2014 Adelaide Fringe Festival; Freya Bennett: The Marvellous Reject Girl, music review

Melbourne-based singer, songwriter and artist Freya Bennett. Image: StarNow.

Marvellously Mellow by Linh

Freya Bennett is a Melbourne-based singer, songwriter and artist who made her Adelaide Fringe Festival debut at a pop-up venue called Tandanya Firefly, which is within the Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute of Australia. Her show is titled The Marvellous Reject Girl, which is also the name of her debut album, and features all the songs, spoken word story and some of the photography from the album. The Marvellous Reject Girl is quirky and interesting blend of songs, spoken word, photography and a bit of astronomy.

Freya Bennett promotional photograph. Image: StarNow.

Bennett sings and plays the keyboard, while wonderfully supported throughout by a band comprised of cellist Helen, Nathan on drums and Harry the guitarist. Bennett’s singing voice is soft and mellifluous and she maintains the same sweetness and gentleness while reading the story about the marvellous reject girl and her cat named Mint. The story is written by Bennett’s friend Stefanie Markidis and it is cleverly woven into the show to link with the songs and the photography by American artist Sophie Pelligrini which is projected onto a large screen above the stage.

Night scene photography by Sophie Pelligrini. ©Sophie Pelligrini.

Capturing a contemplative and serene moment. ©Sophie Pelligrini.

All the songs from the show are beautifully sung and have common themes of loneliness, sadness, rejection and self-acceptance, but without sounding dreary or slow. The melodies are whimsical and the lyrics are optimistic, with an uplifting feel reminiscent of indie pop or soft rock ballads. 

Pelligrini’s photography is a mix of colour and black and white images, from night scenes to intimate moments and urban streetscapes, that are made more intriguing with some astronomical magic on the screen’s top left hand corner (audience’s right hand side). A large white ball hangs from the ceiling above the stage in front of the screen, and a projector reflects the photographs onto the screen. The large white ball blocks some of the photography, casting a black shadow onto the screen’s top left hand corner. This creates a lunar eclipse effect onto the screen and colours the white ball with parts of the photographs, making the ball look like the planet Earth. In other words, the projector acts like the sun, the white ball as Earth and the black shadow as the moon. This is apt as the performance was at night and lunar eclipses occur at night, thus creating a dreamy or romantic atmosphere for the show.  

Freya Bennett performing at the 2014 Adelaide Fringe Festival with her band members cellist Helen, drummer Nathan and guitarist Harry; featuring Sophie Pelligrini's photography onscreen with the lunar eclipse effect. Image: Facebook.

Freya Bennett and her band at the 2014 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Facebook.

Bennett is a rising singer and songwriter to watch for in the future.  She is currently writing songs and collaborating with other artists for her second album. She is also a saxophonist, so it would be fun to hear her play saxophone on a few of her upcoming songs. Bennett also is an artist who designs, paints and draws for music albums, greeting cards, gifts and websites. She is a multi-talented and creative collaborator whose music reflects her own aspirations and personal goals in her life to bring people together with music and art.

Self-portrait by Freya Bennett. ©Freya Bennett.

Follow Freya Bennett on Twitter:

@freyabennett9

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2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival- The Dark Garden art exhibition at The Tuxedo Cat, review

Paul McDermott presents his art exhibition The Dark Garden in The Tuxedo Cat at the 2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Rip It Up.

Bizarre Bewilderment by Linh

Before you even enter Paul McDermott’s new art exhibition called The Dark Garden, you are tempted and lured with words on the steps leading into his cavern of creativity. The words are welcoming and witty, cleverly arranged in rhyming couplets and lead the guests from the bright light of day into the dimly lit interior of The Tuxedo Cat. It may take a few seconds for the eyes to adjust but the ears are immediately sensing the atmospheric and soothing sounds courtesy of musician Stu Hunter. Hunter’s soundscape provides the ideal aural accompaniment to McDermott’s visual wonder that consists of paintings, drawings, prints and banners in The Dark Garden.

A Hippy Monster in the Emile Kirst story by Paul McDermott for his art exhibition The Dark Garden in The Tuxedo Cat at the 2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Paul McDermott.

