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.

Blackrock review

It's been over two decades since Nick Enright's Blackrock was first performed, which explored the fallout in a beachside town after a teenager is brutally gang raped and murdered. Sadly these crimes have become a common occurrence in Australia, and EbbFlow Theatre Co.'s production is a timely reminder as to how little has changed in attitudes to violence against women. 

Whereas Enright's play focuses predominantly on the men and themes around loyalty and mateship, director Nicola Bowman ensures that time is provided to the women of Blackrock and that their voices are heard. Ordinarily this would give a new perspective to the source text but in this instance the majority of female characters are all angry and disgusted by what has happened and while they are completely justified in this, it does not allow for any dramatic tension and many of its teenage characters blend into one.

One Punch Wonder - Melbourne Fringe Festival review

In One Punch Wonder, director and writer Amanda Crewes takes a fiercely honest and raw look at the impact of male violence and how masculinity is becoming synonymous with aggression and intimidation. 

The performance takes place in a boxing ring; it is the symbol of male dominance with the physical contact and the hostility that takes place inside. We are seated around the perimeter of the ring, like a cheering audience waiting for the punches and bloodshed. Except we never shout, we sit there, stunned by the performances and the material that is presented to us.

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. 

Bock Kills Her Father review - Melbourne Fringe

My second play by writer Adam J. Cass during this Melbourne Fringe festival continues with his running critique of society and the treatment of its people. However, unlike the refugee theme of Fractured, Bock Kills Her Father deals with the long lasting effects a group of women must deal with at the hands of one man.

Penny Harpham's strong direction never allows the action on the small La Mama stage to become overwhelming or cramped, especially with five aggressive and angry characters on stage. The choreography for the fight scenes is executed well with some very convincingly painful moments. There is only one time where the fight scenes disappoint and that is when Sarah (powerfully played by Annie Lumsden) is attacked. Due to the hardness of the adult women we had previously seen, it felt more like something young children would do to each other and as such, its intensity was lost.

and now we wait. by Impact Theatre - Melbourne Fringe Festival preview

Imagine being at school and suddenly hearing guns being fired and people screaming and running for their lives. In Impact Theatre's and now we wait., we follow five teenagers who must hide in an abandoned theatre as they try to escape a high school shooting. Fortunately it’s not a scenario that Australia has ever faced, however writer Stephanie Clark, hopes that what will resonate with the audience will be on a wider scale.

"The event that underpins and now we wait. happens all over the world in various forms every day. It is not always gun-violence. It is not always in schools. But it is always prevalent. Australia isn’t immune from that, and that is why I wanted to write this", she explains. "The Lindt Café Sydney siege is so exemplary of this. And then there is the far too common occurrence of family violence, sexual violence and violence against women."