Page 8

This was glorious http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/page-8-bangarra/ Part of this year’s Corroboree season and also linked in with the Bangarra 25th anniversary birthday celebrations this wonderful, huge hearted production explodes onto the Bangarra studio stage. The show was first performed a decade ago and was last seen in a fleeting season at Belvoir in 2009. Directed by his brother Stephen , PAGE 8 is an intimate, very revealing, autobiographical coming of age tale, which is about how David, the eighth child in a family of twelve grew up in a housing commission estate in Queensland. This intimate self portrait , performed by David himself, has a captivating, witty, illuminating script co-written by Louis Nowra and incorporates storytelling,1970′s home movies, singing , dancing and a now legendary drag routine. The show opens with David as a young boy receiving an old movie camera as a Christmas present, which he went on to use and made plenty of home movies. He became ‘Australia’s answer to Michael Jackson’ at only thirteen . As ‘Little Davey Page’ he appeared on many television programs including Countdown and The Paul Hogan Show, and his singles made it into the Australian Top 10. Then his voice broke. David then embarked on a dark journey of self discovery in his teenage years, dealing with, among other things, coping with racism, family crisis, career directions and coming out as gay. As a teenager, he showed his talents as an award winning composer. David has been involved in his brother Stephens’ dance company Bangarra as well as the Sydney 2000 Olympics , the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and various movie and stage projects. He recently completed a very successful national tour of Black Diggers. Page can best be described as an extraordinarily vibrant and versatile performer. Muscular, tattooed and sinuous, he is a striking , magnetic performer contrasting glorious creamy movements with stark dramatic ones. During PAGE 8 he brings to life an incredible array of characters, especially his much loved family:- his parents, siblings , Aunty Tess and Uncle George. Also brought to life are a motley group of characters including bosses, teachers and agents. David is hilarious as as his younger self on television. He is ravishing as Frank N Furter from The Rocky Horror Show and dazzles as legendary soul singer, Aretha Franklin. He tells some very funny anecdotes against himself but can also subtly change the mood and be quite intense, serious and poignant. Robert Cousins’ set design includes a rackety old kitchen full of assorted props.There is a glitzy stage area including a huge double-door wardrobe, the doors of which cleverly act as a projection screen. There are many costume changes- plenty of high heels and platform shoes. The stage lighting is a treat. PAGE 8 is an extraordinary theatrical tour de force, – an extremely revealing , emotional solo performance from the heart of Bangarra and the Page clan. Running time is two hours without interval. PAGE 8 plays the Bangarra Studios until Sunday 14th December.

Recollect: Shoes at the Powerhouse Museum

A fabulous fascinating exhibition http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/recollect-shoes-at-powerhouse-museum-sydney/‘Shoes are like makeup for the feet’ (Edmund Castillo). Shoe aficionados rejoice and slide, stumble, teeter, bourree, glide, tango, tap, ooze, march, or run your way to this fabulous exhibition at the Powerhouse. The exhibition is down on Level 1, near the Wiggles exhibition, and is the first time that the Museum has used the particular area as an exhibition space. Shoes can be disposable, comfortable or extremely uncomfortable, bespoke or mass produced. They can be works of art, more like a piece of sculpture than wearable footwear. They can also be specially made for protection (for instance, fire fighter boots) or specially made to help with medical conditions. The Powerhouse ‘s collection of shoes numbers over 1,000 pairs, dating from the 16th century to now. This is the third ‘Recollect ‘ exhibition (previous exhibitions were on the themes of cars and architecture). It shows us how the Powerhouse collects, stores and maintains its awesome shoe collection and how the theory of conservation of shoes has changed over the years. It is interesting to note that some materials used to conserve shoes actually end up destroying them. A major highlight of the display are the historic shoes from the internationally significant Joseph Box collection. Joseph Box Ltd (today owned by John Lobb Bootmaker Ltd) was a London based shoe company which had its origins in a business making women’s shoes founded by James Sly in 1808. There are 5 showcases devoted to the Box collection , some of which were not meant to be worn but rather were designed to show off the skill of the particular shoemaker. The detail and exquisite design are breath taking. There are remnants of leather shoes from the Middle Ages, which were excavated from British archaeological sites, intact European shoes from the 16th century to the early 19th century, ethnographic shoes, shoe buckles, tools and spurs, as well as an extensive company archive. The exhibition also includes a range of shoe-making equipment, including an early 20th century clicking press, various shoe lasts, including those for Kerry Packer and Bob Hawke, and assorted patterns to demonstrate the process of making bespoke (made-to-measure) shoes, in addition to a collection of recent acquisitions. There is a section called ‘Wear in the world ‘ with wonderful shoes from around the world including reindeer skin boots, shoes for bound feet from China, toe hold truck tyre sandals from South Africa .. .There are roller skates and ice skates , polo boots, pointed shoes, worn and signed by Ruth Gaelene, and a special section featuring children’s shoes. The Streetshoes section includes bright unmissable sneakers and Adidas. A favourite of mine were the Jeremy Scott silver teddy bear sneakers. We follow the development of the wedges, and the development of the high heel and lethal stiletto.(Dior ones for example). We can see the now fragile, very first pair of elastic-sided boots in the world, worn by Queen Victoria, and can trace how this influenced RM Williams among others. A special section of the exhibition towards the start is the haunting shoe lasts from the famous Perkal Brothers of Surry Hills who passed away in 2013. Catherine Martin ‘s major collection is also featured and is enormously impressive and beautiful- everything from Jimmy Choos to Prada ( oh the leopard skin ones!) to Donna May Bolinger. I loved the yellow Christian Laboutier with black detail. There were shoes designed by Mary Quant, Yves St Laurent and contemporary Australian shoe designers ( eg Stepping Out). Other celebrity shoes you can see include those worn by Colin Lanceley and Johnny O’Keefe , Vivienne Westwood’s ‘Super Elevated Gillies’, Marc Newson’s cosmonaut-inspired sneakers for Nike, a pair of Charles Jourdan heels worn by Nicole Kidman in the film Moulin Rouge and a pair of cricket boots autographed by Sir Donald Bradman. There are also exotic shoes for Mardi Gras … One could easily spend days examining this exhibition. Another quote to end with:- ‘A woman can carry a bag but it is the shoe that carries the woman’. (Christian Louboutin). RECOLLECT: SHOES @ the Powerhouse is on exhibition until May 2015. For more information about RECOLLECT: SHOES visit:- http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/exhibitions/shoes/

