calls the club of the valley her home. It's a piece which takes you on an emotional rollercoaster but gives you a lot of laughs along the way. It makes you laugh, unleash your inner angst and, most importantly, asks us to reflect on what makes who we are and how we treat other people.

Winner of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, amongst a plethora of other awards, Next to Normal is the story of Diana Goodman, who lives with bipolar disorder and delusion episodes following the traumatic death of her infant son seventeen years ago and her illnesses' ramifications within her family. Amongst depression, the show tackles a number of serious issues such as drug abuse, modern psychiatry, suicide, and most importantly, what it means to be human; what it means to feel grief, pain, hurt and, on the contrary, to feel loved. It's a musical which deals which intertwines the past, present and future with the human condition in the most insightful, emotionally crippling yet beautiful way and so that it comes with no surprise that many more theatre companies are including in their seasons.

If productions could be labelled as over-achievers, then this show would definitely sit right on top of that category for all the best reasons. For two hours, I was gasping for air as I couldn't stop laughing. I feel sorry for the patrons sitting around me, as I'm sure their ears will be ringing for quite some time of my high-pitched laughter. After receiving a large donation from the uncle of a pompous actor Max, The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society return to Brisbane's shores with Peter Pan Goes Wrong and to say that it is hilarious is an understatement.

Tyrone and Lesley are two theatrical gentlemen with ukulele's that carry wit and joy. Using the ukulele and sound bass, which is played close to the heart, the duo captivated the audience through their nonsensical lyrics and infectious rhythms. The pair met in 2000 and have released four albums and have played in various venues including Sydney Opera House and many, many festivals including our own Brisbane Festival.

When I was a young teenager, I used to frequently walk past a band that were busking in Queen Street Mall (in front of Strand Bags) and stopping to listen to their music. Their music was funky, it was full of the most incredible harmonies, high energy and toe-tapping beats that made you want to let your inner (and maybe in some cases outer) dance-tress out. And their Woodford set was no different. People were dancing in front of the stage, in their seats and in whatever place they could find. What made us dance was their infectious love on stage for what the band members were doing; their love for what they were playing and their love for each other and it showed in how much fun they were having. The Fergies are five siblings, singing in five part harmony, playing an electrified set filled with from guitars, piano, drums to tambourines of original songs that they wrote off of both their albums. And they have the best time and so will you. Stella Donnelly's roots are in Perth, but you couldn't tell from the way she handles the Brisbane crowd. She played music from her first EP Thrush Metal last year, as well as other originals she wrote during her time on and off tour with Alex the Astronaut, a crowd favourite being 'Boys Will Be Boys'. What I loved about Stella's set is that each of her songs had a story, from strange family members to the grey area of sexual assault and that she shared those stories to us before she played the tune. But I couldn't describe Stella's voice, even if I tried to. You get lost in her voice the way you get lost in her stories. You fall headfirst into its velvet-like quality and once you fall, you don't want to get back up again. Which is why you go to the merch stand after her performance has finished and buy her CD... Australian rock band The Cat Empire didn't fail to disappoint. The fusion of funk, ska, jazz and rock with Latin influences makes you dance the night away and shake at least one part of your body. Felix Riebel and Harry James Angus's voices fill up the entire amphitheatre as the band jam at the back. They played music from all of their albums, including tracks never heard before from their upcoming album to be released in February. I can't list one crowd favourite as they were all crowd favourites, and if that doesn't measure the sheer brilliance of a band then I don't know what does. I remember turning to my friend in the crowd and said 'I love it when a band is a band' and I don't think there's a better way to describe Cat Empire then that. The versatility and skill of the band is extraordinary; the instruments compliment each other so beautifully and each band member is as important as the one on either side of them. No instrument gets left behind of unnoticed; each band member has not just one, but many moments to shine. They played music from all of their albums, including tracks never heard before from their upcoming album to be released in February. I can't list one crowd favourite as they were all crowd favourites, and if that doesn't measure the sheer brilliance of a band then I don't know what does. For upcoming show times and performances please visit: https://woodfordfolkfestival.com .

As something that started out as producer Alex Woodard's annual weird (and kinky) Christmas tradition, A Very Naughty Christmas The Second Coming is truly a sight to behold. Written by Matthew Semple and Emily Kristopher and directed by Dan Venz, Understudy Production's newest Christmas rave celebrates all that is fun, dirty and sexy about the festive season, really stripping it down for its audience. I don't think that I will be able to think of Santa in the same way ever again.

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of giving Paige Rattray, the current associate director at Sydney Theatre Company and director of the bad-ass production of Hedda at Queensland Theatre, ring on the phone to interview her about her craftsmanship and creative visions behind her latest work. And here is what she had to say:

Written by David Williamson, Nearer the Gods not merely about the greatest leap forward in human knowledge; Newton's discovery of the laws that govern the motion of the universe, and how Edmund Halley, an enthusiastic young astronomer, wrangled his discovery out of him, but about human behaviour and the politics of our mind. It is a story that explores the themes of rivalry, rationality, decency, love, kindness and most importantly the politics surrounding the power of knowledge, all in just two hours and ten minutes.

Sometimes we forget or dismiss the questions that children ask us, especially if they're questions about growing up; if they're questions about us adults. Or go to response is I'll tell you when you're older or that's a silly question. But the inquisitive nature of child doesn't just disappear because you don't respond, but in fact, it fuels them to ask even more questions, like why you didn't reply to the last question they asked you, or the one before that? Are you having a bad day? Do you not want your child to become the next Einstein? But director Daniel Evans hasn't ignored their questions. In fact, him and his masterful creative team have formed a work in which not only is it okay for kids to ask a lot of questions, but they have a voice. And adults all over the world, including one in Russia, have heard their voice answered and they for sixty delightful minutes, they share their newfound knowledge with the audience.

Legs on the Wall's Man with the Iron Neck is one of the most significant new works of theatre in this past decade. It is a piece which centres around the taboo of youth suicide in the Aboriginal community, with playwright and actor Ursula Yovich (Mamma Rose) claiming in the post-show Q&Q that 'almost every aboriginal you'll come across will have experienced this certain issue'. Cast member Caleena Salsbury (Evelyn) continued on by saying that 'the statistics of aboriginal people committing suicide is ridiculous...Australia doesn't know about that [the number of suicides] and no one talks about it.' She said that putting this work on stage means that Indigenous Australians are able to have that conversation and I couldn't agree more.