The Dark Garden begins with an interactive story about the first day at a new school for a young boy named Emile Kirst. He notices something different about the other students and how he is different from them. Emile soon realises he is at a Monster School and at first feels frightened of the other students who all look scary, strange and spooky. However, he soon becomes friends with them. The story is told visually through paintings and drawings along the walls and on the ground. The guests must read the story, which is written in stanzas of rhyming couplets, according to the numbered “pages” found in and around The Dark Garden. Some of the monsters are reminiscent of the ones from Maurice Sendak’s book Where The Wild Things Are and that made the paintings and the story more enjoyable for me.

The little polar bear with its mother in The Ghost Bear story by Paul McDermott for his art exhibition The Dark Garden in The Tuxedo Cat at the 2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Paul McDermott.

After reading about Emile Kirst, guests can wander into the next part of The Dark Garden, about a young polar bear’s journey of self-discovery and finding his place in the big wide world. The artwork titled The Ghost Bear was inspired by the increased rate of polar ice caps melting in the Arctic and Knut the polar bear, born in captivity at the Berlin Zoological Garden. As a baby, Knut was rejected by his mother so the zookeepers raised him, and he soon became a media sensation. The Ghost Bear is a visual story with no words and all the images are printed onto large black, vertical panels that weave around in an S-shaped path. The images look ghostly and beautiful, especially on the smooth and silky surface of the black panels lit up by bright overhead lights.

The suicidal girl (Pia Miranda) in the short film The Girl Who Swallowed Bees written and directed by Paul McDermott for his art exhibition The Dark Garden in The Tuxedo Cat at the 2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Paul McDermott.

The final destination in The Dark Garden is the screening room where guests can sit and watch McDermott’s two short films that he wrote and directed. The theatre is small and intimate with the two short films The Scree and The Girl Who Swallowed Bees screening continuously, one after the other. The Scree, narrated by the late Ruth Cracknell, tells of how five friends set out together on a boating trip and they land on a mysterious island with fierce and savage flora and fauna. The terrifying beast called the Scree soon attacks them, and only one is brave and fast enough to escape. The second film, narrated by Hugo Weaving, is about a suicidal girl who has only felt pain and misery in her life so she imagines various ways to die. She decides to swallow bees so they can sting her to death from the inside. However, things do not go as planned. Both these films reflect the nature of life and death and the ways humans interact with nature. These themes are present in all of the artwork found in The Dark Garden and can be simultaneously sublime, ugly, fearsome and beautiful.

The Dark Garden art exhibition season has ended at the Adelaide Fringe Festival.

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2013 Adelaide Fringe Festival: Michelle and the Gentlemen’s Club (The Governor Hindmarsh Hotel)

Left to right: Alex Wignall, Chris Neale, Max García-Underwood, Milush Piochaud and Michelle Pearson. Image: Ali & Rocky Feo of Photografeo.

Dynamic Debut by Linh

Adelaide singer/songwriter Michelle Pearson has been entertaining audiences for the last fifteen years, but has always been a support act or team player in stage musicals, revues, concerts and cabaret performances. In 2013 at the Adelaide Fringe Festival, Pearson made her debut as a solo singer and she was fantastic. Backed up by an orchestra and a rock band, plus a trio of backing vocalists, Pearson rocked the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel with her powerful vocals.

The venue was packed to capacity with some audience members having to stand throughout the show. Pearson was apologetic for the inconvenience in the lack of seating but showed her appreciation that so many people turned up to support her debut show. The show was divided into two parts, the first being classic rock, jazz and soul ballads and the second was musicals, cabaret and contemporary songs. Pearson shared some hilarious moments in her life that included how music shaped her personal tastes and how some songs have helped her overcome personal crises. Pearson never disappoints when it comes to belting out her favourite Cold Chisel songs like her rendition of the song ‘Flame Trees’ or grooving with her backup singers in a soulful rendition of Dusty Springfield’s ‘Son Of A Preacher Man’.

In the second part of the show, Pearson enthralled the audience with her musical theatre talents for the song ‘On My Own’ from the musical Les Miserables. She will also be performing in the upcoming musical The Little Shop Of Horrors in April 2013 at the Shedley Theatre with her backup singers, so she sang a rollicking number from the musical with them. Musical theatre songs continued as Pearson beautifully sang a gentle and stirring duet with Mark Oates called ‘With You’ from Ghost: The Musical that was adapted from the film.

Pearson has shown she has the confidence and talent to be a solo singer and performer in her own right, and she has more shows during the Adelaide Fringe Festival for those who enjoyed her performance and wishes to see her in a variety of shows. Check out the 2013 Adelaide Fringe Programme Guide or visit the website for more details.