Dame Maggie Scott

A marvellous dance biography http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/dame-maggy-scott-by-michelle-potter/An impressive new biography of Dame Maggie Scott has been published by the Text Publishing Company. The author is Michelle Potter, a notable dance author, historian and curator who holds a Doctorate in art history and dance history from the Australian National University. Amongst other things she has received two Australian Dance Awards – for Services to Dance in 2003 and Outstanding Achievement in Dance on Film in 2001. Dame Margaret (Maggie) Scott looms large in the history of late twentieth century/early twenty-first century dance in Australia. This biography of a pioneering figure in Australian dance history was launched as part of the fiftieth anniversary of the Australian Ballet School celebrations, most appropriately as Scott was founding Director of the school and a dancer and teacher of immense vision and intellect. Maggie Scott was born in Johannesburg in 1922. She showed an early love and aptitude for dance and was encouraged to move to Britain for further training but just six weeks after her arrival World War 11 erupted. During the War she started performing with the Sadlers Wells Ballet (now the Royal Ballet) and worked with the legendary Dame Ninette de Valois, Helpmann,and Fonteyn but then she changed companies and began dancing for Rambert, touring Germany in 1946. Scott traveled to Australia with the Rambert company in 1947. Other important names of ballet history to emerge around this time include Edouard Borovansky, Ruth Galene, Vasilli Trunoff and Kyra Bousloff. The Company had a tremendously successful Sydney season but then disaster struck for Scott as the recurrence of a back injury occurred. The dancer was informed she probably would not be able to dance again. Scott did however eventually recover and became a major figure in Australian dance. She was enticed back to the stage for Graeme Murphy’s Nutcracker: The Story of Clara in 1992, 1994 and 2000 for the Australian Ballet. Scott became the first Director of The Australian Ballet School. She holds two honorary Doctorates.She was a foundation member of the National Theatre Ballet and led a group of Australian who helped establish the Australian Ballet as Australia’s flagship ballet company Dame Maggie has inspired and taught dancers who are now regarded as exceptional performers, choreographers and teachers. The book has quotes from many of them including Lucinda Dunn, Lisa Pavane , Marilyn Rowe, Lisa Bolte , Christine Walsh , Julia Cotton… to name just a few. Graeme Murphy reminisces about his audition for the Australian Ballet School as does David McCallister, the current artistic director of the Australian Ballet. Fascinating insights are leaked into the early history of the Australian Ballet and also Scott’s work and links with John Cranko and Sir Kenneth Macmillan, among others, whilst she worked in the UK. We learn of her enforced retirement and the behind the scenes political wrangling at the time of the silver jubilee celebrations of the Australian Ballet school. Her personal life is mentioned but rather minimally. Scott is married to Dr Derek (Dick) Denton a medical doctor. They have two sons, Angus and Matthew. Her encouragement of other creative artists including Russell Drysdale is mentioned and much is also made of her pedagogy and the teaching at the Australian Ballet School. The publication features an exuberant forward by Graeme Murphy and includes some wonderful photos. Scott’s visionary tract ‘ Philosophy of Teaching ‘ is also available at the back giving great insight into Scott’s teaching and expansion of the Australian Ballet School. Dance educators will be fascinated by Scott’s luminary vision for the Australian Ballet School, and how she tried to blend the major styles (Vaganova, Checchetti, R.A.D. and Bournonville ) in the curriculum and was constantly ensuring the school was as contemporary as possible. The Dame Margaret Scott fund for Choreography most recently assisted the Australian Ballet’s Melbourne and Sydney seasons of Ratmasnky’s Cinderalla. Now a nonagenarian, Dame Margaret apparently recently brought the house down at the Australian Ballet School’s 50th celebrations, swishing a sparkly gold stick for the golden anniversary. Impeccably researched, the result of many meetings, oral history interviews and international research this is a fascinating biography of a major luminary in the Australian dance world. Title: Dame Maggy Scott Author: Michelle Potter Publisher : Text Publishing Company ISBN : 9781922182388 Dewey classification : 792.8092 Bind : Hardback For more about Dame Maggie Scott, visit https://www.textpublishing.com.au/books/dame-maggie-scott

