Review - News - Qstage

September 22nd 2008 04:19

Luke Milton’s
Risky Lunar Love

Directed by John Sheedy
Reviewed by Peter McGill

RISKY LUNAR LOVE
CarriageWorks’

Bay 20 theatre
limited season.

Risky Lunar Love is written by Luke Milton and made its' first appearance in 2002 as a university project in Perth. The concept is a musical theatre sci-fi extravaganza which involves a sex goddess from outer space who has a whole planet of Venus babes that need seeding. The goddess manipulates two rival earthbound sci-fi writers into being her donors but before she commits to either one she has to be sure that they are up to the task.

The show is risqué, with an 18 rating, funky, retro, sci-fi, and contemporary. While Milton’s script is pure unashamedly 50’s sci-fi B-grade movie the production design by Gypsy Taylor, who has worked on Moulin Rouge, is a blast fusion of 50’s retro kitsch with a neon contemporary vogue. It has twists and turns, astounding characters, and Rabelais-esque debauchery all over the place, all driven by the magical powers of a Tiki.

There is a potent sense of familiarity with the Rocky Horror Picture Show in the storyline as well as the stylized movement and choreography by John O’Connell who has also worked on Rocky Horror and Moulin Rouge.

A highlight of the production is the live original music. Brent Hill wrote the basis of the score then collaborated with Ross Johnston, from Machine Gun Fellatio. Together they worked on seventeen of the eighteen musical numbers. The band and the music are a dynamic powerhouse of auditory sensation. The musical virtuosity carries the action and adds to the funky flavour.

Director John Sheedy has melded these elements and realized a wacky, out-there, sexy, sci-fi romp which is trying hard to push the boundaries of musical theatre. The performers work well as an ensemble.

Risky Lunar Love is an exciting new Australian adult musical.

Peter McGill.

Risky Lunar Love
Writer Luke Milton
Director John Sheedy
Producer Oliver Wenn
Original Music Brent Hill
Musical Director Ross Johnson
Choreographer John O’Connell
Designer Gypsy Taylor
Cast: Eliza Anderson, Don Christopher, Shannon Dooley, Ryan Gibson, Sheridan Harbridge,
David Hynes, Julia Ohannissian, Mark Pound, Emma Palmer, Nick Simpson Deeks, Lauren Rutherford, Melle Stewart, Lucy Taylor, Amy Usherwood, Sophie Webb.

Carriageworks Bay 20 Theatre

From Monday 15 September
15 September- 4 October
Media night Thursday 18 September
Tue - Fri & Sun 8pm, Sat 5pm & 9pm.
Preview Monday 15 September $29.00(Unreserved)
Function Nights 1 & 2- $35 Stalls & $45 Table (Unreserved)
A Reserve $45.00
B Reserve $30.00
Premium Reserve $55.00
Tables including food and wine service
Table $95 per head (min two persons)
Group of 4 $365
Group of 8 $720.00
Menu options available when booking
Bookings: ticketmaster.com.au or 1300 723 038

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, Sydney Scene, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

REVIEW: The DC Vault

September 3rd 2008 13:32

The DC Vault
by Martin Pasko

Everywhere you look, on every surface imaginable one way or another there is an image from the world of DC Comics and that’s just the way they like it over at DC. This new book The DC Vault is a complete beauty as far as the art work and treasures it holds goes.

I’m a little skeptical about the ring-binder style of publication, it’s practical to a point but a little frustrating because you have to be quite careful with it; not as tear-proof as Superman’s cape. I guess that contributes to the sense of ownership and its special status as an interactive object. Obviously a book is an interactive object, but this one more so than the average because it contains a variety of awesome little treasures inside plastic slips; so in the act of reading the book, or even simply looking through it, one is tempted consistently to pull out each of the treasures and have a look. It’s something you unfold and avoid damaging. Speaking of the treasures I have to say I was a bit flabbergasted with delight.