Michelle Pearson’s Music Channel on YouTube:
Michelle Pearson Music

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Michelle Pearson

2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival; Oleanna by David Mamet review

David Mamet's play Oleanna returns to the Adelaide Fringe Festival for a limited season, starring Guy Masterson and Joanne Hartstone. Image: C.I.T.

Power Play by Linh

Playwright David Mamet's powerful and thought-provoking drama Oleanna returns to the Adelaide Fringe Festival after its sell-out season in 2009. Director, writer, actor Guy Masterson's Centre for International Theatre (C.I.T) presents four shows only this year and Adelaide actress Joanne Hartstone co-stars with Masterson in this gripping and critically acclaimed masterpiece concerning gender politics, exploitation and freedom of expression. Carol is a struggling and frustrated university student who seeks assistance from her unconventional Professor and he invites her into his office to discuss her assignment. Her Professor is on the brink of tenure and their sessions are constantly interrupted by phone calls from his wife. Beginning with opposing ideas and differences of opinions, their meeting results in very subtle touching and physical embracing from her Professor.

Oleanna presents both sides of the arguments regarding a young woman's right to feel, think and act freely without being under the patriarchal power of a male, whereas the Professor feels he is being unfairly implicated as a "rapist" and allegedly abused his power and position to sexually exploit her. The issues are somewhat context-driven and each side of the argument is presented through the strong characterisation and solid performances from Joanne Hartstone as Carol and Guy Masterson's portrayal of the Professor. The minimalist setting of the play keeps the focus on the characters' interaction and is brilliantly staged to keep the audience engaged through the use of ambiguity in dialogue and explosive emotionally-charged outbursts from both characters.


Hartstone is superb as the seemingly naive yet strong-willed student Carol with an enquiring mind whose eagerness to learn, lands her in an epic power struggle with her Professor. Interestingly, Carol's clothing reflects her growing confidence and defiance against her Professor, starting off with a singlet top and skirt in the First Act and by the Third Act, she is in pants and cardigan/jacket as though transgressing from a feminine appearance to a masculine countenance. Guy Masterson is equally powerful as the Professor and his character straddles between adhering to the professional conduct as an educator and being a friend to his student.

Oleanna demonstrates how easily words and actions can be misconstrued and misunderstood. Throughout the play, the phrase "I don't understand" is repeated by both characters at various stages, perhaps to reveal a disconnect between them, or as a subconscious rejection of the other's viewpoint and an attempt to impose their own views upon the other as a form of power or influence. This is one of Mamet's most controversial and divisive plays and definitely one of his best.

DRAMATIC DIVIDE: Guy Masterson and Joanne Hartstone star in David Mamet's play Oleanna at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: C.I.T.



Follow Guy Masterson's C.I.T. Theatre Tours International on Twitter:
@TheatreToursInt

Visit Guy Masterson's C.I.T websites:
Theatre Tours International Official Page

Centre for International Theatre Official Page


WHO: Oleanna by David Mamet

WHAT: Theatre, Drama play

WHERE: Higher Ground (Main Theatre), 9 Light Square, Adelaide

WHEN:
All shows begin at 2:30pm.
6, 12 and 13 March

PRICE: (no concession):
All tickets $23.00

RUNNING TIME: 2 hours including two (15 minutes and 5 minutes) intervals

2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival review; Peter Helliar’s World of Balls (preview)

Peter Helliar's World of Balls bounces into the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Roger Cummins.


Ballsy Banter by Linh

Peter Helliar’s comedy show at last year’s Adelaide Fringe Festival, The Dreamboat Tour, dealt with personal topics and family matters. This year, Helliar returns with more things that stir up passion, frustration, and laughter – sport. It would be familiar territory for Helliar, as he recently completed a season of the sports-based comedy television quiz show The Trophy Room for ABC1, which received strong support from viewers. Peter Helliar’s World of Balls allows him to combine two of his loves in life, sport and comedy. Australians love their sport and Peter Helliar’s World of Balls is guaranteed to attract attention, even without the help of Helliar’s alter-ego Bryan ‘Strauchanie’ Strauchan.