NT LIve Frankenstein

Very strong powerful stuff http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/nt-live-frankenstein-starring-benedict-cumberbatch-jonny-lee-miller/This magnificent, intense, shattering production will leave you reeling, stunned and breathless. This is a repeat screening of the brilliant 2011-2 production at the National Theatre in London, directed by Danny Boyle,and starring Benedict Cumberbatch as the Creature and Jonny Lee Miller as Victor Frankenstein. There are actually two versions of this film, with the two leads swapping roles in the other version. The production is based on the novel by Mary Shelley about scientist Victor Frankenstein who creates a man from combined dead bodies and then goes on to abandon him. Shelley’s classic works raises so many big questions,-Why are we here? What is the meaning of life?… We see how the poor Creature, abandoned at birth , is penniless and homeless. In Cumberbatch’s extraordinary performance we see how the scarred Creature, emerges from the apparatus he has been suspended from, works out how to move and walk, and then discerns the rhythm of the weather and seasons. The creature soon cruelly discovers how society will only reject him and drive him away.Eventually he forms a friendship with a blind old man de Lacey, beautifully played by Karl Johnson, who teaches him the ways of civilisation. Things take a turn for the worse when he is driven away by the old man’s son and daughter in law .The Creature’s heart, originally with massive potential for good, begins slowly to turn pernicious and he goes down the path of bitter revenge. The Creature is lonely and separate and wants a companion and in his view Victor broke his word when he destroyed the Creature’s potential ‘wife’ he had almost finished completing . Cumberbatch as the Creature is amazing , a sensational bravura performance. At first he is all slippery and slithery as he tries to learn to stand up and walk , he then becomes twisted and clingy but grows to become powerfully eloquent. Yes, thus Creature has even read John Milton’s Paraidise Lost. Victor Frankenstein as played by Jonny Lee Miller is shown as driven, elegant and handsome .He is a scientist in search of the spark of life and succeeds but it all goes wrong.Shocked, he abandons the scarred Creature and flees. At the end we see how the positions of creature and creator are reversed. – we see how Victor becomes more and more like the Creature was at the very beginning. Elizabeth, as portrayed by Naomie Harris, is depicted as questioning, innocent, beautiful…She thinks she knows her fiancé Victor but does she really?! The camerawork is excellent and it almost feels like we are there on stage. There is a great use of close-ups at times and also dizzying, effective use of the high shots of the huge revolve, and the amazing chandelier/galaxy of lights, that are used to great effect. There are some magical special effects. The huge Olivier Theatre stage is stretched to its limits.There is exciting use of the revolves and I enjoyed the delicate, almost Japanese style of de Lacey’s house. Victor’s house and Elizabeth’s room were elegantly decked in black and white. A huge noisy train catapaults ominously forward belching steam to represent early 19th-century industrialisation. This was a chilling, thrilling, challenging production that well deserved the rapturous, standing ovation that it received. NT LIVE FRANKENSTEIN is screening at selected cinemas now. The film opens with a short documentary about the rehearsal process before ‘live action’ begins. Running time 2 hours 15 minutes without interval.