Excellent objects such as: The No.1 Action Comics cover; great artwork. Spicy Detective cover, Passion Killer (1922); what a rare little hoot this is. Face down but searching up with her eyes, a woman bound at the wrists on a red rug with a dead match on the wooden floor. No wonder there was such a close watch on comics from the moral majority. Double Action Comics #2, Ashcan (January 1940) a great reproduction. A Batman Mask reproduction from 1943; cute as. Wonder Woman Button (May 1942) reproduced as a sticker, so you’ll have to decide yourself if you want to peel and stick it or not.

This is a collectors dream. A reproduction of original artwork by Joe Kubert (1976) with a deliciously devilish story referenced. A Wonder Woman Bookmark (1987); I love that the princess is saying reading is strength, and DC Moving Notice (1980) another fabulous plaything, wonderful artwork. Shazam Cellophane Button (1972) reproduced as a sticker; Shazam is Coming. It’s magnificent stuff with the freshest from the vault feeling you could hope for.

There’s a great insight into the whole DC Comics universe which means television and animation production as much as publishing comics. What a remarkable thing was The New Adventures of Wonder Woman in the 1970’s. Lynda Carter cut a fine figure, but possibly not as fine as Jenette Kahn the incoming manager in 1976 who led a shift in the entire comic industry between 1976 and 2004.

How much do people love the comic world of DC Comics? Plenty; for example when the publishers decided to create a story called Crisis where various planet Earths in the Multiverse are crashed together, and a range of super heroes are brought together onto one planet Earth it created a bridge for readers into the stories of characters they’d never considered to read. Some readers were annoyed by it, but others responded by publishing an index in two volumes of the whole thing. That’s love, dedication and wonder.

If you know little or nothing of this vast world, here in the Vault is the best place to start; highly informative and containing a beautiful reproduction of the History of the DC Universe Poster (1987) with everybody’s favourites all in one big group. For a considerable period of time there was censorship in cartoons in the form of the Comics Code and you had to publish outside the seal of the code if you wanted to publish horror or crime titles. Once the Time Warner merge happened in the late 1980’s DC Comics promised to pour many fine stories into the Hollywood machine…

The Batman Movie changed a great deal for Warner and DC as well as Michael Keaton who rode a few good lead roles on the dramatic trail after his moody portrayal. I personally will always love Jack as The Joker; a Joker for the time. Just as Karen Berger was clearly the woman to step up on the helm of new imprint Vertigo in 1993. Over the years from the start until now there have been some fine items left in the DC Vault, something to continue to treasure for every comic lover who will want this very much.

David Jobling

The DC Vault, published by Running Press, distributed by Bookwise International RRP$65.00 Available now in good bookstores.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, Australia National , News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

Québec Review

July 23rd 2008 23:41

Putumayo presents Québec

The sheer enjoyment of listening to this sort of music can be a little infectious and you may find yourself seeking out some more material from the artists represented on the album. Putumayo have a vast catalogue of World Music releases; this album was created to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Québec, the only Canadian province whose official language is French. Québec’s local music scene is widely diverse and most definitely essential to the culture. Celebrated music festivals of the province include Montreal Jazz Festival, Les FrancoFolies and the Festival d’eté de Québec. The album has a predominantly acoustic sound and would suit easy listeners as much as French speakers. This is a compilation of polished performers such as two percussionist-singers DobaCaracol and laid back beautiful women, Marie-Annick Lépine, Myreille Bédard among others.

It’s the sort of thing you’d line up for during ant music festival (and be really pleased you did). The freshness and variety of the compilation is consistently relaxing and enjoyable to listen to. I’m not a great speaker of French so I’m oblivious to the content of the lyrics, although I find myself smiling quite a lot listening to the airy jolly sound of La Bottine Souriante a traditional Québécois band – wonderful music. It’s a re playable mini-festival with the tiniest touches here and there that suggest you may be sitting in a cosy Montreal club having a fabulously warm time.

David Jobling

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, CD/DVD, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

Cassingle is the new CD!

July 16th 2008 06:12

Cassingle is the new CD release from David McCormack. It is something to nibble on whilst you are having a pre-dinner drink. Expect a full album later in 2008. And DON’T PANIC if you have NO IDEA how to create your own cassette from this CD, Jewel Case and (He)artwork – David has kindly supplied all the necessary instructions in the 10 How To Tips supplied. You might need to look up a dictionary under “cassette”. Others will fondly recall their first time recording a record to cassette many years ago.

