The Fence review

We may see fences as the boundary of our property, where one house ends and another one starts. But what happens when that fence is literally and figuratively taken down? Written by Fleur Murphy, The Fence takes audiences into the home of one woman as she bears witness to the darker side of neighbourhood living.

Louisa Mignone plays a happily married woman with a three-year-old daughter. She works night shifts at a local supermarket stacking shelves as she and her husband plan on buying the house they are currently renting. When a couple move in next door and tear down the fence between them, it leads to emotions and feelings that begin to impact her life as she struggles with the implications of turning a blind eye or calling out what she suspects is taking place.

The Disappearing Act review (Melbourne International Comedy Festival)

The audience waits excitedly for the magician to appear. You can feel the anticipation in the room as we face the stage, where a large chest sits. Where could our magician be? And then magically she is here! But this is not the magician, but the magician's assistant, and so begins Maria Angelico's Melbourne International Comedy Festival show The Disappearing Act. Neither Angelico nor her tech assistant knows where the magician is, and frantic calls are made to his various girlfriends to locate him. But as the saying goes, the show must go on and Angelico takes the to the stage!

Naturally there are laughs to be had as this is being presented as part of the Comedy Festival, but the show's inspiration comes from the true story of Angelico's father, a well-known magician, who was absent for much of her life and instilled a household with domestic violence and abuse. You notice these anxieties and vulnerabilities manifesting throughout her performance; that there is something else simmering in her attempt to put on this magic show.

Glittery Clittery: A ConSENSUAL Party review - Melbourne International Comedy Festival

When it comes to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, everyone has a list of shows and performers they want to see, however, it is always a smart decision to leave some space to see some shows that create buzz through word of mouth or just to take a chance on. This is exactly what I did with the Fringe Wives Club's Glittery Clittery: A ConSENSUAL Party, and boy am I glad I did. This 60-minute comedy-cabaret fabulously tackles feminism and equality and had me in hysterics from start to finish.

The Wives - Tessa Waters, Rowena Hutson and Victoria Falconer-Pritchard - appear on stage wearing dazzling and sparkling vulvalicious pink jumpsuits (annoyingly, without pockets) before they break into a hilarious re-imagining of Gloria Estefan’s classic hit "Conga". The three declare they are ready to stick it to the patriarchy and that they certainly do. "Change It Up", dedicated to Robin Thicke, Justin Bieber and the like, is particularly effecting with its pop musical styling and choreography creating a stark contrast to the lyrics that highlight some hard truths regarding domestic violence and violence against women.

Animal review

Watching Animal is a rare theatrical experience. It has such a visceral effect on you that you are left shaken and feeling extremely vulnerable and angry as you walk out. Created by Susie Dee, Kate Sherman and Nicci Wilks, it is an exploration of domestic violence and how women are meant to react in a world where violence against women and male brutishness is celebrated - and it is as gritty as physical theatre can be.

The stage design by Marg Horwell feels like a large shipping container; dark, cold and empty except for a number of small square cages. The two sisters climb and crawl over them, the whole time emoting that they are also caged, desperately looking for a way out. The tattered netting that covers the roof could be seen as protection from the outside but with the many holes in it, it is only a matter of time before it is destroyed. 

The Boys review

Survivors of domestic violence and violence against women come from all walks of life. The crime does not discriminate, but what do you do when your son or your boyfriend commits a heinous crime against another person? Do you call the police, or do you turn a blind eye?  In Gordon Graham's highly acclaimed play, The Boys, these themes are explored through the eyes of the female figures in the perpetrator's lives.

Linda Cookson does a magnificent job in her portrayal of Sandra, the matriarch of the family. All she wants is to have her three sons together and everything she does is done out of a mother's love for her children. There are moments where Sandra is in scenes where she is in the background as conversations happen around her, yet you can always feel what she is thinking and trying to push the troubling thoughts away with how her facial expressions and body language is conveyed. 

Kindred review

Every week in Australia a woman is killed by a current or former partner. It is an astonishingly frightening statistic and yet doesn’t seem to be reported by much of the media. Produced by Goldfish Creative, Rachael Blackwood’s new play Kindred brings this issue to the surface as she explores one woman’s struggle to escape from a violent relationship.

We are introduced to this relationship between Princess (Aimee Sanderson) and Knight (Ben Ridgwell) through the eyes of Princess’ various “personalities”: the childlike Minnie (Jessica Martin), the sexual Selina (Madeleine Mackenzie), the motherly Faun (Gabrielle Sing), the wise June (Aisha Jakszewicz) and the aggressive Diana (Blackwood herself).

From the initial fairy-tale beginnings of meeting the charming knight, through the gradual abuse suffered by Princess, right up to the difficult-to-watch final moments, Blackwood’s script is brutal, honest and unflinching.