Nevermore - The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe - Grey Lantern Productions (1 December 2021)

An old adage familiar to writers is “write what you know”. Now, we can debate the soundness of that advice (it can and does lead to pedestrian material if another key ingredient, imagination, isn’t engaged) but what if all you know is loss, abandonment, and addiction along with an (un)healthy dose of the macabre? The result is the works of Edgar Allan Poe, a key figure in American literature. This dazzling production tells his story in a highly stylised manner through song and verse. It plays, to use modern film parlance, as a biopic covering Poe’s life from his birth, loss of his parents (mother died, father left) to the Allan’s taking him in to the various women in his life, to his struggle to be published, and eventually Poe’s death. It also asks the question about how much the creations of his imagination and life experience influence him by the fact of their very existence at his hand. It’s a heady brew.

I admit, it took me a while to lock into this production as it’s quite dense and demands your full attention. This was compounded somewhat by the onstage orchestra (more of them later but they played beautifully) sometimes obscuring the plentiful lyrics. Once it clicked for me though, it proved to be a wonderfully satisfying experience, theatrically and intellectually. It’s a smart show and director Lorna Mackie has created a precise and striking production. It’s no coincidence that the rehearsal period was twice the length of a usual undertaking.

The precision is evident in all departments. The look of the show is unique and arresting, from Therese Cruise’s memorable costumes (including the representation of perhaps Poe’s most famous creation, The Raven, which gave a couple of audience members heart palpitations at one point!) to the monochromatic makeup by Andrea Lim that adds an eeriness especially under Mackie’s lighting design. The set design is sparse to say the least in the black box space, deliberately so to enhance the performers’ look and movements. The orchestra under Musical Director Maddison Moulin adds so much mood and atmosphere with an excellent score, violin and cello at the fore. Choreography by Anita Lawrence is also sparsely utilised but when it is the result is hypnotic.

The show is structured using another filmic device – there is a key moment at the beginning where the Players assail Edgar Allan Poe (Cal Silberstein) before we flashback to tell his life story and eventually catch up to that point in time again where certain revelations are made. To aid this there is a literal Book of Poe’s life that each of the players will take turns throughout the show to narrate key moments in rhyming verse.

Silberstein is excellent as Poe representing his trauma and sense of loss through plaintive song and an aura of melancholy. Brief moments of joy are allowed to intrude when Poe is with his siblings or Elmira (Erin Craddock) who seems to be his true love and the one who understands Poe's darker impulses. Silberstein plays the most grounded character as larger than life figures swirl around him and there are times he literally pleads to the audience as he sings.

The other six “players” take on multiple roles as well as narrating duties. Daniel Burton brings gravitas and his booming voice to authority figures such as John Allan; Arianne Westcott-King generally plays the more sympathetic female characters from Poe’s younger sister to his wife (and cousin) Sissy who dies of tuberculosis. Simon Brett is always lurking as almost an omniscient presence with an excellent singing voice and Zac Bennett-McPhee is most notable as Poe’s brother Henry. Craddock brings a mischievously dark energy as Elmira while Charlotte Louise deploys an incandescent smile, enhanced by the makeup, in multiple ways – sinister, wickedly gleeful, occasionally sympathetic – as generally the mother figures in the story. The seven of them work wonderfully well together, vocally and in their highly coordinated movement.

The highlight is when all these elements fuse perfectly in a stunning rendition of the famous poem The Raven, performed as song. I confess, when the first verse began it was like a crackle of electricity straight from the stage to the audience.

Mention must go to the individual orchestra members who formed a character in and of itself at the back of the stage – Moulin, Shaun Davis, Jade Henderson, Jack Duffy, Suresh Manievannan, Emily Gelineau and Liz Moss. Book, Lyrics, and Music are by Jonathan Christenson.

There are only four more shows of this highly original and striking work – Thursday and Friday nights with two shows on Saturday at the Subiaco Arts Centre. I would recommend getting along to see this theatrical treat with a cracking cast and orchestra working in a beautifully staged environment.

First Date: Broadway's Musical Comedy - Blak Yak Theatre (23 September 2017)

Director Lorna Mackie has a knack for bringing quirky, lesser known musicals such as 2014's The Great American Trailer Park Musical, 2015's Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens, and last year's Bad Girls to Perth's community theatre stages. First Date fits comfortably into that tradition; a funny look at the pitfalls, embarrassments, and epiphanies of the blind date. Not only that, Blak Yak being a theatre company without a permanent home often comes up with interesting alternative venues for their shows. In this case the Shenton Park Community Centre which proved quite the intimate locale. As an aside, it was amusing to see a portrait of a much younger Queen Elizabeth II hanging high above the onstage antics. Perhaps Her Majesty would have approved and hankered for a burger.

Mackie also attracts the cream of Perth's community theatre performers with several here having lead role experience - Tom Hutton, Cassie Skinner, Helen Kerr, Therese Cruise, and reigning Finley Award Winner for Best Male Musical Performer Mitch Lawrence; the first four of whom were also in Bad Girls. Joining the cast were Arianne Westcott-King, James Hynson, and Jason Nettle.

In essence this is a two-hander - guy meets girl at a restaurant on a first date - that is surrounded by a colourful group of real and imagined characters. In some ways it felt like a musical version of 90's sitcom Herman's Head with a comic sensibility that reminded me of Spamalot (Aaron is Jewish, Casey is decidedly not) and there was even a little Avenue Q thrown in with an unexpected 'cameo'.

Hutton is the awkward BDV (blind date virgin) Aaron and Skinner's 'serial dater' Casey is all sass and confidence. On the surface. Over the course of drinks and a meal they get to learn more about each other with the help of the wait staff, reincarnations of mothers and grandmas, intrusions by imagined best friends, sisters, ex-lovers, and, in the modern age, technology itself.