The Tiger Who Came to Tea

Absolutely delightful enchanting children's theatre .http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/the-tiger-who-came-to-tea-the-playhouse-sydney-opera-house/Hold on to your biscuits! Part of the ‘Kids at the House’ season this is wonderful fun, full of bright, vibrant energy. This is magnificent school holiday fare and is just right for the intended market, young ittlies, who absolutely loved it. Some kids came dressed in a tiger onesie, quite a few wore a Tiger mask (for sale at the merchandise desk) ,some had their photo taken with the cardboard cutout tiger at the entrance to the theatre, The show is based on Judith Kerr’s wonderful book that has been out for about 40 years about a Tiger (a very polite yet extremely hungry,, dancing ,energetic tiger!) who invites himself to afternoon tea with Sophie and her Mum and eats and drinks everything in the house, leaving nothing left for supper. The show includes mime, (Tiger indicating he is hungry and thirsty) slapstick (Daddy, late for work, frantically running around gulping breakfast, putting his shoes in the toaster instead of bread!), and panto. As in the style of Playschool and The Wiggles there is repetition of simple phrases, counting down of the hours on the clock, plenty of sing-along audience participation (the ‘yummy, scrummy sausages chips and ice cream’ song), and great sight gags ( Daddy wearing a tea cosy instead of his hat). The combination of sounds and mime in the car sequence (the car being kitchen furniture) was great fun and there were lovely special effects with the night stars design. Matthew Dudley as Daddy, the milkman and old almost blind postman, is tall, gangly and a lot of fun. As Tiger he is striking in his orange and black attire. His sinister, slinky entrance and fantastic ‘killer moves’ generated squeals of excitement from the young audience members. He is also terrific at leading the Tigerobics (again almost full house audience participation ) when the music is on the radio … Jenanne Redman as Mummy was just right, sweet and caring and always busy. Redman also showed great prowess as a singer and dancer. Abbey Norman as Sophie is terrific, extremely energetic and delightful.There were some lovely moments. My favourites:- when the Tiger was drinking and Sophie was stroking his tail..when Tiger gives Sophie a ride on his back…when Sophie hugs the Tiger goodbye. Dudley as Tiger is very tall and striking in his orange and black garb, and has much fun even playing a horn at the curtain calls. Visually the set is very faithful to the book; bright, mostly blue but with yellow accents and chairs, as are the costumes (down to the checks on Sophies’s tights) . This was glorious children’s theatre and children of all ages were enchanted. When you go to see the show make sure that you pack extra provisions and that you don’t forget the large tin of Tiger food! Running Time- 1 hour. THE TIGER WHO CAME TO TEA is playing the Playhouse, Sydney Opera House until 28th December 2014.

NT LIve A Streetcar Named Desire

Wow .Hot and explosive . Here's my Sydney Arts Guide review http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/nt-live-young-vic-a-streetcar-named-desire/It is sweltering in this extraordinary powerful, shattering, very intimate performance of A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE by Tennessee Williams. Part of the season at the Young Vic in London , it is screened as part of the ‘NT Live’ series and explodes onto the screen . Benedict Andrews has updated the production to now, set in present day New Orleans with jumpy blasts of rock music including Jimi Hendrix and Chris Isaac. The stage for this production is configured as a combination thrust/in the round space so that the theatregoers can intimately view the action and each other. This is also helped by the constant use of the revolve which whilst extremely effective is a little dizzying at times. The ‘fourth wall’ is broken down and we are in Stella and Stanley’s tiny cramped apartment with the crashing screen door, the staircase, the small bathroom and a curtain drawn at times for ineffectual privacy . There is very effective use of close ups and also shots from above, showing the resolve in action. The show’s unsettling focus-as it should be- is on the domestic violence that frames Williams’ play. Ben Foster as Stanley, burly, handsome, with tattoos , smoulders and menaces. Vanessa Kirby as Stella, torn between her husband and sister, is sensational. Gillian Anderson as ex school teacher Blanche du Bois,is sensational, giving a searing , emotionally harrowing performance. Blanche is a faded Southern belle of a large Mississippi abode who has lost her home before the action begins and loses her mind by play’s end. We see her brittle, fragile hold on normal life dissolve and disintegrate. . Anderson shatteringly shows a woman whose options are running out and who is getting ever closer to the end of her tether. Her lies and fantasies of a better life become almost heroic.Her exit at the end is intense and overwhelming, almost unbearable . Corey Johnson as the concerned, warm hearted gentlemanly Mitch delivers a fine performance. An American classic of thwarted dreams and explosive sexuality not to be missed . Running time– just over 3 hours including interval. Allow extra time after to recover! NT LIVE: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE is currently screening at selected cinemas. DRAMATIS PERSONAE:- Blanche du Bois Gillian Anderson Eunice Hubbel Calre Burt Mexican Woman Lachele Carl Steve Branwell Donaghy Young Collector Otto Farrant Stanley Kowalski Ben Foster Doctor Nicholas Gecks Pablo Troy Glasgow Nirse Stephanie Jacob Harold Mitchell ( Mitch ) Corey Johnson Stella Kowalski Vanessa Kirby Woman Claire Prempeh CREATIVES:- Director Benedict Andrws Design Magda Willi Costumes Victoria Behr Lightging John Clark Sound Paul Arditti Music Alex Baranwoski

