Thirsty Merc takes new single Tommy & Krista to the road for a second round of Australian shows this October/November. Tickets on-sale NOW.
One of Australias most loved bands, THIRSTY MERC, has announced dates for their national SPRING Tour, which will see them play twenty-four dates through seven states and territories this October/November. Kicking off in regional New South Wales, the
“I’ve used the oven manual for the air conditioner and I’m roasting myself alive!”
Tommy Murphy is one of Australia’s most impressive playwrights: canny, dangerous and very funny. His plays include Holding the Man, one of the great success stories of recent Australian theatre with a very successful season in London’s West End earlier this year.
We’re thrilled to be co-producing his terrific new play with the legendary Company B Belvoir, directed by Australia’s finest director, Neil Armfield. Neil is fresh from his Broadway triumph with Exit the King, which starred Queensland’s Geoffrey Rush.
Gwen is 90. She woke up to discover that purgatory is sitting in a new house in a new subdivision, trying to work out if the remote in her hand operates the TV, the air-con or the fan-forced oven. As she muddles her way through the baffling technology, her family gathers around to battle over what’s going to happen next. Father Ezekiel is on his way to bless the house, so things are looking up…
“Full of laughs but also extremely emotional, Gwen In Purgatory is the best play to hit a Sydney stage this year.” The Daily Telegraph
“9/10…Melissa Jaffer is hilarious as Gwen, a feisty senior citizen with selective hearing and prone to misunderstandings, both real and deliberate. The comedy is truly Australian, pitched close to vintage ABC sitcom Mother and Son…Highly recommended” Sun-Herald
“Gwen is the story, I suspect, of every family. Or is it just mine?…Funny, very funny…I can’t think of another playwright who’s a keener, more insightful observer of Australian suburban life, let alone one who can document it so redolently…Gwen In Purgatory is a play for and about all of us. It is warm, funny, sad, tragic, poignant, moving and unsettling. Just like our lives. Life on the page, or stage, doesn’t get any better than this. This is the (very) real deal. A+” – Curtain Call
“Neil Armfield’s production is just about perfect, and exceptionally well cast. Melissa Jaffer combines radiance and dodderiness as Gwen. The bemused and homesick Nigerian priest Ezekiel (Pacharo Mzembe) and Gwen’s knockabout grandson, Daniel (Nathaniel Dean), are warmly drawn. Grant Dodwell is spot-on appalling as Gwen’s son, Laurie, and Sue Ingleton exhibits brilliant timing as the self-flagellating Peg.” Sydney Morning Herald
Production Credits
Director | Neil Armfield
Set Designer | Stephen Curtis
Costume Designer | Bruce McKinven
Lighting Designer | David Walters
Sound Designer | Paul Charlier
Assistant Director | Cristabel Sved
With | Grant Dodwell, Nathaniel Dean, Sue Ingleton, Melissa Jaffer and Pacharo Mzembe
Venue
Roundhouse Theatre, 6 – 8 Musk Avenue,
Kelvin Grove Urban Village
PERFORMANCE DATES
Preview 29 September
Opening Night 30 September
Season 30 September – 24 October
After Show Discussion Night 8 October
PERFORMANCE TIMES
Tuesday – Wednesday 6.30pm
Thursday – Saturday 7.30pm
Sunday 5pm
Matinees 11am 5, 12 & 19 October
2pm Saturday 23 October
DURATION
1 hour 45 mins, no interval
TICKETS
Preview $25
Opening Night $63 (includes VIP party)
Full Price $46
Concession $39
30 years and under $26
Group discounts $40 for 5+ (excludes group booking fee)
Following a handful of sold out shows in Melbourne in April, after a 10 year hiatus, The Paradise Motel will embark on their first official Australian tour this September/October.
The recent release of The Paradise Motel’s critically-acclaimed album Australian Ghost Story – based on the events surrounding the disappearance of Azaria Chamberlain in 1980 – will see the seven-piece outfit perform the
Review: Lana Harris
[Image courtesy Brisbane Festival]
Have you heard the one about the Spiegeltent? A girl and a guy walk into this travelling bar – a pointy topped sphere shaped by mirrors, wood and glass. Golden poles, blood red velvet curtains swooping overhead, low lighting and dancing shadows. Smoky. Drinks service on the curve, booths hugging the circumference. A big-top boudoir with an audience.
The girl and the guy start out cautious in this ringmaster’s playground. They clamber carefully onto the high wire – wobble and steady, wobble and steady. She wears a pair of lasciviously red heels as she teeters. The shoes return sporadically throughout the acts, as do the scene setting ukulele and tinkling pianola. Music through out invokes alternately past, present and future – offered in no particular order. Subject to whims and acrobatics, time periods depart and return often. Continue reading Cantina @ The Spiegeltent (Brisbane Festival) 5th September 2010 – Live Review→
Greg, middle-aged and middle-class, returns to his Upper West Side apartment in the late afternoon accompanied by Sylvia, a beautiful, frisky young blonde he has just picked up in the park. Greg sits in his favourite chair, worried about how Kate, his wife, is going to respond to Sylvia.
