★★★★★
Adelaide Fringe. The Factory at The Garden of Unearthly Delights. 20 Feb 2020
L.I.A.R. (Life Is A Rehearsal) is a standout! If you appreciate comedy, dance, gymnastics, music, special effects, drama, physical theatre, and sexy bodies all rolled into one, then this show is for you. It is a must see event at this year’s Adelaide Fringe!
L.I.A.R. is a story about a boy growing up. The central character is played by Berlin-based gymnast/actor/comedian/performer, Remi Martin (it’s difficult to categorise him!). And what does Martin want to be when he grows up? An astronaut of course! The performance begins with him being born (!) as he emerges from a large blood-red luminous sac dressed only in very revealing briefs and clutching onto a toy astronaut. Martin’s body is tight, toned and terrific – beautifully proportioned like a classic Greek sculpture – and through delightful use of his body and a range of gestures and props, we see him develop through boyhood to manhood. Witnessing him changing clothes from short to long pants without using his hands is oh-so-funny and mind bogglingly clever!
Martin is joined on stage by two co-stars who are initially ‘roadies’ but gradually take on more important roles as they become foils to Martin’s increasing maturity. Mandi Orozco is a trapeze artist and a contortionist. She too is trim and terrific, and superbly plays the hard-to-win-over love interest for the developing Martin. Acrobat Tom Ball provides a lot of comedic interest in the entire production: his gormless looks and deliciously slap-stick antics are reminiscent of Laurel and Hardy and have the audience in stitches of laughter.
The entire performance is underpinned by a superb soundscape created on-stage by musician Tarran the Tailor, who expertly controls a range of pre-recorded sounds, effects and music, as well as singing and performing live on banjo and accordion with accomplished panache and style.
As the show progresses, and Martin confronts more and more of the harsh realities of adulthood, the cast’s circus feats become even more spectacular and visually dazzling. There’s an office scene, which incidentally is played half way up a vertical pole (of course?!), that becomes the epicentre of a hurricane which then morphs into a fight for survival on a storm ripped ocean. The lighting effects are simple but incredibly effective, and the sound scape forces you to the edge of your seat. This is dramatic stuff. At one stage wannabe astronaut Martin becomes Major Tom and floats through empty space as the sounds of David Bowie’s Space Oddity earnestly fill the venue.
And there is so much more. Did I mention dancing on skateboards, an accident with a piano, and a boy’s fascination with his genitals (oh so funny!)? These are have-to-see antics!
L.I.A.R. starts relatively sedately and, even though it is frequently hilarious, it builds to a visual and aural splendour. Life is not a rehearsal. Martin and crew give it their all, and this show – this experience – is simply not to be missed.
Kym Clayton
When: 20 Feb to 1 Mar
Where: The Factory at The Garden of Unearthly Delights
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
★★★
Adelaide Fringe. Cirque du Kagool. Studio 7, Garden of Unearthly Delights. 18 Feb 2020
It’s English for anorak or raincoat, innit?
The Kagools are two women from London, Claire and Nicola, who prefer to remain anonymous, dress in dark blue Kagools, and take the piss out of almost anything, really. Or anything that takes their fancy, that is.
And this, pretty much, is the basis for their run of shows, which seems to confound the critics at times, since it has been suggested The Kagools aren’t very talented at anything – magic tricks, acrobatics, staged fights… which rather seems to miss the point because they make people laugh and they seem rather good at it. Not to mention things could go badly wrong, what with video interaction, lots of water fights and the like, if it were not for some very good timing.
What remains is the certainty that the show is tightly scripted (they don’t utter a word) and pretty tightly choreographed, since it relies heavily upon musical cues and moves along rather smartly, with the help of a lot of audience participation. Heaven help them (the audience, I mean) if The Kagools ever strike a night of dullards or unhelpful types. I suspect their non-verbal mocking might cause lacerations.
And that’s it. A show about, errrm, things, which begins with intro music and audience members being handed plastic blow up instruments, some running and jumping around, followed by some water being splashed around, some audience participation, a mock love affair and pregnancy, the somewhat tasteless use of a hammer, and more water.
Easy, innit?
Just don’t be in the front three rows if you don’t want to be involved in a real live Fringe show.
Alex Wheaton
When: 18 Feb to 15 March
Where: Studio 7, Garden Of Unearthly Delights
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
★★★★★
Davine Productions. Star Theatres. 20 Feb 2020
Rave, rave, rave! Davine have done it again!
Methinks Producer / Director David Gauci is going to need a bigger awards shelf at the Davine production offices. Beautiful – The Carole King Musical is a theatrical triumph, and what’s more comprises an entirely local cast!
The jukebox musical, with book by Douglas McGrath, tells the story of Carole Joan Klein (stage name Carole King), from her discovery by Don Kirshner and employment at the Brill Building in 1958, through to her transition onto the stage as a performer in her own right in the late 1970s.
The story tracks the highs and lows of King’s career and marriage to Gerry Goffin, and cleverly intersperses many of her and Goffin’s greatest hits, still recognised today as standards of the genre.
Gauci and Davine Productions are no strangers to success, having produced multiple award-winning productions; this show undoubtedly will be added to that list.
Gauci has assembled a stellar cast (where does he find them?) of spectacular young triple threats who could have performed out of a cardboard box and still blown our socks off. Gauci's simple yet wonderfully techy set is brought vividly to life by Shenayde Wilkinson-Sarti’s delicious choreography, Tim Bates' lighting, and Louise Watkins wonderful costumes. The theatre is filled to the rafters with the awesome sound and musical stylings of Peter Johns' band, all perfectly amplified by Allpro Audio. This production is second to none.