Everything about Peter Helliar’s World of Balls is sporty, from the music playing while the audience streams into the venue (Pat Benatar’s All Fired Up and Chariots of Fire by Vangelis), to Helliar’s energetic and funny delivery of sports stars and their follies. Helliar kicks goals from start to finish in this show and keeps the audience enthralled with hilarious observations of past and present sporting scandals, controversies, triumphs and tragedies. There is no need to be an armchair expert on sport as Helliar provides quick explanations behind the stories and finds the humour embedded in the seriousness of some of the incidents. From gender and racial issues to politics, Helliar covers the extent of how sport can just as easily divide a nation as it can unite its people.

Helliar muses about the sporting dreams and devastation of Australian champions such as hurdler Sally Pearson, super-swimmer Geoff Huegill, rugby league’s John Hopoate, and freestyle skier Jacqui Cooper. Not all the sports mentioned in Helliar’s comedy show involves balls on the court/field/stadium or between men’s legs. Sometimes the balls represent an athlete’s courage/battle against the odds (he/she’s got balls), or figuratively represents a fantastic and exciting experience (we had a ball). Whichever way it’s interpreted, there is no doubt Peter Helliar’s World of Balls will leave you in stitches, particularly as he amusingly evokes the passion shared among many around the world who love their sport. Helliar carries the entire hour of stand up comedy with his usual panache and comedic creativity that clearly resonates with the audience, making Peter Helliar’s World of Balls a must-see.


Follow Peter Helliar on Twitter:
@pjhelliar

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WHO: Peter Helliar’s World of Balls

WHAT: Stand up comedy performance, audience interaction

WHERE: The Umbrella Revolution in the Garden of Unearthly Delights

WHEN: Previews have concluded.
All shows begin at 8:15pm.

PRICE: Ticket prices vary according to dates (no concession):
$32: 22,23, 24 and 27 February
$35: 25 and 26 February

RUNNING TIME: 1 hour

2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival review; Ali McGregor-Something Old, Something New

Ali McGregor brings her show Something Old, Something New to the Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: www.alimcgregor.com


Something Scintillating by Linh

Operatic soprano, cabaret/jazz/burlesque performer Ali McGregor is a frequent visitor to Adelaide, bringing her shows to the Adelaide Cabaret and Fringe Festivals in the past. After her critically-acclaimed show Jazz Cigarettes, Ali McGregor returns to Adelaide with her latest concoction of Something Old, Something New. McGregor could only squeeze in a weekend of two matinee performances due to her hectic schedule being a mum to her baby girl and currently is in the middle of rehearsals for the operetta The Merry Widow.

In McGregor’s sold-out show Jazz Cigarettes she was smoking hot, but in Something Old, Something New she is scintillating. Her show brings together some popular jazz standards with mash-ups of contemporary pop songs and blues. Between songs, Ali would engage with the audience in her current frustrations about being unprepared for the unusual wet weather in Adelaide, her love of blues singers such as Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington and her childhood interpretations of songs which now, as an adult, still has a long-lasting effect on her.

McGregor’s opening number The Man I Love, is delivered with titillating sensuousness and could be a heartfelt dedication to her husband and comedian/presenter Adam Hills (who is stuck inside a hotel room nursing a dreadful cold), while her next song is a jazzed-up homage to Soft Cell’s hit Tainted Love. McGregor dedicated Little Girl Blues by Nina Simone, to her little girl, delivering the song with soothingly smooth vocals and tenderness.

Other highlights of her show include a Santana-inspired rendition of Madonna’s single La Isla Bonita; a wildly outrageous and sexed-up rendition of Britney Spears’ Oops I Did It Again; I Was Made For Loving You by Kiss gets the blues treatment, and a fantastic mash-up combining Fly Me To The Moon with Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive.

McGregor was superbly supported by a trio of masterful musicians, with Matthew Carey on the piano, lovely Alana Dawes keeping the harmonies flowing on the double bass and Barnabas Smith held the rhythm and beats on percussion/drums. Although this was a matinee show, there were still some younger audience members who enjoyed most of the eclectic range of songs. Something Old, Something New is another showcase for the wonderful vocals of the talented and gorgeous Ali McGregor who will soon be completing her album Jazz Cigarettes in the next few months.

The season for Something Old, Something New has concluded.




