Reviewed February 2023 for Theatre Matters.

Whilst the magical English nanny Mary Poppins is known and loved globally, she could be considered a true blue Aussie. Not only was her creator P. L. Travers born in Maryborough, Queensland (as was I and a few generations of my family) but her stage producer, Sir Cameron Mackintosh (Cats, Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera), wrote the first draft of the stage version in Australia.

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Reviewed December 2022 for Theatre Matters.

“The One With the Review”

🎶 So no one told you life was gonna be this way…clap clap clap clap.

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Originally reviewed April 2022 for Theatre People.

Have you ever really really looked forward to a show that was really really entertaining on TV but in real life was really really disappointing?

That is how I felt about the 2022 edition of RocKwiz’s Really Really Good Friday.

Originally reviewed March 2022 for Theatre People.

The city…New York, New York.

The year…unknown.

The mystery….The Case of the Spiky Turtle.

Welcome to Improvised Noir, presented as part of the The Big HOO-HAA! Melbourne’s Saturday Experiment, and to a world of glamour, crime, passion – all improvised!

Originally reviewed January 2022 for Theatre People.

When Alanis Morissette’s album Jagged Little Pill came out in 1995, it’s fairly safe to say it was a different world then. Even during the time between the first production of the musical of the same name in 2018, and Broadway debut in 2019, the world has changed dramatically.

It’s with that lens that I viewed the Melbourne opening night of the production and, despite some absolutely star-making and star-affirming performances, I’m not sure the book and premise resonates with – let’s be really honest – a covid weary world.

Originally reviewed July 2021 for Theatre People.

After a successful debut season in Sydney, and a covid-delayed opening, Melbourne’s East End theatre district finally welcomes Elsa, Anna, Olaf, Hans, Kristoff, Weselton and of course Sven, plus all the citizens of Arendelle in Disney’s Frozen.

Originally reviewed May 2021 for Theatre People.

As Steven Kramer took his seat and started to play, the familiar refrain of….hang on….for a show titled “Don’t Make Me Play Piano Man”…why is he starting with THAT song?

Mind you, he only got a couple of lines in before pulling the pin and saying “Nope, not playing it”.

Originally reviewed March 2021 for Theatre People.

I’m going to be completely honest here. For over a week I thought I was seeing the host of “Have You Been Paying Attention”. And I’m not sure that is the first time a person has gotten Tom Gleisner and Tom Gleeson confused. I mean, they even look really similar.

Anyways, to be clear, I did not see the host of HYBPA at the MICF. I saw the host of “Hard Quiz” at the Comedy Theatre as part of his MICF 2021 show residency.

Originally reviewed March 2021 for Theatre People.

Following on from sold out shows in 2018 and 2019, one of Melbourne’s comedy scenes main-stayers – The Big HOO-HAA – are bringing together their improv show with music to deliver three different Musical Improvaganza’s to the 2021 MICF.