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Previous Shows
Play DeadPlay Dead is a dark and dirty, symbolic black comedy touching on themes of greed, control, death, sex, violence and possession. Three's a crowd, which quickly becomes apparent when the new so called taxidermist arrives to help the doctor and his very young accomplice, and ends up bringing a little something extra to the slab. You get to be the voyeur and watch the relationships unfold as the story, set in the confines of a morgue, reveals the lives of three off-beat and somewhat unorthodox characters who love, lose, hunger and conceal just like anyone else. With meaty props and faux corpses, a hint of necrophilia and a smack of cannibalism it is not for the faint hearted. http://www.myspace.com/playdeadplay Performance TimesWed Jun 27th - Sun 1st July 9pm at Play Dead was part of MINNIE FIESTA; six weeks of hot new shows launched on Saturday June 2nd at the Final of the very popular Crash Test Dramaâ at Dante's in Fitzroy. From the brilliant musical stand up comedy of Wendy Little to the underground cabarets of Ella Filar, there was something for everyone. No subject was off limits and no cow was too sacred. With the cream of Melbourne's writing, directing and performing talent. 
HamletShakespeare's best-known speeches come from Hamlet. Theatre and film interpretations abound. So, what can today's director do to bring this play to life? Perhaps the most refreshing approach is to just allow the story Shakespeare told so well to unfold. After all it's the greatest tragedy ever written for a reason. A classic, minimalist production that focuses on naivety and power, innocence and corruption. From the outset we know the guilty parties and how it will end. Yet we are compelled to watch Hamlet battle to be sure his actions are motivated by something greater than vengeance or emotional instability. In our hearts we wish that there were some way for Hamlet to win, that he could get proof of his uncle's guilt fast enough to save himself and his kingdom. As in, say, Star Wars we are torn between the desire for our Hero to join the dark side and the hope that morality can prevail. Yet in a way Hamlet and the innocents around him that fall, must fall. His martyrdom reminds us that morality and innocence will often be the losers but that if we fail to believe in innocence we are already lost. Director Janine Cowie has a performance background in television, film, theatre, and variety. In the 1990s she managed a theatre company in England, where she also taught a full time program in stage skills. Recent directing work includes the 2006 Short & Sweet play 'Free'. Janine currently manages the actors' agency Janine J Cowie Management (JJCM), and facilitates workshops through The Actor's Art, a business she co-directs with her daughter Jode. Performance Times1.30pm Fri 11th, Sat 12th, Thurs 17th, Sunday 20th5pm Sun 13th, Sat 19th 8pm, Tues 8th, Thurs 10th, Wed 16th, Fri 18th 8.30pm. Sat 12th The BirdsThis absurdist interpretation of the classic rushes by at a furious pace. Drawing on the genres vaudeville silent film, slapstick, and commedia, Reid's trademark irreverence illustrates the continued relevance of The Birds. This classic satire of pomposity and corruption contains themes more relevant to today's society than one might expect. The story begins in world of men who are paper pushers, politicians and socialites.ć Legislation and legality bind up everything that the lawyers and salesmen of Athens touch. Two hapless idiots try to escape the red, red tape of home by setting up a new walled empire in the sky. However when the airborne utopia of Much Cuckoo in the Clouds is given no choice but to throw the gods out and make them bargain for their traditional offerings, it's clear - the ancient world has gone to the birds. Director Robert Reid is the artistic director of theatre in decay, associate writer at MTC and is currently studying a Masters of Playwriting at the Queensland University of Technology. He also has a B.A. in Theatre Studies from Latrobe University and a Grad. Dip. in Directing from the VCA. Performance times1.30pm, Thurs 10th, Sun 13th, Fri 18th, Sat 19th5pm, Sat 12th, Sun 20th 8pm. Wed 9th, Fri 11th, Tues 15th, Thur 17th 8:30pm, Sat 19th Both Hamlet and The Birds were performed as a double bill at the Northcote Town Hall.Charles Dickens performs A Christmas CarolShow site: http://deadasacoffinnail.comWhere it all began More than 150 years ago, on the 27th December 1853, Dickens chose, for his first public reading, his and the public’s favorite – A Christmas Carol. The acclaim was deafening, and did not abate over the remaining 16 years of his life, during which he gave 444 readings of his works in Great Britain, the United States and even on the Continent. These were not simply readings. Dickens acted the part of each and every character with – as the Cambridge Independent Press said in 1859 – 'a different voice, a different style, a different face”. The Portland (Maine) Transcript observed that the author “to an extraordinary extent assumes the personality of each.' The Times called it 'a happy blending of the narrative & dramatic style.' Women and men wept openly during his performances, 3000-strong audiences roared with laughter and worthy outcomes were greeted with thunderous cheering and the boisterous waving of hats and handkerchiefs. The Belfast newsletter wrote: 'those who have not heard the author read the work have never half enjoyed it.' Of course, we can