Deanne Chiu
The Pun 2011 Reviews »
A reviewer’s worst nightmare: the show ends leaving you wondering whether there are three hundred words in the thesaurus for “funny” and “excellent”.
Charles Ross is both these things for an epic hour of madcap retelling of the entirety of The Lord of the Rings. The moment he bursts onto stage, resplendent in black overalls, on a black empty stage and the crowd goes wild, you know you are in for a ridiculously good time. Although your brain may lack space to think this, as you are immediately swept up into …
The Pun 2006 Reviews »
The secret to a good joke? It’s all in the context, baby.
If you saw the Easter Monday Short Film Festival screening (plagued by projector issues, disgruntled audience members and rapid exits) you may have been underwhelmed. However, the Awards Night screening was blessed with a sense of pomp and ceremony. Our most convivial host, Brian Nankervis, did a sterling job of warming the crowd up and helping the event flow smoothly (if only he had been at every screening). There was also a sense of Melburnian pride, adding to the …
The Pun 2006 Reviews »
Audience interaction, stuffed toys, headbutting, chaos??Yes, you read correctly, this was Donizetti’s Don Pasquale. Ocker accents replaced the recitative, and jeans and saucy undies replaced conventional costumes.
Title boards amusingly informed of opera’s foibles, such as lyric repetition and overlapping ‘dialogue’ during quartets, but they eventually became distracting and depressingly self-depreciating. As blatant as the placards was the agenda:
1. ‘Go for laughs… even at genuinely cathartic points. Comic first, opera second.’
Unfortunately, this tone and pacing felt more like a panto or student revue with opera singers accidentally along for the ride. …
The Pun 2006 Reviews »
A Complete History of Zack Adams must be seen by anyone who’s ever had a dream or just wants to know which word rhymes with ‘leotard’. This performer’s pathos-littered climb to superstardom starts at a year two assembly and crosses continence and continents, then ends a short but sweet hour later, leaving you wanting more.
According to his publicity, Adams is ‘a self-proclaimed visionary…possibly a genius’. He’s actually the creation of Western Australian actor Shane Adamczak, who lends his wide range, comic timing and suitably goofy physicality to Zack for the …
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