tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post5300217154952037254..comments2024-02-18T19:36:43.844+11:00Comments on theatre notes: Review: The Season at SarsaparillaAlison Croggonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-21124094475514124662007-04-08T10:54:00.000+10:002007-04-08T10:54:00.000+10:00Hmm. I hadn't read the play before I saw it, and I...Hmm. I hadn't read the play before I saw it, and I didn't have any difficulty with the conceit of the single space. Perhaps that's just a kind of expectation about theatrical space? <BR/><BR/>That sense of constraint - yes, it was there - really fed this particular play, for me, which is after all about imprisonment; and (a common thing for me as well) the artifice heightened the text's emotionalAlison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-86394285089621187432007-04-07T18:29:00.000+10:002007-04-07T18:29:00.000+10:00For anyone unfamiliar with the play, the tripartit...For anyone unfamiliar with the play, the tripartite role of "the house" was completely obscure - though the possibility of a bording house containing all those lives was intriguing. Long before the penny dropped, the artificiality (or perhaps plain artiness) of the tech wizardry and the designer's denial of convenient access to what was going on had become more frustrating than illuminating. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-70074732281532906122007-04-01T02:28:00.000+10:002007-04-01T02:28:00.000+10:00Alison,Thanks for this blog site.Having been batte...Alison,<BR/>Thanks for this blog site.<BR/><BR/>Having been battered and enraged by Mr Andrews' work before I was thrilled to see a piece by him that so powerfully moved me.<BR/><BR/>It was the first time I have seen the trinity of 'avante-g' tricks [mic the actors, put up a 'screen' between them and the audience and use cameras] function with such clarity and success to illuminate the lives we Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-88440720194754444712007-03-29T11:34:00.000+10:002007-03-29T11:34:00.000+10:00I've only seen two Andrews shows, both plays, and ...I've only seen two Andrews shows, both plays, and what struck me about both is how well he works with texts. They didn't seem gimmicky at all to me.<BR/><BR/>I saw all Kosky's Gilgul work in Melbourne, and a few other things (a brilliant production of Berg's Woyzcek) but aside from Boulevard Delirium haven't seen his work for years. What I've been told by the many people who did see it and have Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-83779807605087142272007-03-28T08:59:00.000+10:002007-03-28T08:59:00.000+10:00I must admit to not being a fan of Andrews' work. ...I must admit to not being a fan of Andrews' work. <BR/>After years of watching him, I find that one thing always stands out for me... I never believe his actors.<BR/><BR/>Simple directorial structure is traded for sometimes less than impressive design and prop options.<BR/><BR/>The Lost Echo...<BR/>I am a big fan of Kosky's work from the first time I saw his Medea in Vienna.<BR/>If you are Nicholas Pickardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06765213293334506905noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-33705554157853313282007-03-27T16:21:00.000+10:002007-03-27T16:21:00.000+10:00yes, I'll agree that this was a magnificent produc...yes, I'll agree that this was a magnificent production, and the best of the (albeit small number) of Benedict Andrews productions I've seen to date. each of the elements i thought might prove gimmicky (the single house wired up for video, the cross-gender casting) in fact proved exceptionally well-conceived and integrated into the production. the language of the play felt strong and clear in a David Williamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00206474261372528319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-73755274080273744462007-03-27T10:03:00.000+10:002007-03-27T10:03:00.000+10:00Yes, you certainly sense an entirely different eth...Yes, you certainly sense an entirely different ethos. The mere fact of The Lost Echo (my huge regret from last year) tells you that something different is going on there!Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-47283876923956669302007-03-27T02:23:00.000+10:002007-03-27T02:23:00.000+10:00it is palpable in the general quality of what happ...<I>it is palpable in the general quality of what happens between the performers on stage</I> <BR/><BR/>It's also present in other STC productions, Alison, not just ones that involve the STC ensemble. Longer rehearsal periods help, of course, but it's really a spin-off of the company ethos under Robyn Nevin. <BR/><BR/>Incidentally, Alan John played one of the ambulance men in Neil Armfield's Chris Boydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18215203610745043810noreply@blogger.com