What I loved in 2017; the best of Melbourne theatre

DIRECTION

Matthew Lutton for Away, Malthouse, and Black Rider, Malthouse and Victorian Opera at Melbourne Festival

Black Rider, Malthouse and Victorian Opera. Photo by Pia Johnson

Special mentions

Sarah Goodes for John, Melbourne Theatre Company

Bridget Balodis for Desert 6.29pm, Red Stitch Actors Theatre

EVERYTHING THEY DO ROCKS

Little Ones Theatre
Stephen Nicolazzo , Eugyeene Teh, Katie Sfetkidis and everyone who works with them

 

Stephen, Eugyeene and Katie. Little Ones Theatre

The Happy Prince at La Mama, The Moors for Red Stitch, and Merciless Godsat Northcote Town Hall and Griffin (Sydney). It's been a pretty amazing year for them and the team's first show for 2018 is Abigail's Party at MTC and the company's The Nightingale and the Rose, the second in their Oscar Wilde Trilogy, is at Theatre Works in June. CAN NOT WAIT.

The Happy Prince. Janine Watson and Catherine Davies. Photo by Pia Johnson

Outstanding Productions 2016

CABARET 

Clittery Glitteryby Fringe Wives Club (Rowena Hutson, Victoria Falconer-Pritchard and Tessa Waters) at MICF.

Clittery Glittery. Victoria Falconer-Pritchard, Tessa Waters and Rowena Hutson.

Special mention
Betty Grumble: Sex Clown Saves The World at Melbourne Fringe

COMMERCIAL SHOW 

John, Melbourne Theatre Company


MUSICAL

The Book of Mormon

The Book of Mormon

Special mention

Romeo Is Not The Only Fruit by Jean Tong at Poppyseed Festival.
If this doesn't get some development and second season, there is something wrong.


COMEDY

Nautilus by Trygve Wakenshaw at MICF

Trygve Wakenshaw

Special mentions

Monkey See, Monkey Do by Richard Gadd at MICF

The Travelling Sisters at MICF

OPERA

La Voix Humaine by BK Opera at Melbourne Fringe


LIVE ART

The Maze by Kasey Gambling at Melbourne Fringe


BEST OF THE BEST

Joan by The Rabble

Joan. The Rabble. Dana Miltins. Photo by David Paterson

The Book of Mormon
 

Black Rider, Malthouse and Victorian Opera at Melbourne Festival

Betty Grumble: Love and Anger at the Butterfly Club

Betty Grumble: Love and Anger

MY FAVOURITE SHOWS OF 2017

This year, I saw two shows that I have thought about every day since. Every day.

I've spent ages trying to separate these two and it's impossible. There wasn't a moment when anything came near to the experience of seeing Nanette, until Taylor Mac started talking about the homophobic shaming of "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and finished 23 hours later dressed in a glittery, pink vulva and I couldn't stop crying.

Nanette by Hannah Gadsby at MICF and Arts Centre Melbourne

Hannah Gadsby. It's such a great pic that it can be here again.

and

A 24-Decade History of Popular Music, Taylor Mac, Pomegranate Arts and Nature's Darlings at Melbourne Festival

Taylor Mac. Photo by Sarah Walker.

I'm told that I expect too much of theatre. "People just want to be entertained". As Hannah said in the early version of Nanette, we have animal videos for that.

Maybe art can't change the world, but it can change people. I've seen the impact of both of these works. Both have changed how I see myself, my friends, my community and my world. Both have strengthened and created communities.

Hannah, in jeans and a jacket by herself, and Taylor, in most of the world's bright and shiny and the support of many equally-fabulous cast and crew, are incomparable – but both are their absolute real selves on stage and their work comes from the same place.

Hannah talks about the impact of being shamed by society, community, friends and family, and ultimately yourself. She talks about the insidious power of shame and her work finds the heavy hidden shame that sits in so many of us, even if we didn't know it was there.

She shares how people, especially women, put themselves down when they talk, write, perform, exist. We kick ourselves, so that you don't have to kick and reject us first.

Taylor knows communities and people who know shame, who have hidden their authentic selves out of safety or fear. Judy's work confronts the utter absurdity of this shame and creates a world where shame doesn't exist. People living at the edges of society are placed in its centre – and loved and celebrated. I have never seen a work place women, especially queer women, in the centre of the world.

I have seen people change from seeing these shows. I saw a lot of anger, but I also saw smiles I have never seen and tears that let go of years of pain. They are the most humane pieces of theatre I have experienced.

And I'm going to keep wanting more of the same.

I don't know if Taylor and Hannah have seen each other's shows, but this HAS TO HAPPEN.

2016
2015