The Cassingle is essentially a 6 track EP. And whilst McCormack has produced each track you will also hear that Wayne Conolly and “Master” Magoo have lent a hand here and there, as, well now old mates and cohorts to love to work together, even on the smaller projects. They too cannot help themselves but have something to nibble whilst having a pre dinner drink! New name to some, Wes Chew makes an appearance in the recording process.

First cab off the rank is the gorgeous I Don’t Even Know Where To Start With This Kind Of Music, an instant McCormack classic along the lines of Beck’s Sea Change. It is a hazy meditation on loneliness, music and the passing of time. Backed on this track by his long suffering backing group, The Polaroids and mixed by Magoo, McCormack’s rarely sounded better.

Next up we have two tracks recorded in one evening with a pick up band in Kings Cross. The song writing and the playing is wild and free, just the way we like it. Text Book and A.V.O. have to be heard to be believed. Track 4, Hey Lord sees McCormack entering into some quasi-religious material. Think Tom Waits catching a bus with the Flaming Lips and you’ll be about half way there. At last, the truth about fame and fortune, track 5 Rockstar.

We wrap the whole thing up with I Won’t Let You Down, a beautiful string soaked ballad that let’s us all know McCormack is still out there, singing the blues the way only a Brisbane boy can.

Watch out for the David McCormack Retrospective featuring songs from 1990 to 2008 including songs from the Cassingle in October.

Friday July 18th - The Brass Monkey, Cronulla

Tickets from the venue 02 9544 3844

Sunday July 20th - The Heritage Hotel, Wollongong

Tickets from the venue 02 4284 5884

Friday July 25th The Troubadour, Brisbane

Tickets from Oztix or 1300 762 545

Saturday July 26th - Joe's Waterhole, Eumundi
Tickets from the venue 07 5442 814 and Backbeat 07 5479 5115

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, Live, CD/DVD, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

Tamam Shud

July 16th 2008 05:37

Tamam Shud

Goolutionites and the Real People

The words tamam shud are taken from the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam and they mean: the very end. The band Tamam Shud were gigging around the East coast of Australia in the 1960’s and their music was heavily supported by film maker Paul Witzig who used much of their work in his ground breaking surf movie Evolution and others.

Newly released on CD for the first time Goolutionites and the Real People includes eight bonus tracks including tracks from the surf movie Morning of the Earth and a selection of live recordings from a gig at the Regent Theatre, South Yarra 1971.

The album is fresh and funky in so many ways. The line up over their relatively short life was: Lindsay Bjerre [gtr,vcls] 1967-72, Peter Barron [bs] 1967-72, Dannie Davidson [dr] 1967-70, Larry Duryea (aka Larry Taylor) [congas], Tim Gaze [gtr, vcls] 1970-2, Bobby Gebert [kbds] 1971, Richard Lockwood [sax, flute, clarinet] 1972, Nigel Macara [dr] 1970-72, Kevin Sinnott [dr] 1970, Kevin Stevenson [reeds] 1970, Alex 'Zac' Zytnic [gtr] 1967-70.

The band has obviously been influenced by 60’s musicians Jimi Hendrix, Cream, The Doors and the whole San Francisco movement that discovered and popularized LSD, and their cover notes to this brilliant album aren’t afraid of saying so. Just one 76 minute session listening to Goolutionites and the Real People is likely to make you feel like you’re there, off your face and ready to hit the Uni Bar. It’s down right excellent!

Young cynics may hear it as music to destroy the planet by, but that’s not really the case. Australian youngsters in the 60’s and 70’s were just starting to protest against a lot of the darker things becoming obvious, including war, old growth forests, over population, the slaughter of whales and the mining of uranium… there were plenty of issues to protest against and a great willingness to create Australian experiences that were just as real and valid to the individual as the American or UK experience – thus – music that is honestly Australian but sounds like so many bands from far away in space and time. The lyrics are just as cutting now as they may have been back in the day – possibly more so because in so many ways this is a time capsule for Australian kids particularly to get a grip on what has come before them.

With so much diversity on the Australian music front these days, and the enormous influence of our multicultural society has had on the breaking out of new sounds it’s great to go back and hear something like this.

