Local Newspapers from Melbourne, Victorisa, Australia
Thursday, September 17, 2026
Pokelesque was a bold and bawdy hybrid of a show, strikingly imaginative in the way it brought together the worlds of Pokemon, drag and burlesque. It pulled this off, mostly, with style and aplomb but was not without its glitches.The narrative was quite simple: a young woman wants to become the very best Pokemon trainer…
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Alanah Parkin (pictured) presents her 2026 MICF show Alanah Parkin’s Garage Sale from March 30-April 5 at The Motley Bauhaus, Carlton.Directed by award-winning Isaac Haigh, Garage Sale follows the journey of Greg and Denise – a Narre Warren South couple nervously preparing for their big move to the retirement village up the road.Parkin will blend…
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Melbourne-based comedian Mel McGlensey (pictured) presents Mel McGlensey is Normal in the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival from March 26-April 19 in the Jade Room at the Chinese Museum.This time, Mel is letting her audience choose what happens in this collaborative clown experience plumbing the depths of normaldom.The show is co-created by game designer and…
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Can you imagine a world without William Shakespeare?That’s the starting point of Gordon Thompson’s (pictured) novel Kill Will: Nightbird in SunlightWe meet a teenage Will Shakespeare, who wishes on seven mystical stones, and falls through a time portal from 1580 Stratford into present day London.Seven physical manifestations of the women he has yet to create…
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ShowsEltham Little Theatre: Bondi Legal (by Tony Laumberg) Until March 7 at the Eltham Performing Arts Centre, 1603 Main Rd., Eltham. Director: Susan Rundle. Bookings: elthamlittletheatre.org.auThe Mount Players: The Cemetery Club (by Ivan Menchell) Until March 8 at The Mountview Theatre, 56 Smith St., Macedon. Director: George Benca. Bookings: themountplayers.comMordialloc Theatre Company: The Great Divide…
Read More about OBSERVER: Local Theatre Report
BottledSnail Productions Inc presents the satire Urinetown: The Musical at Gasworks Arts Park, Albert Park, from March 19–28.Urinetown: The Musical is a wickedly funny and sharply insightful musical satire that skewers everything from corporate greed and municipal politics to populism, bureaucracy, social inequality and even musical theatre itself.Set in a Gotham-like dystopia, a crippling 20-year…
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Shows Lilydale Athenaeum Theatre: The Game’s Afoot or Holmes for the Holidays (by Ken Ludwig) Until February 28 at Lilydale Athenaeum Theatre, 39-41 Castella St., Lilydale. Director: Lucia Morris. Bookings: 9735 1777 lilydaleatc.comWilliamstown Little Theatre: The Browning Version/South Downs (by Terrence Rattigan and David Hare) Until February 28 at Williamstown Little Theatre, 2-4 Albert St.,…
Read More about OBSERVER: Local Theatre Report
There are various facets to consider when contemplating Midnight Theatrical’s production of Afterglow.The story, the staging, the acting, the music, the transitions, the costumes – or lack of, the provocations. This is definitely a play to remember.All three members of this ensemble can act. Julian Curtis, Matthew Mitcham, Matthew Predny – although having slight glitches…
Read More about OBSERVER: Afterglow review by Elizabeth Semmel
A Midsumma Festival offering of Midnight Theatricals production of Afterglow has had its premiere Australian season at Chapel off Chapel.This follows its many highly praised seasons in New York, Los Angeles and London since being written and directed by S. Asher Gelman in 2017,It brings a refreshing look at the relationship of two men, a…
Read More about OBSERVER: Afterglow review by Graeme McCoubrie
Artefact Theatre Company presents Cyrano de Bergerac from February 11 – 28 at fortyfivedownstairs.Under the direction of Matthew Cox, Martin Crimp’s radical adaptation of the classic Edmond Rostand tale questions what violence comes from never being vulnerable.This Cyrano is said to be stripped back, sharp-edged, and painfully current. Crimp’s modern-verse adaptation dives beneath the surface…
Read More about OBSERVER: Cyrano de Bergerac