Visit Ali Mcgregor’s website:
Ali McGregor

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2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival review; Emma Horwood – Songs of Middle-Earth

Middle-Earth Melodies by Linh

Emma Horwood performs Songs Of Middle-Earth at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: emmahorwood.com.au



Local soprano and harpist Emma Horwood’s Songs of Middle-Earth is one of two shows inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s book The Lord Of The Rings being performed at this year’s Adelaide Fringe Festival. The other is the theatre comedy One Man Lord Of The Rings starring Charles Ross (One Man Star Wars Trilogy).


In Horwood’s show, she seamlessly blends her singing with harp and short readings from specific chapters in Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings and sets her songs to the poetry in Tolkien’s book. Horwood selects poems in the order they appear in The Fellowship of The Ring, The Two Towers and The Return Of The King, and links each reading with a song.
With the exception of the first and last songs in the programme, all the words in the songs are from Tolkien’s book. Founder and director of The Adelaide Chamber Singers,Carl Crossin, arranged and set the music for the poem Elbereth. The other songs are composed by Australians Helen Cartridge, Judith Clingan and Andrew Close, with music by English composers Donald Swann and Stephen Oliver. Horwood transcribed Oliver’s music and arranged any music not written for the harp to create an aural journey, enabling the audience to experience the wonders in Tolkien’s fantasy world of Middle-Earth.

Emma Horwood sings and plays the harp during her show Songs Of Middle-Earth at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Linh Chameleon.


Horwood’s dark forest green dress represents the luscious greenery and beauty of the hills, dales and forests depicted in Tolkien’s book and the earthiness of the many characters from hobbits to elves. Her harp and music stand are entwined with green vines to create the sight and sounds of being in a forest glade where Tolkien’s elves would sing, dance, eat and drink in merriment.

Horwood holds the audience in silent hypnotic awe with her angelic voice and harp-playing in the intimate Radford Auditorium. The music seems to transport the listener to the magical world of Tolkien’s fictional Middle-Earth as inhabited by characters that were depicted in director Peter Jackson’s film adaptations of The Lord of The Rings. Songs Of Middle-Earth is for fans of Tolkien’s books as well as those who love classical music, and for anyone who enjoys the talents of a sublime performer such as Emma Horwood.

Emma Horwood reads passages from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings during her show Songs Of Middle-Earth at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Linh Chameleon.


Visit Emma Horwood's website:
Emma Horwood: Harpist and Soprano

WHO: Emma Horwood- Songs Of Middle-Earth

WHAT: Solo performance, classical singing, harp playing, book reading

WHERE: Radford Auditorium at the Art Gallery of South Australia

WHEN: 3pm show – 20 February
7pm show – 27 February

PRICE: Adults - $22
Concession - $18

RUNNING TIME: 1 hour and 15 minutes

2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival review; Felicity Ward – Honestly (preview)

Hilariously Honest by Linh

Felicity Ward opens up and bares her soul in her new comedy show Honestly. Image: laughingstock.com.au

You may have been to Felicity Ward’s (The Ronnie Johns Half Hour, Good News Week) previous shows like Ugly As A Child or Felicity Ward Reads From The Book Of Moron, but in her latest comedy show, Honestly, Ward opens up her personal treasure chest of emotions and insecurities for laughs. Honestly, as her show title, possibly sums up her approach to life, love and laughter.
Ward’s show is a blend of stand-up comedy, characterisations, impersonations, music, singing and audience participation. Metaphorically stripping herself of all inhibitions, Ward shows she has all the self-confidence and comic ability to deliver laughs with plenty of flair and great comic timing. No story is too private to share and no-one is safe from her eagle eyes scanning the audience during her show.


Honestly is riotous fun and is as entertaining for the audience as it is cathartic for Ward about her personal moments of humiliation and rejection by a teenage crush, her skin-peeling experience, some handy advice from her family members, and the reason behind her skinny figure.
The highlights are when Ward tackles technology in creative and engaging ways with the audience. Expect some form of participation (a volunteer from the audience is required) in her anti-synthesised vocals segment in a backlash against the weird synthesised voice pioneered by Cher in her hit song Believe. The use of an iTunes app plus crazy lyrics by Ward as she duets with a willing participant is a fabulous spectacle.

Mostly during her show Honestly, we discover why Ward is the way she is and how she has come to accept her flaws and weaknesses. Honesty is the best policy and Ward shows it’s also a sure-fire method to generate laughter and not to take yourself too seriously. Your adventures at this year’s Adelaide Fringe Festival would be incomplete unless you include Felicity Ward’s Honestly on your itinerary.


