Reviews and Such

One wasn’t enough this week; got off me arse and went to see Bloody Murder from the fine folks over at Canberra REP. This was the second time this week I got to laugh like an idiot at a show, put on by folks who were clearly having just as much fun as I was. Murder mysteries are really tough to write about without giving away; a lot of what makes this show brilliant is how the elements of this show’s plot, and the bent it takes both show and cast on, are brought to life by the team here. But ruin it I will not! You’ll have to see it yourself. Director Josh Wiseman has prepared a lavishly furnished production Bloody Murder. It is a “murder mystery gone wrong”, and I’m not talking about actors forgetting lines or sets malfunctioning; the very tangibility of and control over this mystery is wrestled for between character and writer, and Wiseman brilliantly brings it before us to uproarious success. I always like to nitpick things directors do that I like in particular, and Wiseman’s abili...

Went to enjoy A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Q tonight, and my oh my, was there never a dull moment. Since people liked my last Canberra Theatre review so much, I figure I may as well keep sharing these until someone tells me to stop. I arrived fairly tardily (as usual), and was greeted by a cast member/usher with an awful lot of lip (T oby Breach ), before unfolding me camp chair, planting it on the grass, cracking open a cold ice tea I had fetched from the service station beforehand, and awaiting the show in the Q’s new fancy shmancy outdoor area. Now, before I continue, I feel I should warn you; I am no authority on Shakespearean productions. I don’t see a lot of em, and I haven’t done a lot of em. I’ve barely studied enough of him to have an inkling of an understanding of the words I’m hearing. But I’ll always try something more than once; with a cast and crew this stacked, and an admission fee of approximately $0, it was worth having a seat. Needless to say, I’m glad I rocke...

  Nescaffier: (in explanation) I’m a foreigner, you know. Roebuck Wright: (long pause) This city is full of us, isn’t it? I’m one myself. Nescaffier is aware of this. He says, slightly delirious: Nescaffier: Seeking something missing, missing something left behind. Roebuck Wright nods in appreciation. He says quietly; Roebuck Wright: Maybe, with good luck, we’ll find what eluded us in the places we once called home. I haven't tried to write a review for a movie in a hot minute. I recently wrote a theatre review about a local production of Little Shop of Horrors, as I'm sure you all were privvy to (my apologies for bastardising your Facebook feed with a Bible chapter of text (and apologies once more, in advance, for doing it again)). I recently found myself in the fortunate position of having, once again, nothing to do with my time. No show. No work. No study. Nothing, except all the time in the world, and a mind that wouldn't stop whirring for an occupation. And so, after a...