Observer

OBSERVER: OK Column by John O’Keefe

Saturday, February 15, 2025

Both side of MilhousePamela Hayden is the voice behind that legendry loser Milhouse in The Simpsons animated series. Although Pamela has retired from voicing Milhouse she has a particular project to complete. Pamela is soon to launch a new book’ From Jailhouse to Milhouse’. The book chronicles her journey from teenage disasters including theft, jail,…

OBSERVER: Whatever Happened to Bobby Rydell

When I was a teenager I had all the singles by Bobby Rydell on 45 rpm records. I am sure many of our readers were also fans.He had a bright and breezy style which endeared him to fans throughout the world.Robert Louis Ridarelli was born in 1942 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He won a talent quest…

OBSERVER: Local Theatre Report

SHOWS Auditions Cheryl Threadgold

OBSERVER: Opera At The Brewery

Popular opinion is that wine and song are a natural match.Put an Ausssie spin on that idea and you have Opera at the Brewery.Young Melbourne opera singers Leah Phillips and Luke Belle are determined to remove the stuffiness some people associate with opera and bring it to where patrons feel at home – in this…

OBSERVER: Vale Ron Field

Theatre identity Ron Field passed away peacefully in his 100th year on January 20.Born in Wandsworth, England, on October 7, 1925, Ron’s passion for theatre was discovered when he left home at 15 and lived in a boarding house full of actors from the local theatre. He was invited backstage, saw how everything worked and…

OBSERVER: The Butcher, The Baker

As part of this year’s Midsumma Festival, Theatre Works and Ella Filar presented The Butcher, The Baker … a musical theatre play that had wonderful songs and music but which suffered from a poor narrative structure and mediocre dialogue.A woman, Honey (played by Natasha Broadstock), in order to more fully understand a crush and obsession…

OBSERVER: Kusama at NGV

The National Gallery of Victoria International has another brilliant blockbuster must-see exhibition currently showing in its retrospective of the work of internationally-acclaimed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama.The exhibition is organised chronologically and spans almost nine decades; from work produced in her childhood to her work in New York’s avante-garde scene in the sixties to creations made…

OBSERVER: Berlin

Joanna Murray-Smith’s Berlin returns to Melbourne from February 27 to March 6 at the Meat Market, North Melbourne.Directed by Erica Chestnut and starring Georgia Latchford and Lachlan Hamill, the romantic thriller by one of Australia’s most renowned playwrights tells of a chance encounter in a Berlin bar which sparks a late-night connection between Tom, an…

OBSERVER: Rourke’s Reviews

Thursday, February 13, 2025

The Last Showgirl(MA). 85 minutes. Opens in selected cinemas February 20.Much has been made of 80’s bombshell icon Pamela Anderson’s comeback role, but unfortunately the film doesn’t come close to matching the hype, an empty feature that gives its star very little to do.Anderson stars as Shelly, a legendary Vegas showgirl who has been part…

OBSERVER: Whatever Happened To … Leo G. Carroll

Saturday, February 8, 2025

Leo G. Carroll was one of those wonderful character actors in Hollywood films. He played many dignified characters in some of the classic films of the 20th century.As a young boy I often wondered what the ‘G’ stood for. Leo G. Carroll was an outstanding stage screen and television actor during his career.Leo Gratten Carroll…