Do we accept the happiness of
the majority, at the expense of the few? This is the question raised in For the Ones Who Walk Away with its immersive and interactive live art performance performed by over 50 children aged 9 - 18. Presented by St Martin's Youth Arts Centre, it's an ethereal yet dark exploration of humanity and the choices we make.
Audiences are initially separated into groups and led to a workroom to experience their first performance. From here, we are free to wonder around and enter whichever workroom we gravitate towards. The interactions in each room vary and I find myself playing the role of observer, participant and creator throughout the course of the evening. We are told there will not be enough time to visit each room, so I don't rush and walk through the hallway until I see a room that takes my interest.
I approach a teenager girl who hands me a rock and begins to ask me numerous questions about my life. I respond by placing the rock along a chart on how accurate that statement is. I'm also asked to share my life story with her in less than a minute and not only do I find myself questioning how honest I should be with this stranger but also how honest I am with myself. Another room has attendees and performers going through the futile act of separating flower petals into colours while being dealt with some difficult "would you rather" questions: would you rather be sexist or racist?
Intimacy can come in many forms: from a long, sensuous kiss to the brief contact of hands. They can unleash a flood of emotions and raise many questions to the meaning of such an action. David Finnigan and Isab Martinez's Appropriate Kissing for All Occasions is presented as two short works in which the art of kissing and desire are explored.
The first piece, of which the show is named from, introduces us to Toni Stevenson-Smith (Christina McLachlan), a sex therapist and intimacy coach who is here to enlighten us on the perfect kiss. Toni takes us through a variety of kisses, including the first kiss, how to kiss in public and the farewell kiss. Teaching a group of people how to kiss is difficult without someone to kiss, so with some help from some volunteers in the audience (strictly by volunteering), Toni rates and critiques each kisser with the hope of them using her words of wisdom in the future.
This dissection of kissing explores how much meaning and power kissing has in our culture. Throughout the lecture, Toni's own cracks begin to surface as she deals with the aftermath of her own lip-locking experiences. McLachlan does a great job in presenting the duality of a cool, calm and collected professional while expressing the rejection, anger and sadness that has resulted from the simple act of kissing.
With our planet about to implode, a lucky few citizens board a spacecraft to take them to safety on a deserted planet. Presented as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, The Yonder follows three people on board this ship and looks at the tension, affection and horror that eventuates during these trying times.
The costuming is simple yet effective in this show, with the cast donning basic white and silver clothing - different to each other but uniform with their theme. While there are minimal props used, what is used is creative in its representation, particularly the hairdryers and socks as guns and space squid aliens respectively.
While the show has a lo-fi aesthetic, it unfortunately doesn't support the work as it results in performances by Shannan Lim, Elizabeth Davie and Ezel Doruk that don't seem believable with dialogue and reactions that are not always engaging. There
are some humorous moments throughout the show which makes use of the trio's experience in clowning and absurdism, including Davie as the
CEO of the shuttle company and the romance between Lim and Doruk's
characters but none of this ever culminates to anything of note or play a role in any
choices these characters face.
The direction of the show creates an awkward pace with too many silences and the big moments of the show are never played out to invest the audience in the outcomes. There are far too many short scenes with blackouts that constantly prevent you from connecting with the work being performed.
We always look at performers with an air of admiration about
how confident and sure of themselves they are, and while we may follow their
careers for years, how well do we really know them? Created by burlesque artist
Becky Lou, Seen & Heard is a show that revolves around the art of storytelling and performance that
allows audiences to not only get to know the person behind the performer but
also provides an opportunity for performers to expose themselves in ways
they never have before.
Becky Lou gets the evening underway with a titillating burlesque
routine that then leads to her recollecting a tale about her decision to not have
children and her teenage ‘pregnancy’ scare. It sets the tone well for what will be an
evening of openness and engaging stories.
Seen & Heard is very much a variety show with various guests each evening,
however the artists that Becky Lou has chosen to take part in this season of the show fully commit to being authentic and honest with
their stories. It is a strange feeling seeing these people become quite
vulnerable with the issue or topic they have chosen to share with an audience.
Cabaret diva Mama Alto gives a touching recount of growing
up somewhere between two genders and the sanctuary that they find in music. Circus artist Anna Lumb takes a humorous look at the stress and pressure of
being a person with two jobs (the circus and a parent), about being an ‘in-betweener’
and how sometimes that that is exactly where you should be.
Unicorn Mermaids do not exist. Or do they? Presented as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, The Birth of the Unicorn Mermaid proves that mythical creatures can be real…well,
sort of. As Ophelia Sols throws the baby shower to end all baby
showers, ideals of motherhood, and what makes a good mother or a bad
mother begin to surface.
After being on a diet of sugar, salt and
glitter Ophelia Sol (Ruby Hughes) is ready to give birth to the first
ever Unicorn Mermaid. She can finally show up all her friends by having
the most unique and talented child that anyone has (and will) ever set
their eyes on. But first thing’s first: she needs to throw the best ever
baby shower.
While firmly set in the real world, Hughes adds an element of bizarreness with the inclusion of how Ophelia becomes
pregnant and the science behind her efforts. While we scoff at her
out-there plan, there is conviction in Ophelia’s theory so it ends up
feeling highly probably that it will work. This combining of two
different realities works quite well in setting the scene and the
environment.
However, the story itself seems to get stuck as it
ends up focusing more on how great this baby will be rather than trying
to go inside Ophelia’s frame of mind
and learn more about her reasons why. She comes across as vain and
spiteful and we never get more than a glimpse of her insecurities to be
able to connect with her more and understand why she is doing this.
Do we accept the happiness of
the majority, at the expense of the few? This is the question raised in For the Ones Who Walk Away with its immersive and interactive live art performance performed by over 50 children aged 9 - 18. Presented by St Martin's Youth Arts Centre, it's an ethereal yet dark exploration of humanity and the choices we make.
