Queer and trans fairytales come to life in "The Story Keepers" - Midsumma Festival

While there's plenty to see and do during Midsumma Festival for the adults, there's also just as much fun to be had by families and children, including the magical, fun, queer fairy tale show, The Story Keepers. Written and directed by Em Chandler, the show has a group of fairy tale collectors who record the fairy tales of the world with queer and trans representations in its key characters. In this upcoming production, they share three overlooked fairy tales from Germany, Spain, and Iceland.

The Story Keepers has been a long time coming for Chandler, who has spent years selecting, preparing and devising these works. "The basic premise of fairy or fairy like beings telling fairy tales has been with me since 2017. So, in various ways it’s been floating around my brain for five years. But I’ve been writing, refining, and working on it over the last three years. I had been sitting on the idea of a troupe of fairy or fairy-like beings coming together to share, perform and act out fairy tales for a long time, but had struggled to find a way to start," they tell me.

33 Variations review

It's a mystery how a song or piece of music can elicit strong emotions from a person. We may listen to heavy metal when we need a release whereas for moments of clarity we might seek some classical music, such as Beethoven. In many ways, the music we listen to often becomes the soundtrack of our lives and this is touchingly explored in Moisés Kaufman's 33 Variations, in which a musicologist devotes years of her life trying to understand why German composer Beethoven was so consumed with writing 33 variations to Anton Diabelli's simple waltz.

American film legend, Ellen Burstyn is utterly captivating as musicologist Katherine Brandt. Her ability to show her gradual loss of control of her body due to her diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) while desperately clinging to her intellect is masterful. Her troubled relationship with her daughter Clara, played by the inimitable Lisa McCune, is examined without melodrama and reaches a genuinely affecting conclusion with acceptance of mistakes from both sides.

Spring Awakening the Musical review | StageArt | Chapel Off Chapel

Based on the 1891 play by Frank Wedekind, Steven Sater's 2006 musical adaptation of Spring Awakening continues its exploration of children coming to grips with sex and sexuality at a time where the adults around them will do anything possible to prevent them from growing up. Presented by StageArt, the musical is brought to life by an energetic and committed cast but ultimately falls short of retaining the intent and integrity of the original play.

Ashley Roussety and Jessie-Lou Yates as Melchior and Wendla are charismatic on stage and clearly have the skill and talent to lead a show, however their on-stage chemistry is never given the time to develop. Brent Trotter as Moritz, does exceptionally well with his acting and singing, portraying a boy struggling to deal with the pressure placed upon him. The cast of 15 deliver some strong performances overall but the use of German accents was inconsistent and not always accurate. While the play is set in Germany there isn't a need for the accents, especially if the entire cast is not going to be speaking in German accents. 

Director Robbie Carmellotti has characters present in many scenes that they are not involved in, building on the idea that they all share the same thoughts and feelings and have an understanding of each other. Unfortunately haphazard directing results in scenes that play out overly dramatic, such as the revelation that Martha's dad beats her, while others are underplayed and lack the tension they require, such as when Wendla begs Melchior to beat her with a wooden switch. Carmellotti's minimal yet intelligent stage design is symbolic of the sexual awakening that will eventually envelop these children with a large tree covering the floor of the stage with branches continuing to run along the walls.

Soap review | Melbourne International Comedy Festival | Malthouse Theatre

Bath time has never been this fun - and sexy - as with Soap. Direct from Germany, Soap is touring Australia with original and engaging circus acts that will leave audiences with their mouths wide open as they witness the re-interpretation of what circus can be. Presented as part of this year's Melbourne International Comedy Festival, it's definitely a show that should not be missed.

The troupe - Adem Endris, Liudmila Nikolaeva, Lena Ries, Daniel Leo Stern, Mario Espanol and Moritz Haase - are on top of their game with their physically demanding and challenging acts. The acrobatics between Espanol and Haase create a firm highlight, displaying the performers' athleticism and strength, and also being a rare opportunity where I have seen same-sex relationships highlighted in mainstream circus. Nikolaeva has a commanding presence each time she appears on stage, as she executes a variety of tricks with finesse and skill.

I Am My Own Wife review | fortyfivedownstairs

The last song I expected to hear playing over the speakers as I entered the space for I Am My Own Wife, was "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer. But the purpose is later made clear as we learn about the extraordinary and intriguing life of German transgender woman, Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, who survived both the Nazi and the Communist regime. While that might be a valid reason to admire her, it is not a guarantee that she was also a hero.

American playwright Doug Wright, travelled to Berlin after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and after a series of interviews with von Mahlsdorf totalling hundreds of hours, wrote I Am My Own Wife. Thus, the show is not just about von Mahlsdorf's life but also Wright's own role in this tale and the impact that the experience of trying to get inside the head of this enigmatic person had upon him.

I Am My Own Wife - Midsumma preview

Charlotte von Mahlsdorf was a German transvestite who survived the Nazis and the Communists and helped start the German gay liberation movement. Her story is so incredible that even while learning about it, you wouldn't be alone in thinking think that some of it has been made up, but you would be wrong. American playwright Doug Wright travelled to Berlin and after a series of interviews - totalling hundreds of hours  - with von Mahlsdorf talking about her extraordinary life, wrote I Am My Own Wife.

Since its premiere in 2003, the play has been performed around the world and throughout Australia, and during the 2017 Midsumma Festival, Melbourne audiences will have the opportunity to witness the fascinating story of Berlin's most notorious transgendered woman on stage.

Eleanor's Story preview

In 1939, 9 year-old Eleanor Ramrath Garner and her German born parents decided to move back to Germany to escape the hardships of the Great Depression in America. On their way, war broke out and they found themselves unable to return to America. What followed Eleanor was 9 years of keeping hope, struggling for stability and facing hunger and death on a regular basis.



60 years later, Eleanor published her memoirs of this experience entitled Eleanor's Story. Skip ahead 14 years and her grand-daughter, Ingrid Garner, has adapted her story for the stage and returns to Australia for a Melbourne season at Chapel off Chapel. "I am so excited to be back, I love Australia, it’s my favourite place to visit," she says. "I get to see the friends I haven’t seen in a year, and it’s like no time has passed. The audiences I’ve had here are incredibly receptive to the play and make me feel appreciated."



Top 10 Films at the 2015 Melbourne International Film Festival

So two and a half weeks of craziness come to an end, and after getting to watch a mere 50 films, I now present you my Top 10 movies from the 2015 Melbourne International Film Festival.

1. Mustang 

Admittedly, when I think of countries creating brilliant cinema, Turkey is not one of the first countries I think so, but this will change with Mustang. Similar to that of Sofia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides, five sisters are locked inside their house by their uncle and grandmother after they are seen rubbing their legs against boys' necks in the beach. The girls are subjected to virginity tests and systematically married off to local boys with devastating results. 
The five females are incredible in this, and worth noting this is the first time any of them have acted in a movie. Gunes Nezihe Sensoy, who plays the youngest sister Lale, in particular has such a strong screen presence, that it would be a shame if we never saw her on the big screen again.
The suspense builds up in this tragic but uplifting story about the suppression of female sexuality by the patriarchy and how in many cultures women are still being seen as just a mother or wife. 
The film also boasts a beautiful score by Warren Ellis.
The trailer is in Turkish still but I think you can see the brilliance of the film beyond the language.