On a point of interest, 450 years ago, the Ridolphi Plot was linked to Guy Fawkes and his attempt to blow up Parliament.

This gripping drama is being presented as part of the Fringe Summer Nights, in the main Blue Room Theatre, 53 James Street in Northbridge.

This MUST SEE, one-hour show is on nightly at 9.30 until 20^th February.

At first glances, the set (designer, Trent Suidgeest) appears simple, with a table and a couple of chairs; however, in the corner of the stage is a telephone box, which has all of the magical properties of Superman’s ‘phone booth and a Dr Who box. The white rear wall of the box has projected onto it, video (also by Trent Suidgeest) of the old magician at work, and scenes of the many localities his son will experience on the way through this tale. I rarely comment on posters, but Jamie Breen’s stunning photo captured the play’s mystery perfectly. 

As always, Ben Collins soundscape was beautifully composed, and played subtly in the background.

 

       When he died, the world’s greatest escape artist and magician – The Great Ridolphi – left his immense wealth to a charity, with his sole son, Victor O’Meara receiving only a battered suitcase, filled with what appears to be trashy, op shop contents.

      A decade after his father’s death, Victor (Steve Turner) received a visit from a detective linked to the Art Fraud and Theft section of Scotland Yard. It seems at the time of his father’s death, a priceless museum painting had been swapped for a copy.

      The policeman was keen to hold onto the father’s suitcase, but Victor suspected there might be clues in it that he had missed.

      What did the random objects mean? Could his father really have been a master thief?

 

In an exciting and intriguing tale of mystery, you feel as though it is the Da Vinci Code all over again – except this time with quality! When I looked at the names of the scriptwriter, technical team, the actor and director, then considered their amazing achievements, with all of them having won every major WA prize in their field, I was blown away. Naturally, I was expecting a quality show, but what they have given us is just another realm.

Every member of the team has given their VERY best. Everyone left the theatre stunned at the overall perfection of this play. Amazing skills.

The stage has a two metre high, gold shimmer curtain totally covering the walls on three sides. The floor is pale blue with gold writing, stating ‘All that glitters’. Above is a mirror ball. Designer, Tessa Darcey has fashioned a wonderfully warm and exciting nightclub location. She has also created the costumes of gold lamé onesies, like spacemen’s suits, for the four cast members.

The lighting and sound design by Joe Lui has been carefully thought out, ranging from a lively scene to a stark and dark, lonely location.

       To loud Taylor Swift music, the four Hunters dressed in gold, with sparkling gold dust on their face and hair, enter the stage. They appear to be hugging or caressing an invisible baby – a refugee. After an energetic dance routine, one of the male Hunters (Chris Isaacs) steps forward and explains how their aim is to ‘save’ a refugee from being deported every few minutes. A counter appears on the rear wall stating that so far, no one has been saved.

       With all of the pseudo-sincerity of the actors in a TV advertising programme for kitchen appliances, the four smile and explain their aims. We are next invited to join Chris and Arielle (Arielle Gray) with two of their friends (Adriane Daff, Jeffrey Jay Fowler) in their tastelessly decorated dining room. Adriane and Jeffrey – with ham acting (intentional) that would make ‘The Days of Our Lives’ look like high drama – explain to their hosts how much more they have done for the suffering minorities.

       Will a heart rending, arousing speech and an amazing tap dance sequence by this highly dedicated team save a few more dozen downtrodden lives?

Talented director Gita Bezard has packed this show with subtle laughs. From the dryly delivered, yet overstated performances with the flowery ingratiating script, the belly laughs flowed non-stop. This highly experienced cast, with Equity nominated members, had the audience in the palms of their hands. Each actor played several characters, from shy to bold, from wimpy to orator; the whole of life is packed into this fun hour. A great start to the Blue Room’s new season.

This 75-minute, hilarious tale that was adroitly written by Chris Isaacs, can be seen in the main theatre at the Blue Room, James Street, Northbridge nightly at 7.00 pm, until Saturday 2^nd May.

The scene is a sitting room in a large suburban house. Joe Lui’s lighting was used to ‘freeze’ time and allow the characters’ thoughts to materialise. Atmosphere reinforced by Brett Smith’s sound design.

       Beautiful Gabby (Arielle Gray) returns home after a hard day at the office, to find that her partner, Jim (Nick Maclaine), despite being on his day off, has still not cleaned the house as promised. To make things even worse, Jim has invited his good friend, Bobby (Tim Watts) around for a drink; partly as a friendly gesture, but mainly for them to meet his new girlfriend, Florence (Nicola Bartlett), about whom Bobby has been raving for weeks.

      When the guest couple arrive, Gabby and Jim’s jaws drop. This ‘wonderful, superhuman woman’ is twice Bobby’s age. Flo is an aging, but smartly dressed Hippy, who fawns over Bobby taking every chance to give him a loving peck. In return, Bobby just glows with happiness, smitten at his new partner’s worldly experiences.

      Gabby has trouble holding back on her inner feelings on this impeccable woman.

Prize-winning writer, Chris Isaacs has proved many times in the past to be a clever writer. He has the knack of very subtle changes in sentence structure and story threads, allowing his plays to smoothly develop whilst taking the story into unknown territory.