I highly recommend it to anyone who likes funky acid-rock with an authentic retro feel to it. One of the slickest and entertaining albums to come out for some time, Goolutionites and the Real People is a cracker!

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, Live, Sydney Scene, Adelaide Scene, CD/DVD, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

Book Review - Sex and the City : The Movie

July 16th 2008 03:31

Sex and the City: The Movie
by Amy Sohn

Publisher: Headline
RRP: AUD $52.00

You didn't really think it would be just a movie did you? The glossy hard-back book of the film is a fun addition to anyones collection. It's a stylish picture version of the film with commentary from the various folk responsible for putting it all up on the big screen, so it will appeal to Sex and the City fans who want something more than just a singular trip out to see the movie. It also holds a reasonable amount of interest for writers of tele-plays or screenplays with its blow by blow description of what happens not only through the big screen film, but what preceded it in the series.

Thankfully the producers and marketers haven't gone the way of Aussie 'horn bags' Kath & Kim creating everything from oven mitts to tea towels... yet; one wonders if the SATC Movie sequel will appear in 2027 when the girls can be sexy at sixty... but that's another story and bottle of Vodka.

The book is as reasonably classy as the characters in the story - so some portions of it tend to look like an Ikea catalogue although I think this gives mere mortals an opportunity to cost out the lifestyle they'd love to have before laying their credit card on the table.

TV Series Producer HBO has an official website that will get you up to speed on where the main characters were at as the final televised program aired, and there's seemingly no end to the variety of sites on the web that offer opinion on the series; but If you'd rather curl up with a good book than stare at a screen, this is a must have. You can get the address of all your favorite locations (such as the Brooklyn Bridge or Starbucks) and scan a brief history of Carrie's hair!

Like any such dedicated tome, to some it will seem a complete waste of paper, time and money, to others it will be a proud addition to a large collection of DVD's, girls nights out and empty chocolate boxes. Be warned though, it does tell the story of the film so it contains 'spoilers', but then, everyone's seen the movie by now haven't they?

David Jobling

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Welcome Release, Review, Sydney Scene, Adelaide Scene, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

Book Review - Cannes Film Festival

September 4th 2007 00:54

This history of the Cannes Film Festival is an insightful treasure of intrigue on several levels; not least the process of decision making and cultural affairs forever entangled in political circumstance.

Kieron Corless and Chris Darke source insiders including Mike Leigh, Pierre Rissient and Jean-Gabriel Albicocco to trace the festival’s sixty year journey; navigating the Cold War, post-colonial struggles for national independence, the switched on 1960’s, the Battle of Algiers, Brigitte Bardot in a bikini and so much more.

A source and resonator of so much celebrity, glamor, nationalism, struggles against censorship, grandstanding and gossip, the Cannes Film Festival is iconic and important in the way we consider films; this book provides an enjoyable resource laden narrative for anyone interested in world cinema.

Largely forgotten Philippines film-maker Lino Brocka who died fifteen years ago is noted which is of interest as is the contemporary discovery of Samira Makhmalbaf while anecdotes about the social awkwardness that arose during that notorious period when The House Un-American Activities Committee blacklisted film-makers, writers and actors are priceless.

The greatest strength of the book is the balanced perspective it appears to keep along with some much esteemed company.

David Jobling

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: David Jobling - Category: Review, News, Qstage

Email this Post to a Friend

THE LAZY KINGS

January 9th 2005 07:34

Tonight and tomorrow night I'm appearing as a Rat (part of the Queen of the Witches Parade) in THE LAZY KINGS the official opening ceremony of the SYDNEY FESTIVAL - it's a free show - we did it last night for a crowd of 30,000 or so - some estimates are 40,000 - so there were lots of people... Here is a photograph of the contraption I walk in.

The show is on at the Olympic Park, and if you want to see me work as hard as you'll ever see in this amazing contraption come along:

I'm powering by sheer weight and leg work the big wheel you see above, come along if you can - great show for all the family, outdoors, wire work, song, dance, mime, character, fabulous event... you'll be mildly amazed I'm sure.

THE LAZY KINGS
by Trans Express