Slay review | Theatre Works

Devised by Sarah Iman, Steph Lee, Raven Rogers-Wright, Jackie van Lierop, Anita Mei La Terra, and Louisa Cusumano, Slay is a sharp-witted, politically charged horror comedy. When a young woman is brutally murdered, four lesbians become prime suspects. As they race to uncover the killer, they must also contend with the growing chaos of radical group SLAM (Society of Lesbians Against Men) and its dangerous manifesto, which is spreading like wildfire.

Many of the creatives take on multiple roles on and off stage, creating a strong awareness of cohesion as they work seamlessly toward a shared vision. While some characters, as individuals, lean into stereotypes or are not as compelling as others, the group scene dynamics keep the energy fresh. The natural dialogue allows pop culture references, like lesbian icon Sue Sylvester from Glee, Julia Gillard's misogyny speech, and Marty Sheargold’s recent AFLW comments, to drop in effortlessly. The humour is well-balanced within the show’s absurd world, where SLAM’s ultimate goal is to cap the cis male population at 10%.

Kill Climate Deniers review

Back in 2016, I was given a copy of David Finnigan's play Kill Climate Deniers. In it, a group of armed eco-terrorists storm Parliament House and threaten to execute everyone inside including the Environment Minister unless the Prime Minister puts a stop to climate change. All this happens while Fleetwood Mac is set to perform in said building. Provocatively written with hilarious dialogue and challenging themes, it wasn't long until the play captured the attention of Australian far-right social and political commentator Andrew Bolt. 

Bolt criticised the ACT Government for granting $19,000 towards the play due to its terrorist plot and "killing" of people. Former Australian politician Brendan Smyth argued that if you were to insert killing any other group into the title, it would be deemed offensive and jokes about killing any people should not be accepted. Media scrutiny intensified with the play making international news before it had even been staged. Fortunately, Finnigan persevered, later winning the Griffin Theatre Award in Sydney with a full-scale production presented in 2018.

Free Admission review | Ursula Martinez | Midsumma Festival | Arts Centre Melbourne

It's been eight years since I first saw Ursula Martinez performing in London and was introduced to her hilarious tongue-in-cheek humour. Presented as part of the Midsumma Festival, Martinez returns to the stage with Free Admission, a show full of her unique comedy stylings which has us questioning how our thoughts and choices can easily prevent us from leading the life we desire, while also wittily providing a literal lesson in construction for us.

Martinez's delivery is well paced with an intentional air of awkwardness as she initially speaks in a slow speech, as if what she is sharing about life is taboo and shouldn't be spoken about. As the show progresses the confidence in her voice begins to pick up and finds her a new rhythm. While a small portion of the dialogue is quite jarring (and perhaps that is her intention), the majority gives Martinez the opportunity to open up amusingly but affectingly about her insecurities, hopes, fears and disappointments.

Blurring reality with Kill Climate Deniers

I first came across David Finnigan's work at the 2013 Melbourne Fringe Festival show, Kids Killing Kids. In this, Finnigan and three other playmakers responded to the worldwide response they received to their adaptation of the Japanese novel/manga/film Battle Royale. It was an incredibly thought provoking piece on the responsibilities theatre makers have to their cast, their audience and the wider community. Kill Climate Deniers, is Finnigans' most recent work, which despite not even been staged yet, has already received much media scrutiny.

Kill Climate Deniers revolves around one evening where 96 armed eco-terrorists who - while Fleetwood Mac are performing a concert at Parliament House - take over the building and threaten to execute everyone inside, including the Environment Minister unless the Prime Minister puts a stop to climate change.