Follow Felicity Ward on Twitter:
@felicityward



Be Felicity Ward’s fan/friend on Facebook:
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Buy Fringe Tickets:
Adelaide Fringe Ticketing




WHO: Felicity Ward - Honestly

WHAT: Comedy, music, interactive segments/audience participation

WHERE: Le Cascadeur in the Garden of Unearthly Delights

WHEN: All shows start at 7:30pm
Previews – 16, 17 February
Cheap Tuesdays: 22 February and 1, 8 March
Regular price shows: 16, 17, 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 February and 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 March

PRICE: Cheap Tuesdays – All Shows $20
Regular Prices - Adults: $25
Concession: $20

RUNNING TIME: 1 hour

2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival review; The Amazing Drumming Monkeys-Love The Planet (preview)

Puppet Palace at the Garden of Unearthly Delights. Image: Linh Chameleon.



Eco-friendly Entertainment by Linh

The Amazing Drumming Monkeys are a family favourite and have a family-friendly theme for every show. This year, the monkeys named Bongo (white monkey) and Congo (black monkey) take an environmental theme and incorporate it into their show through the stage setting and design, the fun tricks and interactive songs and dancing.

Tree planting, rainwater tanks, recycling and solar energy are part of the show’s environmentally friendly theme but the real appeal comes from the drumming monkeys’ enthusiasm and excitement about helping Mother Nature and fighting climate change.
One particular trick (catapulting a frog into a little pond) was indeed very tricky to perform and a mother/audience member named Michelle was happy to help re-load the frog several times. Bongo jokingly declared the same trick took 23 attempts in a show performed in Western Australia. Michelle again came to the rescue for Bongo and Congo in another trick involving a parachute. It’s moments such as these that make the show much more entertaining and the improvisations and adlibs from the monkeys are wonderfully delivered to keep the children interested and the adults in suspense.

DRUMMING DUO: Congo and Bongo drum up support for the environment in their show The Amazing Drumming Monkeys - Love The Planet at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Linh Chameleon.


The audience were sweating in the hot tent of the Puppet Palace, but Bongo and Congo’s drumming, singing and playful banter were enough to make everyone forget about the heat and enjoy themselves. However, perhaps some electric fans or air-conditioning would make some of the children less restless and fidgety between the singing, dancing and clapping segments.
The Amazing Drumming Monkeys - Love The Planet is an excellent show that’s affordable and entertaining for families and for anyone who loves to get in on the action and be part of the fun.


TRICKY TASK: Congo and Bongo prepare for the next trick in their show The Amazing Drumming Monkeys - Love The Planet at the 2011 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Image: Linh Chameleon.



WHO: The Amazing Drumming Monkeys-Love The Planet

WHAT: Puppetry, comedy, interactive song and dance

WHERE: The Puppet Palace at the Garden of Unearthly Delights

WHEN: Previews have concluded.
1pm shows: 19,26,27 February and 5,6 March.
4pm shows: 19 February and 5, 6 March.
6pm shows: 22,23,24,25,26,27 February and 5,6 March.

PRICE: Adults: $12
Concession: $10

RUNNING TIME: 30 minutes.

Buy Fringe Tickets:
Adelaide Fringe Ticketing

Adelaide Fringe Festival - Rove McManus Stand Up Tour; comedy review

SOMETHING FISHY: Rove McManus fishes for laughs with his latest Adelaide Fringe comedy show.
Image: Token Artists

Comic Marvel by Linh

Thunderous drum beats in pitch darkness followed by an immediate burst of bright lights flooding the audience is how Rove McManus opens his latest stand up comedy show.

Rove McManus (real name John McManus) knows how to make an entrance and his self-titled Adelaide Fringe show highlights his witty nature and keen mental awareness of looking for opportunities to pounce on for laughs. Rove’s energetic and well-paced performance harpooning celebrities, politicians and technological advancements, sends the audience into fits of laughter.

Rove displays his personable side as he chats with audience members about nicknames or Adelaide’s record-breaking heatwave. Rove’s bemoaning of the heat bringing on heat rage and ways to stay cool while keeping your cool is comic gold. His bizarre and down-to-earth nature is evident as he’s bemused by other people’s dreams of fame and having their names in bright lights while he’s equally content with having his name in fish faeces.

