Women don’t always talk about men.
Women don’t always talk about men.
Women don’t always talk about men.
It bears repeating because it’s often forgotten, ignored or not believed. Popular culture is particularly deaf to the sentiment, and theatre still likes to rely on this inaccurate gender trope. Whilst this has been slowly changing for some time, particularly on the fringe, it’s still a problem.
by guest critic Maeve Campbell
In 2011 Osama Bin Laden was killed, Pope John Paul II was beautified, and Kate and Wills tied the knot. Nearly as many people watched another televised wedding that year as a new reality-TV religion swept the globe. This is where The Marriage of Kim K, a new opera penned by Leoe Mercer and Steven Hyde, begins.
Nearly two years ago, Bj McNeill’s torn apart (dissolution) premiered at Theatre N16. Aussie/Polish company No Offence have since developed the feminist show over subsequent runs. But how much have they improved since their first go?
Theatre can plumb the depths of despair. It can elevate human glory and achievement. It can stir the heart and still the soul. Or it can throw a fabulous party on a rocket ship full of bearded drag queens in sequinned thongs.
by guest critic Simona Negretto
In 1997 Edna Walsh’s Disco Pigs hit the world with the story of an intoxicating and obsessive friendship between two teenagers, Runt and Pig, and their crazy, oneiric, visionary night out. Today, to celebrate its 20th anniversary, Tara Finney reprises the play in a vivid production permeated by the bittersweet taste of nostalgia.
by guest critic Gregory Forrest
The bed is the first thing we see. The mess is the second. By the end of the evening, we see just how messy one bed can get. Written and directed by Vicky Jones, winner of the 2013 Verity Bargate Award and co-artistic director of DryWrite, Touch is an acerbic slice of contemporary womanhood, romance, and urban isolation.
By guest critic Laura Dorn
The entrance to the jungle. For some, it is the threshold to freedom, a passageway into adventure, into uncertainty and discovery.
The keeper of the gates decides who is ready for the adventure, who isn’t, who deserves to proceed, who is sent home. Once inside the jungle, animal instincts take over. Natural selection, survival of the fittest and everyone for themselves become the new guidelines. In the words of Rudyard Kipling: “Now this is the law of the jungle, as old and as true as the sky, and the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.” Abide by the rules and your time in the jungle will be a success, break them and the outcome could be tragic.
