People Suck review | Theatre Works

How often do we complain about someone and describe them as the worst person ever? They might be rude, aggressive or obnoxious towards us, ignorant of the world around them or perhaps we simply don’t like the way they breathe. Written by Canadian duo Megan Phillips and Peter Cavell and presented by Melbourne theatre company, Salty Theatre, People Suck is a musical comedy that highlights these terrible human behaviours, and if you think this is only about them, then you’re in for quite an awakening as you begin to identify with the various examples.

The quintet (Belinda Jenkin, Tim Lancaster, Georgie Potter, Ashley Taylor and Ashley Weidner) go through a range of scenarios where people can excel at sucking. The workplace brings out a number of relatable gems, namely not liking a colleague for no particular reason and having your lunch eaten by the resident office thief. We delve into #MeToo territory with a sexist and lecherous boss but what People Suck does well in is taking something serious and giving us permission to laugh. The absurdity of religion and the reasoning as to why one God is better than the other is hilariously juvenile in "My God" and the joys of being surrounded by frenemies is brilliantly executed by Jenkin, Taylor and Potter in "When I See You Smile (I Want To Kill You)".

The Audition review | Outer Urban Projects | La Mama Theatre

Working with emerging artists who were also asylum seekers and immigrants, Outer Urban Projects have brought together a mix of writers and actors to explore the process of auditioning through two different lenses. One of these being for performance roles and investigating the power plays that are present between an actor, director and audience, and the other being asylum seekers auditioning to be permitted to live in this country. 

The Audition includes work from seven theatre writers (Christos Tsiolkas, Melissa Reeves, Milad Norouzi, Patricia Cornelius, Sahra Davoudi, Tes Lyssiotis and Wahibe Moussa) that examine the commonalities of these auditions. While not all of these are as powerful or engrossing as they could be due to writing and/or performances, each story highlights various issues pertaining to asylum seekers and immigrants. In one, an Iranian woman (Sahra Davoudi) is reading for the role of Hecuba from Euripides’ The Trojan Women only to have the Australian director (Peter Paltos) force his western interpretation of what a victim should look and act like. Later, these two actors meet again as an immigration officer and an asylum seeker, where Davoudi must once pass an audition, this time to prove herself to be in need of asylum.

Exit Strategies review

In Exit Strategies, Mish Grigor explores not only various ways of leaving but also the thinking and process behind this, such as when to leave and how to walk away from a situation. This world premiere, a collaboration with APHIDS co-directors Lara Thoms and Eugenia Lim, is an intimate performance that brings the audience into its absurd environment as we question our own philosophies and decisions around exiting.

These exits are comical in description and execution, such as Grigor’s reenactments of sneaking out of a yoga class, but they are often acknowledging a greater social or cultural observation. She has a natural charisma on stage, and it is entertaining to see how she will depart next. She finds the subtleties for each scenario and simultaneously plays it naturally and plays it big. There are some thought-provoking points raised but unfortunately there is not enough substance to sustain it and you wish the show would go further in what it is trying to say. The exits never amount to anything substantial and as it nears its own end, Grigor’s words fail to carry adequate weight or urgency to generate a lasting impact on the issues that are introduced.

unHOWsed review

Made by a group of formerly homeless women over the age of 50, UnHOWsed provides an opportunity for these women to share their experiences with homelessness and to raise awareness of the constantly growing number of homeless women in the country. A collaboration between theatre company Tashmadada and housing organisation Voices of the South Side, this multidisciplinary performance piece is a stark yet poetic exploration of life on the fringe of society.

Each performer (Carla Mitterlehner, Susan V.M. McDonald-Timms, Jan Grey, Diann Pattison, Maurya Bourandanis, Catherine Samsury, Karen Corbett, Liza Dezfouli) sits on a chair in a pit of sand. There are beams of light shining down from the ceiling, lighting up their individual faces in the otherwise darkened space. They take in deep, sharp breaths and move their bodies as they do. It’s hypnotic to watch and the expressions they wear are indicative of the stories they have to tell. The impact from all these elements display the strength and resilience in each woman but also hints at their fragility and vulnerability.

Mansion review

We’ve all heard things that go bump in the night, and the majority of the time it is simply our imagination. But what happens when those bumps turn into a never-ending nightmare? That’s what Mel Walker and her two children find themselves facing after they move home following the death of her husband and father to Levi and Rachel. Presented by Bass Fam Creative, this second installment in a trilogy of works focusing on love, Mansion is an immersive dance theatre horror experience that explores what it means to love, grieve and mourn.

This site specific work has sourced the perfect location for Mansion: Labassa Mansion in Caulfield. Built in the 1800s, the Victorian era mansion has had over 135 people call it home, and at one point it was divided up into flats and housed Hollywood’s first Australian silent film star. There are countless stories to be told, and not just from the living. The dead have plenty left to say and through dance and circus, the family encounter – and are terrorised by - its previous inhabitants. We are guided by the ground's Caretaker, who leads us from room to room in this winding and maze-like property as everything starts to unravel.