Rove’s facial distortions, wild and effective movements and body language gives the show a theatrical vibe with sparks of spontaneity to keep the audience on their toes. Highlights include the classic Benny Hill sped up chase scenes complete with a short, bald and elderly man chasing a scantily clad woman on stage, his audio presentations of US President George W Bush’s numerous gaffes and Rove’s hip-swivelling rap song Baby Bump.

Rove McManus’ comic material reflects his individualistic comedic talents of making the mundane seem hysterical, while his natural ability of making the effort look effortless is admirable.

The Golden Compass; fantasy film review

BEARABLE: Dakota Blue Richards and Iorek Byrnison (voiced by Ian McKellen) in a scene from The Golden Compass.
Image: New Line Cinema

In the world of The Golden Compass, the souls of humans live outside their bodies as daemons, and in animal form. The human and daemon pairs are always the opposite sex, bonded by a powerful energy and can communicate telepathically.

The powerful and sinister Magisterium rule the order of everyday life and would destroy anything that undermines their authority, hence the Alethiometer or Golden Compass is a dangerous threat to their existence.

The only person who can read the Alethiometer is Lyra Belacqua, who embarks on an heroic journey to save her best friend and solve the mystery of the disappearing children.

The Over-controversialised Compass by Linh

It is said that a book mustn't be judged by its cover, so it seems that a movie shouldn't be judged by the book it's based upon.

The Golden Compass is the first book of the trilogy in Philip Pullman's children fantasy 'His Dark Materials' and is better seen as a stand alone film despite being an adaptation of the novel.

Director Chris Weitz and the film's producers have agreed to the film's numerous re-writes and re-casting in order to broaden its appeal and water down the so-called anti-religious or pro-atheist elements prominent in the book.

The result is a magnificently imaginative visualisation of the novel, where tales of love, self-sacrifice, triumph of good over evil, and the empowerment of children are brought to the big screen.

Unfortunately, some scenes have been swapped and the ending of the film differs to that of the book, yet the plot remains largely intact.

Newcomer Dakota Blue Richards was chosen from ten thousand young hopefuls who auditioned for the role of Lyra Belacqua in 2006.
In her first acting role, Dakota Blue Richards brings a charming quirkiness to the plucky Lyra, whose presence and curious nature immediately sets her apart from the other child characters.

As the sleek and beautiful Mrs Marisa Coulter, Nicole Kidman is miscast as she purrs her way through some scenes and struggles to turn nasty in others. Despite her fizzled attempts to portray a deeply wicked and heartless monster, Nicole Kidman looks stunning on screen and remains focussed on her character's intentions.

Daniel Craig plays the determined Lord Asriel, Lyra's 'Uncle' and guardian, who believes in the magical 'Dust' which is forbidden and rejected by the Magisterium. Daniel Craig provides some of the great acting moments to lift a few dreary aspects of the film.

Sam Elliott plays Lee Scoresby, the gun-toting, quick witted Texan aeronaut who willingly assists Lyra on her adventure. Sam Elliott looks like he stepped out of a western and into the fantasy world, yet his character is a refreshing contrast to many of the other more darker roles in the film.

The standout performer is not human but a computer generated Polar Ice Bear named Iorek Byrnison and is voiced by Ian McKellen. In a thrilling one on one battle scene, Iorek defeats the King of the Ice Bears, Ragnar Sturlusson (voiced by Ian McShane and named Iorfur Raknison in the book) to rightfully claim the crown.

Other admirable performances include Eva Green's provocative turn as Serafina Pekkala, the Queen of the witches; Tom Courtenay as the wise and caring Farder Coram; Christopher Lee is imposing as the Magisterium's First High Councilor alongside the equally impressive Derek Jacobi playing the Magisterial Emissary; also keep an eye out for Magda Szubanski as the very observant and quiet Mrs Lonsdale.

Some scenes are intensely frightening for younger audiences such as warfare between human and animals and the fight between the Polar Ice Bears. Yet, The Golden Compass is enjoyable and harmless fun concerning a fantasy world of wonderment, free thinking and danger.

Linh in Melbourne - Ali McGregor; jazz concert review

CABARET QUEEN: Ali McGregor presents some of her favourite jazz songs in 'Jazz Cigarette'.
Image: Damian W Vincenzi

Jazzbird On Song by Linh

Beautiful soprano Ali McGregor has spread her vocal wings to explore and experiment with different styles of singing and music genres, in this case the soulful rhythms of jazz.