Over the years, almost all of this talented team, from the director to techies have been nominated for, or won, major theatrical awards. Director, Jeffrey Jay Fowler and his assistant Adriane Daff, have brought out the wonderful humour hinted at between the lines of the perfectly structured script. Isaacs has created four very different, rich characters and the fabulous cast members, with dramaturg guidance by Gita Bezard, have given a brilliant depth to their persona.

Tim Watts was hilarious as the besotted lover. As the older woman, Nicola oozed cougar-sex from every pore. Arielle displayed her distaste at the situation with venom almost dripping. Nick as the househusband seemed happy just to tag along with whatever happened. Superb team work.

A very funny, fresh and original play with a bit of a sting in the tail. Immaculately presented.

‘The Last Great Hunt’ is a comparatively new, independent theatre company formed by Western Australia’s best young theatre-makers – named above. They create imaginative theatre in a variety of forms and styles.

The outstanding original soundtrack is by award-winning composer Ash Gibson Greig, who has a wonderful feel for just the right instrument, volume and tempo for each character and scene. In this performance he takes us from gentle, soft strings to a dramatic, full orchestral piece reminiscent of Holst’s Planet Suite (Opus 23), the pounding ‘Mars’.

This highly inventive 55-minute performance, which has been rated more suitable for over 15 year olds by the creators, can be seen at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts performance space nightly at 7.30 until Saturday 11^th October.

 

       It is the middle of the night, and zoological scientist Mary (Adriane Daff) is tucked up in bed. The doona falls off and she finds herself speeding through space. Then, travelling in an air balloon, Mary floats through the dark night and lands on a remote island, the home of biological experiments. It is here that she meets the head scientist (Chris Isaacs). He enlightens her that they still have two eggs from the now extinct genus – ‘bird’.

      Mary and her lab assistant (Arielle Gray) are given the task of hatching these eggs and nurturing them. Can Mary raise healthy normal birds? Or will she hit problems? What is Mary’s lifelong ambition?

In the previous shows, the puppets were small and the operators ‘invisible’. In this much more ambitious production, some of the puppets are the size of the operator. With the shiny nylon, protective lab suits worn by the puppeteers (they usually wear black cotton body suits) and the higher lighting level, some of the magic was lost. Having said that, some of the effects were breathtakingly convincing. Mary’s final flight, the bird running and Henry’s petulance were exceptionally inventive. Many of these technicalities were overcome by Tim’s dad, designer Anthony Watts.

This production started in the usual ‘cute’ way, but then went through a very sad and dramatic stage. The slick and ingenious blend of pre-recorded audio visual, coupled with live video often had one wondering how the magic was performed. As with any magical trick that looks so effortless, the amount of rehearsal, failures and revamping of the idea can be endless.

With such ambitious innovators, and this team are fairly unique in Australia, it may take some time to smooth off some of the rough edges of their opening night, but their sheer genius and daring will guarantee them another major success. With the cinema and TV pumping out computer-generated effects, the expectations from a stage production can be a little unfair; however, I can guarantee you will never have seen anything approaching this in live theatre before. The numerous gobsmacking visual effects, and there must be around a couple of hundred in this single production, were performed at breakneck speed and with immaculate timing.

Another MUST SEE from The Last Great Hunt.

This 80-minute, World Premiere runs nightly in the Studio Underground at the State Theatre Centre, Northbridge; performances are at 8.00 pm (6.00 pm and 10.00 pm on Friday nights) until Sunday 2^nd February.

The seating is on three sides around the central stage. There is also a balcony on two sides.

India Mehta’s magnificent set, which is at floor level, it is formed in a red, stratified Bungle Bungle-style rock formation around a small fresh-water pool. There is a most effective scenery effect towards the end of the play that would require a great deal of skill, planning and patience.

        At the suggestion of Sal (Will O’Mahony), a group of old Uni friends decide to have a final fling before settling down to their occupations. Sal, who now lives in Melbourne, decides not to ask his girlfriend on the trip but still manages to arrange for three boys and three girls.

       Five of the group are filled with enthusiasm; however, for Vanessa (Whitney Richards), the lack of ‘normal’ facilities and creepy-crawlies fills her with dread. Eventually they agree, deciding on a beautiful, extremely remote spot, 300 kms inland from Kalbarri.

       Although their travel is lengthy, with Mike (Joshua Brennan) at the wheel, and Steve’s (Samuel Delich) juvenile games and wild stories, they love every second of the journey. Soon they arrive at the sheltered creek. Exuberant Elizabeth (Rose Riley) is first in for a dip, but Frankie (Adriane Daff) feels uncomfortable with the area – and what are those strange haunting sounds? Sounds that will change their lives forever.

Chris has cleverly blended several writing styles for his performers. He has incorporated asides, internal thoughts presented as monologues to the audience and bold, punchy interaction between the superbly created characters.

This gripping tale is directed by one of WA’s most talented directors and dramaturges, the adventurous Adam Mitchell. Adam has proved his ability and can be given any genre of script and direct it in such a way that it is exciting and fresh, and always fast-paced whilst still fully comprehensible. Movement director, Danielle Micich ensured that the cast filled the limited set and that the tempo was conserved.

The WA desert has its own unique colours that change dramatically throughout the day and night. Lighting designer, Chris Donnelly, on his first major project has captured perfectly the mood and distinctive colours of the outback. Coupled with the strange and creepy soundscape of composer, Ben Collins, you find yourself there, in the desert suffering with the group.

An unusual play, superbly presented and acted by a young, award-laden team. The first success of Chris Isaacs, I eagerly await the next.