no longer hear the author but . . . The Ghost of Dickens past returns Charles Dickens was not only the most popular author of his time, achieving what would today be termed superstar status; he was also, according to numerous eyewitness accounts, an actor of astonishing talent. It seems that that his ability to bring all of the individual characters to life was an extraordinary example of theatre craft. Although we worked from a facsimile of Dickens' own prompt copy, with edits and stage directions in his own handwriting, what we studied was not only how Dickens created his work, but how to create our own Great narrator. Our play begins. The lines between Dickens, the literary figure, Dickens, the great performer and Dickens, Zachariah, vanish. A magical storyteller uses his body, voice and an empty space and from that hat he pulls an entire world, characters settings and all. The audience immediately becomes Dickens' audience, the fans of his own time who flocked to see him & hear him. We sit in awe, half lost in Dickens’ story of redemption; of a soul saved & a life made good; and half in the talents of a master entertainer. Kate Rose Summed it up when she said: 'Zachariah becomes Dickens and does not so much read A Christmas Carol as become the story.' InfoDates: 17th - 19th DecVenue: Carlton Courthouse, 349 Drummond St, Carlton Time:7pm Sharp Tickets: $20 full, $10 conc Production history 2003-2005 The first season of this production was was staged by community theatre company En Route Productions in Melbourne in December 2003. The final performance, on the 150th anniversary of Dickens’ first reading, received a standing ovation. The White Hat Tours review said: “A real find in a suburban hall, with Phil Zachariah's performance a remarkable achievement. Our rating - 4 hats” After the success of the 1st season the production was picked up by Dancing with Strangers Theatre Company and remounted in 2004 at Burnley Gardens, The Williamstown Mechanics Institute, The Altona Theatre and St Peters Hall in Mornington as well opening Coffs Harbour Spring On Stage Festival by invitation. In 2005 the production toured regional VIC and NSW. This time the Herald Sun’s Kate Rose gave it 4˝ stars. It was produced in association with 45 Downstairs (Melb), Arts Yackandandah and Newtown Theatre (Syd), with 8 shows given in 10 days. Phill Zachariah Phil, after several years studying applied physics, eventually made the logical transition to theatre. When he graduated from the National Theatre in Melbourne in '79, he was already working in theatre-in-education, writing & acting with, among others, classmate Janet Andrewartha (Neighbors, MTC), & composing & directing. In the 80s, he also performed with the Victorian State Opera Schools Tour, Ars Nova early music group, and with the Folkloric Theatre Company as a storyteller. Later, he spent 3 years with the CSIRO Double Helix touring troupe, performing -- & dispensing astronomical insight. In recent years, he's returned to more general audiences, performing with En Route Productions (Andrew Wyke in Sleuth, Scanlon in One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Roger in Sentrelinke: The Musical) & Dancing With Strangers (Dickens in CDrACC, The Judge in Freedom of the City, Claudius in Hamlet). In 2005 he was heard as George Bernard Shaw in Shaw: The Music Critic for 3MBS, & as both Shaw & John Ruskin in a series on critics for the Sunday Arts program on Radio National. When young, Phil & his brother were taken by their mother to see Emlyn Williams present the Dickens Readings. After Phil became theatrically entangled, his mother, a great fan of Dickens, suggested that he should perform the Readings. Many years later, he made casual mention of that suggestion to a producer, & CDrACC was instantly declared a part of that year's season. James Adler was the logical choice as director, & the rest was...well, theatre. The 2006 Season of Great TragediesIn July and August 2006 we are launching our major project. This annual theatre program project offers school students high-quality performances of texts on the VCE syllabus and provides communities with access to professional theatre events in their own area. The chosen texts this year are Hamlet and Oedipus.
Montsalvat - 7 Hillcrest Ave. Eltham July 18 & 20 - 1pm Oedipus, 8pm Hamlet July 19 & 21 - 1pm Hamlet, 8pm Oedipus Trades Hall (New Ballroom) - 54 Victoria st Carlton July 25, 27 & 29 - 1pm Hamlet, 8pm Oedipus July 26 & 28 -1pm Oedipus, 8pm Hamlet Williamstown Mechanics Instute - 5 Electra st Williamstown Aug 1, 3 & 5 - 1pm Oedipus, 8pm Hamlet Aug 2 & 4 - 1pm Hamlet, 8pm Oedipus BookingsEmail: bookings@eaglesnesttheatre.comPhone/Fax: 9853 5652 Ticket Prices1 show $16 (Conc) / $25 (Full) - Groups Bookings (10 or more people) $14 / $202 shows $28 (Conc)/ 42 (Full) - Group bookings $24 / $35 Workshops & ForumsGroups wishing to enhance their experience of seeing the play can book a range of workshops and forums with the Artistic Director and/or the Director and cast. The two types of workshops we offer are observation and discussion based workshops, and reading and performance based workshops. In these workshops student get to participate and witness a staged rehearsal.School groups attending a performance are also able to book post show Q & A forums. These forums will take place immediately following the conclusion of the performance, with members of the company available to answer questions on the text, performance and theatre-craft aspects of the production. |