Ali admits she wouldn't have considered jazz singing if it weren't for the immense enjoyment she felt following her impromptu performance of jazz songs at a friend's engagement party.

In her one-off jazz concert 'Jazz Cigarette' staged in the world famous Spiegeltent, Ali is joined by a trio of music's finest, namely Ben Winkelman on piano, Ben Hendry on drums and Sam Anning on bass. Their expert musical accompaniment throughout adds exceptional sparkle to Ali's scintillating vocals.

Performing jazz standards from some of her favourite singers including Billie Holiday, Nina Simone and Sarah Vaughan, Ali gives a thrilling and crowd pleasing performance.

Ali shows vocal versatility with deep and rich tones for Georgia On My Mind, silky smooth eloquence in So In Love and an abundance of playful sassiness in Ain't Misbehavin'.

Her rendition of Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered is beguiling and Ali gives an impassioned delivery of Summertime.

Few performers can cross musical boundaries and singer Ali McGregor is a rarity whose vocal talents make her the impressive all-rounder.

The Barber of Seville - comic opera review

FIGARO'S FROLICS: Elena Belfiore as Rosina and José Carbó as Figaro in rehearsals for 'The Barber of Seville'. Image: Mark Brake.


'The Barber Of Seville/Il barbiere di Siviglia' is a riotous romantic comedy opera by Gioachino Rossini, based on a play by the French playwright Beaumarchais. The comic opera features funny, fast-paced action and fine belcanto singing in two acts.

The plot revolves around the Count Almaviva, and his intentions to marry the rich and beautiful Rosina, who is Dr. Bartolo's young ward. Count Almaviva is in hot pursuit of Rosina but his plans of marrying the little vixen is thwarted as Dr. Bartolo also wants to marry Rosina.

The Count wants Rosina to marry him for his personality and not his title, so he disguises himself as a student named Lindoro. As Lindoro, the Count serenades Rosina under her balcony, but fails to entice her.

The Count encounters his former employee and barber, Figaro, who helps him get into Rosina's residence for a price. Count Almaviva agrees and the two cause much fun and frivolity as the Count plays it for love and Figaro for the money.


Comic Coiffeur by Linh

State Opera of South Australia presents 'The Barber of Seville', its final opera production for 2007, also one of the most colourful and beautifully composed operas from Gioachino Rossini.

'The Barber Of Seville' features a strong cast along with solid support from the State Opera Chorus and sterling orchestral accompaniment from the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra under the musical baton of conductor Tom Woods.

Set in a 1930s health spa for the fashionable and famous, with gloriously elaborate set design and gorgeous costumes by Leon Krasenstein, director John Milson gives a different comedic edge to the popular opera.

Baritone José Carbó is a fabulous Figaro whose agility in movement and voice adds energy and vitality to his aria Largo al factotum della città/Make way for the factotum (Jack of all trades) of the city. José Carbó steals many of the scenes solely due to his clever characterisation of the scheming barber, especially in his letter scene with Rosina and their duet Dunque io son...tu non m'inganni?/Then I'm the one...you're not fooling me?.

Tenor Henry Choo gives a superb performance as the lovestruck Count Almaviva and is vocally graceful in his solo Ecco ridente in cielo/There laughing in the sky, as he woos Rosina. His duet with Rosina Buona sera, mio Signore/Fare you well then, good Signore is a sweet and short moment reminscent of Romeo and Juliet.

Stunning Italian mezzo soprano Elena Belfiore is more than up to the task with a feisty and fiery portrayal of Rosina. Her rendition of Una voce poco fa/A little voice I heard just now followed by Io sono decile/With mild and docile air are awe-inspiring and her vocal pyrotechnics are dazzling.

The supporting cast are sensational with Douglas McNicol giving a commanding performance as the suspicious Dr. Bartolo; Adelaide soprano Deborah Caddy sings her solo where her outpouring of suppressed anguish and frustrations are heartfelt and moving; Stephen Bennett as music teacher Don Basilio has memorable moments including an aria where he gleefully suggests ways of slandering the Count.

'The Barber of Seville' was written without an overture, and the attempts by the orchestra in creating a short introduction to the opera is a disappointment, sounding very tacked on and almost like filler for background changes.

However, it's an enjoyable, hilarious and entertaining comic opera to end the 2007 season for State Opera of SA.