The Australian Ballet La Bayadere

Here's what I thought for Sydney Arts Guide http://www.sydneyartsguide.com.au/la-bayadere/Opulent and incredibly spectacular this version by Australia’s Stanton Welch was created for his Houston Ballet ( where Welch is artistic director) in 2010 .It is a reworking of Petipa’s 1877 version at the height of fascination with all things Oriental. It is about love , revenge , jealousy and politics with a very silly ,extremely complicated plot so redolent of Russian 19th century ballet. It is very kitschy and hammily acted at times but all is redeemed by the superlative dancing .The Australian Ballet are just getting better and better. Welch’s very demanding , athletic choreography includes several very high , difficult ‘Bolshoi’ lifts in the pas de deux .And the famous test piece the ‘Kingdom of Shades’ scene was superb. In Welch’s production scenes flow swiftly and the mime is clear. Welch has edited the complex plot, boosted the male roles and fine tuned the pace creating an almost Bollywood fantasy. The Kingdom of the Shades scene in Act 3 was breathtaking,with the mesmerizing , repetitive diagonal entrance of the ghostly Shades all in white magnificent- a glorious example of links to ‘Giselle ‘ ( past) and ‘Swan Lake’ ( very soon to come) . The well drilled corps moved and breathed as one. Juliet Burnett , Ako Kondo and Miwako Kubota shone as three of the leading Shades. The pas de deux for Solor and Nikia were splendid , retaining some of the original Petipa choreography patterns ,lines and rigid formality were required especially for example in the huge ensemble.Peter Farmer’s front curtain designs were marvellous ,his set designs sensational ( although I get the feeling they are a bit cramped on the Sutherland stage ) . Costume designs are striking too , mostly richly oppulent , lavishly textured and full of colour . Minkus’ lyrical, tuneful score was excellently played under the enthusiastic baton of guest conductor Phillip Ellis. The work requires a huge cast , not just marvellous technicians but also great character actors as well . Cameron Hunter as Calum the fakir with his wild matted hair and slithery simian like movements was tremendous. Some versions have a ‘ Bronze’ or ‘Gold’ idol , in this version we have Agni the fire god ( Chengwu Guo) who has a very spectacular , dramatic , showy solo and Garuda the dream god ( Cristiano Matino) in grey blue. Both were extremely impressive . Our sweet ,tragic heroine Nikia was exquisitely danced by Madeline Eastoe in a ravishing performance of fluid line , full of graceful delicacy and vulnerability –magnificent . As malevolently , maliciously sweetly evil Gamzatti in pink ( perhaps a villianous cousin of Sugar in Matthew Bourne’s ‘Nutcrcacker’ ?) Lana Jones was terrific. Solor, our warrior hero whose saving the village from the tiger change his life was tremendously danced by Daniel Gaudiello .Fiery and impassioned , you can see the Nureyev influence and the links to the later’ Le Corsair’ in his solos especially in Act 3.Estoe , Gaudiello and Jones handle the demanding , difficult choreography with great pizzazz. Andrew Killian was tall and imposing , very regal and channelling his inner Yul Brynner as the High Brahmin in love with Nikia. During the wedding scenes there are various set display pieces for the scantily clad guards in leather, Gamzatti’s sisters and the groomsmen that have intricate interweaving patterns and lines of choreography and showy jumps. Welch’s production showcases thrilling bravura technique and is a great display piece for the Australian Ballet . Running time 2 hours 45 ( approx) includes 2 intervals The Australian Ballet’s ‘ La Bayadere ‘ runs at the Joan Sutherland Auditorium Sydney Opera House Nov 6 -22 CAST I SAW Nikiya Madeliene Eastoe Solor Daniel Gaudiello Gamzatti Lana Jones Rajah Rudy Hawkes High Brahmin Andrew Killian Kalum the fakir Cameron hunter Agni the fire god Chengwu Guo Garuda the dream god Cristiano Martino