This gives plenty of opportunity for the ensemble to shine in several funny set-pieces but the success of the production rests on the interaction between Aaron and Casey. In this I was impressed with the acting of both Hutton and Skinner who bounced off each other nicely, displayed good comic timing, and gave layers of doubt and vulnerability to their characters amongst the observational comedy and, at times, sheer shtick. Not to mention sporting credible American accents and the ability to freeze mid-ingestion of a pickle.

It's an odd musical in that the songs are liberally shared around with the two leads not often given prominence. Skinner does get a featured moment with the first act closer Safer which she belts out to great effect. The five piece band was nestled alongside one wall right next to the audience. Indeed I was about a metre or so from the keyboards in my second row seat. The sound balance, on the whole, was very good and I was delighted that the drums were suitably muted. Several musicals staged at venues without a pit have been cruelled by overpowering drum work.

The wireless microphones were occasionally problematic with Nettle suffering the most in this regard. The poor pickup often left him singing unamplified but he showed great composure (and style) in soldiering on. The intimate nature of the venue meant that nothing too much was lost though the rapid-fire lyrics were sometimes difficult to follow.

Of the supporting cast Mitch Lawrence was excellent as Aaron's best friend Gabe with faux indignation and 'bro advice' turned to high. Helen Kerr plays the ex that Aaron must get over with "I'm too good for you" insouciance though it's her appearance as Google - yes, the search engine itself - that cracked me up during a role call of social media in The World Wide Web is Forever.

James Hynson is a scene stealer as The Waiter (and accomplice for the guest cameo) with his I'd Order Love kicking off the second act in style. Arianne Westcott-King had a twinkle about her as Casey's hectoring sister Lauren and was light on her feet with a little tap for good measure. Therese Cruise adds colour as a drunk at the bar and as the Jewish Grandmother from Hell in the Pythonesque The Girl For You while Jason Nettle plays the over-the-top gay friend Reggie with swagger.

As I often find with comedy musicals there is always a more serious or tender song that stands out from the frivolity and here it's Hutton and Kerr (as Aaron's mother) singing The Things I Never Said which was a standout. Hutton also has a featured moment in the second act with In Love With You.

Mackie at the start of the show encouraged the audience to hoot and holler throughout and it's that kind of musical. Funny, over-the-top, but with some perceptive insights into the dating game and strong performances all round. A fun night.

24 Hour Stage Project - Blak Yak Theatre (9 April 2016)

Blak Yak Theatre held their inaugural 24 Hour Stage Project at Rigby’s Bar and Grill in the city on Friday and Saturday nights. I had the pleasure and great honour of being asked to come along and adjudicate the 6 teams that had created productions in that 24 hour period. Writers, actors and directors had been assigned at random and given the theme of Back in 5 which they were free to interpret in any way they liked. The writers went away Friday night to work their magic with the directors and actors starting their work Saturday morning. There was time for a tech run each in the afternoon before the lights came down on a paying audience from 8pm.

Teams were competing for cash prizes and there was also the opportunity for feedback and Honourable Mentions. Perhaps more than that it was a way for newcomers to get involved and have their words, directing, or acting staged in front of an audience, some for the very first time. Plus the impetus of having people coming together in a collaborative endeavour to create new work. Hopefully creative partnerships were forged and some if not all of these projects will find life in further development.

I received the scripts Saturday morning and I was impressed with the quality across the board given that they were written in only a 12 hour window. For the Best Script prize I wanted to choose a winner based on the work on the page before seeing the actual productions later that night. It also had me intrigued to see how they would be realised, again in the fiendishly short space of 12 hours for directors, actors, and the technical crew Blak Yak had provided to make the words come to life on stage.

The night was very well run, there was a good sized and enthusiastic audience in attendance downstairs at Rigby’s, and everything went without a hitch. Above all else the end result of 24 hours of frantic creativity was 6 varying yet compelling pieces of theatre. There was everything from a super-hero themed comedy set on a train to Midland; international spies duelling to see who would end Donald Trump’s robotic march to the White House; a hard hitting tale of a woman trying to come to terms with the abuse of her childhood; overwhelming grief and confusion over the death of a friend; a woman celebrating her wedding anniversary in, let’s say, unusual ways; and a relationship coming to an end as ‘going out to get milk’ turns into a cross country trip to Sydney. It was a nice mix of comedy and drama.

The quality of acting was high and the use of the small stage space inventive. As I remarked before announcing the winners it was instructive to see so clearly demonstrated that with a space no matter how small, a script, some actors, a director, simple props, minimal set, basic sound and lighting cues you can create theatre that will move people or make them laugh or think or all of these things. All you need is a willingness to work together, take some risks, and be creative in your storytelling.

I really enjoyed the night and it was a little unusual for me. Normally I never ever take notes when I’m watching a show. Occasionally at interval or after a production you might see me adding a few reminders to Memo on my smart phone but they’re usually song titles or references I might forget. Here I had a notepad and Adjudication form as there was the opportunity to give some brief feedback to each team as well as having to choose winners in a short timeframe. I even eschewed my usual cider, nursing a lemon squash (heaven forbid!) all night.  

Thank you to Blak Yak President Lorna Mackie who, along with her team, did such a wonderful job of organising the event and looking after me on the night. It really was a fantastic evening and, given the positive reception, looks like it will become an ongoing proposition. If so, I encourage people to get involved as it’s a fun (if tiring!) way to meet new people, put original work in front of a receptive audience and develop momentum for stories and idea. 

Congratulations to all the writers, actors, and directors who participated. Thank you also to the people who came up to chat after the event. I suspect Blak Yak will make a formal announcement of all the winners online so I won’t pre-empt that here only to say, well done everyone!