The ensemble cast completely own their time in the spotlight, and special mentions are warranted for Jordan Coulter, Carly Meakin, Louisa Vilinne, Alisa James, and Anthony Vawser, for their solo renditions of various numbers which were all vocally spectacular.
Choreographers love it when dancers are up for a challenge, and Wilkinson-Sarti must have relished working with such a talented group. The big dance numbers reveal a choreographer and her dancers in perfect synchronicity; the energy and flow is electric and the choreography almost cinematic in its application.
But in this cast full of leading men and ladies, it is the actual leads that completely steal the show. Kate Anolak delivers comedy gold as Carole’s mother, Genie Klein; Brendan Cooney is measured and mature, and provides perfect balance to the youthful enthusiasm of his musical prodigies; Joshua Kerr is all at once funny and sincere in his portrayal of Barry Mann, and as his lover and music writing partner Cynthia Weil, Maya Miller is all exuberance and class packaged with a pitch perfect singing voice and enviable stage presence.
Trevor Anderson lays it all on the line as manic Gerry Goffin in what surely must be one of his best performances to date; his characterisation delivers on the rollercoaster of emotions that provide the spring board for King’s emotional and musical inspiration. Anderson is absolutely engaging to watch, especially singing Up On The Roof and Pleasant Valley Sunday.
But it is Jemma McCulloch’s performance as Carole King that will have them talking for years to come. What McCulloch gives is more than just performance, it transcends the stage, she isn’t playing Carole King – she is Carole King. McCulloch’s smoky, sultry tones are all at once filled with desire, delight, sadness, and love. She has a tonality that draws you in and envelopes you, taking your breathe completely away. McCulloch could sing me the phone book and I'd listen for hours. Sign me up for the first copy of the cast album!
The entire season of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical sold out months prior to opening. So beg, borrow, or steal your way in, or prepare to live with the regret of missing one of 2020’s best local productions; a big, but easy call to make so early in the year!
Paul Rodda
When: 20 to 29 Feb
Where: Star Theatres
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
★★★★
Adelaide Fringe Festival. The Peacock at Gluttony. 19 Feb 2020
The Fringe typically presents scores of circus and physical theatre acts, but By A Thread is atypical and is a must-see!
By A Thread comprises seven artists – four women and three men, all slim, trim and terrific – and a single long white rope suspended between two large pulleys high above. There is a cushioned mat on the ground and no safety net. The setting is minimalist in the extreme, and the artists have only each other and the harshly illuminated rope to rely upon.
For nearly fifty minutes the artists have us in awe with what they can do with their bodies. There are dazzling displays of balance, strength, grace, poise and razor sharp precision in all of their aerial and ground routines. And there is emotion. The routines are performed against a sensitively designed and carefully constructed soundscape that begins and ends with some wistfully evocative solo piano music by Philip Glass, one of the greatest minimalist composers alive. But there is nothing minimalist in what the artists do. Each piece of music establishes the tone and ‘feel’ for each gymnastic vignette, and there is almost a sense of narrative that weaves through the entire performance.
Beginning and ending on the same piece of music is a nice touch. It’s as if the rope finally loops in on itself bringing everything to a close.
The one constant in the performance is the rope that the artists use to hoist themselves and each other through the air and to support them in their poetic, complex and dazzling choreographed manoeuvres.
The interplay between the artists is palpable. Of course they indicate to each other about their readiness to do particular things, but the communication is deeper than that. One senses trust and genuine affection (even romance!), tenderness and even joyful mischievousness!
In some sense, the whole event is like a visual symphony, a kinetic piece of art: there is structure and robustness; delicacy and gentleness; power and presence; intelligent interplay and counterpoint. Above all, it is passionate and visually exciting.
This is the last Adelaide Fringe festival this company will be participating in. So, do yourself a favour and experience their art before they leave. For the final time. This is no ordinary physical theatre.
Kym Clayton
When: 19 Feb to 15 Mar
Where: The Peacock at Gluttony
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
★★★★
Adelaide Fringe. The Peacock at Gluttony. 19 Feb 2020
The best stand-up comedians have a well-honed ability to see the minutiae in the mundane and then exaggerate and embellish them so that they become extraordinary. They are opportunists, and through quick thinking and slick language can make the inconsequential become exceptionally funny. They make incisive comparisons and easily think about opposites: if this, then why not that? They have a sense of narrative and can connect disparate ideas to produce a coherent whole. Above all, they have a sixth sense about people and know how far to push boundaries, and in what direction.
Tom Gleeson has all these skills in spades.
Undoubtedly Gleeson’s show – aptly entitled Lighten Up – has a ‘play list’, but when a woman in the front row easily reaches and unties one of his shoelaces, Gleeson seizes the opportunity to make something of it. Within thirty seconds the near capacity audience (in a very large venue!) is dissolving in laughter as the act of re-tying his shoelace quickly becomes an entrée into discussing the audience member’s fertility and taxation status! No one laughed harder than the woman herself! Instant celebrity!
From then on one gag follows another, and his barbed comments about some of the unfortunate outcomes of the recent bush fire crisis lead to comparisons that are nothing less than comedic gold.
He gently mocks his own family, and himself, as sort of antidote for mercilessly lampooning others. A feature of his show is how he cleverly relates the tag line of one gag to another: every joke is enjoyed again, and again.
The highlight of the show is Gleeson’s comments about him winning his Gold Logie, and the audience all but falls off their chairs with gut wrenching laughter as he outlines the whole sorry saga. But a good gag always keeps on giving, and Gleeson takes the audience into his confidence about future possibilities, but to say anymore would be a spoiler. Suffice to say, “shoosh”! Too obscure? Well, you’ll just need to ‘lighten up’, go to his show and hear for yourself!
Kym Clayton
When: 19 Feb to 15 Mar
Where: The Peacock at Gluttony
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au