Sylvia doesn’t make things easy. Too excited to settle down, she moves around the room checking out the furniture. She turns to Greg. She obediently collapses onto the floor, resting her chin on his knee, while staring up at him with blind adoration. What man could resist?
A street-smart mixture of Lab and Poodle, Sylvia becomes a major bone of contention between husband and wife.
Is knitting French? The first glimpses of the Goodwill a la Paris show a portaloo covered in crochet and various other styles of weaved wool, ministered to by a lady who appears to be wearing a full pants suit made of crochet squares. Disappointingly, up close this is just a pattern on ordinary
“Move over Green Day, Paramore have created their own epic” – Spin Magazine
“Few bands play punk-influenced modern rock as proficiently”; and with that glowing endorsement from Spin magazine we are thrilled to announce that RELIENT K have confirmed as support for the upcoming PARAMORE Australian tour.
After dipping toes in the bubbling grease of contemporary dance for Rockshow in Nov 2009 they dropped the strainer in the chip fryer, frittered away on some new years festival appearances along with a few shows in the past few months. Back in their classic 3 piece mode, after approaching Rockshow in this guise, and with Seja embarking on her own solo career they recently played some stand out performances (including Seja’s last keyboard stand with them) at the Brisbane Powerhouse 10th birthday… and sold out shows in Sydney and Melbourne.
Event: No Anchor w/ Fangs of a TV Evangelist @ Tempo Bar, Brisbane
Date: August 27, 2010
Venue: Tempo Bar, Brisbane
Acts: No Anchor, Fangs of a TV Evangelist
Bringing together some of Australia’s most notable and long standing metal acts; Astriaal , Pod People and Blood Duster ; The Globe Theatre opened their doors on Bastardfest last Saturday to let the shred ignite the stage and appease those curious enough to have been lined in entry.
Punters of all shapes and sizes graced the venue and packed the bar, but although The Globe seemed full up, it was more of an illusion caused by the tinned sardines hovering in the foyer when in reality we were quite short of a sell out. Numbers may be have been lacking but it contributed only, to make the experience more personal.
It may have been mid-week, but that didn’t deter the crowd at The Tivoli who flocked to see The Cat Empire perform on their Cinema tour.
As the evening kicked off, Clairy Browne and the Bangin’ Rackettes warmed up the crowd with their soulful stylings. Clairy Browne had a powerful presence as frontwoman, with an Amy Winehouse
style beehive and a deep, dulcet voice. The three Bangin’ Rackettes crooned backing vocals at the side of the stage and the band provided old style soul music to flesh out the sound, with punctuating saxophone. Champagne featured bright keys, rounded saxophone beautifully melodious verses and a less polished but more upbeat chorus. The band’s unique cover of Bang Bang from Kill Bill was a standout song, with the tempo slowed right down, giving it a more mournful sound than one would think possible. One memorable moment was the duet between Browne and her sister Natalie (one of the Bangin’ Rackettes) about not letting a man treat you badly, the classy soul punctuated by more modern one fingered gestures. T he group’s sultry sensual cover of a Tina Turner number, complete with red lit silhouettes further emphasised the band’s great range. Browne was at her powerfully smooth voiced best with Stephanie, a bitter song about the dangerous woman trying to steal your man. Clairy Browne and The Bangin’ Rackettes make music that is purely intoxicating, combining dirty doo-wop with sultry soul, slow hips and unison fingersnapping. Click the image to view the photo gallery
[Photos: Cody Alexander] Continue reading The Cat Empire @ The Tivoli, Brisbane with Clairy Browne and The Bangin’ Rackettes – 25 August 2010 – Live Review→
NO SLEEP TIL FESTIVAL…
Amid a sea of rumour and innuendo, we’re here to set you straight and make all your heavy music prayers come true… NO SLEEP TIL, is a national touring festival that will deliver a mix of the best international and local acts from the legendary to the up and comers.
Make sure you’re sitting down before you read further…
Leading the charge for this historic event is seminal thrash-metal act MEGADETH, who will be performing their now-classic release RUST IN PEACE in its entirety! Those lucky enough to witness Mustaine and co in action when last here in 2009 will attest that Megadeth are in their career best form, making this a once in a lifetime experience you don’t want to miss! Continue reading NO SLEEP TIL FESTIVAL 2010 – December 2010→
Could you keep an affair secret for ten years? Would you start an affair if you knew how it would end?
Harold Pinter’s Betrayal explores these questions and more as it shows a passionate love affair told in reverse, starring Paul Bishop, Sibylla Budd and Hugh Parker.
Robert and Jerry share many things – they work in publishing, have long lunches together and are both in love with Robert’s wife Emma.
