The Curiosity Experiment - Melbourne Fringe Festival review

Performed at this year's Melbourne Fringe Festival, The Curiosity Experiment is a ghost story revolving around a supernatural experience that occurred at the Delamere family home many years ago. The twist however, is that for the majority of the performance, the audience are instructed to wear blindfolds so as the story unravels, they can only rely on their hearing, allowing their imagination to create the haunting visuals for them.

Created and produced by Nathan Schulz and Audrey Cadzow, the show is capped to 13 audience members, which allows for a large enough audience wherein a certain level of intimacy can still be reached. And of course the bad luck that is associated with the number subconsciously helps build the intensity of the performance.

The Curiosity Experiment - Melbourne Fringe Festival preview

If you prefer your theatrical experiences to be a bit on the creepy side, then you won't want to miss The Curiosity Experiment during this year's Melbourne Fringe Festival. The intimate audience of 13 - not a coincidence - are told a ghost story on Christmas Eve about a supernatural experience had by the Delamere family. The twist is, the entirety of the performance requires the entire audience be blindfolded. 

"The show draws on the inspiration of old fashion radio plays, using the power of storytelling to invite the audience to listen without the distraction of constant moving imagery and creating an almost visceral atmosphere via the auditory route of voice and sound," producer Nathan Schulz tells me. "Although imagery will be used it will be minimal and designed to enhance the story and hopefully impact the audience in such a way that their preconceptions of reality are suspended in a fun but emotionally provocative way." 

Sedih//Sunno review

There is so much I want to write down right now but I am unsure if it’s a critical review of the show I just saw or a visceral personal response. Such is the effect that Rani Pramesti has on you when you walk out of Sedih//Sunno. “Sedih” is Bahasa Indonesia for ‘sadness’ and “sunno” is ‘to listen’ in Fijian Hindi, so the show is an invitation to listen to our sadness. Or as one of the performers advised us, it is a meditation on such sadness. 

Sedih//Sunno is a collaborative performance installation piece by Pramesti, Ria Soemardjo, Kei Murakami and Shivanjani Lal, all sharing stories with us in this multi-sensory and multi-cultural show. As we take our seat in a room surrounded by gorgeous Indonesian batik fabrics, we hear the four women speaking over the top of each other in their various languages as if they are conversing at home with their family. I don’t understand any of it (except some snippets of Japanese), but it feels lively, fun and inviting.

Neighbours - Big West Festival preview

It's interesting that it's often the people you live next door to or across the road from that you know the least about. You may see each other in the mornings as you're going to work or pass them when you take your dog out for a walk and exchange pleasantries, but who are they really? Performed as part of the Big West Festival, Neighbours takes you on a guided walking along Nicholson street and into the homes of residents as they perform accounts of their lives.

Melbourne-based performers/performance-makers from This Side of The Tracks, Kerensa Diball and Yuhui Ng-Rodriguez, have spent two years working on getting this project ready. "We've spent many hours inhabiting the street, building relationships, door knocking, loitering, being inquisitive about everything, listening, watching. Through conversations over time, we have gotten to know locals and residents; this has enabled us to work with the skills, personality, quirks and expertise of each resident to create Neighbours," they say.