MAN ABOUT TOWN

REVIEW: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

2008-07-05T16:03:00.004+10:00

1927 is an English cabaret company, whose acclaimed Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is currently being performed at the Malthouse Theatre here in Melbourne. The show, an inspired blend of silent film homage and delightfully gothic spoken word, is a singular delight, and one I strongly recommend for film buffs and theatre afficianados alike.

The concept of the show is deceptively simple: two performers (writer/director Suzanne Andrade and Esme Appleton, both appropriately dressed in Louise Brooks mode) perform on stage against a backdrop of scratchy, flickering silent film-inspired projections by Paul Barritt, to a live piano score by Lillian Henley. I say deceptively simple, because the timing required to make the show work - for voices to speak in unison and for performers to match their movements to the images and sets projected on and behind them - clearly requires significant labour.

There's a wonderful, playful sense of the grotesque permeating the show, as well as a clear love of the tropes of silent cinema and the entertainments of the day. From a Perils of Pauline like moment with a character tied struggling to a train track (perfectly evoked with the simplest of animation) to the chilling yet hillarious image of a menacing army of gingerbread men, the visions presented by 1927 are twisted, grand and glorious. Nor are all their stories firmly rooted in the past; as references to Mr Squiggle, and another story in which the bored children of the upper middle class play act being homeless crack whores, delightfully illustrate.

From unexpected lunacy (a piano-playing proboscis monkey) to menacing and monstrous children whose macabre games shatter the fourth wall, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is a thorough delight, whose any major fault is that it ends so soon after it begins. I highly recommend that you visit the Malthouse post-haste before its all-too-brief season ends on July 13.

Love, Life and Art: The films of Derek Jarman

2008-07-02T10:45:00.004+10:00

Derek Jarman on the set of 'Caravaggio'

Derek Jarman was a true renaissance man.

Through his books, his paintings and especially his films, the English artist and activist was an eloquent and passionate spokesman for gay rights at a time when Britain’s conservative government, under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was doing its best to stamp out gay culture forever.

In 1988, even as an entire generation of gay men were being ravaged by the AIDS crisis, Thatcher’s government introduced a notorious piece of legislation, Section 28; which forbade ‘the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship’.

But instead of silencing gays and lesbians the introduction of Section 28 galvanised them; uniting a community that until then had largely been divided along gender lines, and prompting the largest queer rights demonstrations the UK had ever seen.

It was in these turbulent times that Jarman’s creativity was at its peak, as a new documentary about his life and work, to be shown at the Melbourne International Film Festival later this month, so aptly demonstrates.

Derek, directed by Issac Julien and narrated by the Academy Award-winning actress Tilda Swinton, is a fitting and long overdue testimony to Jarman’s life and prolific output. (By the time he died of an AIDS-related illness in 1994, just a few short years after being canonised by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Jarman had made more than 50 short films and features.)

“You were the first person I met who could gossip about St Thomas Aquinas and hold a steady camera at the same time,” Swinton says in voiceover in the documentary, in an open letter to Jarman, with whom she worked on a number of films.

“I thought it would be good to hang out with you for six weeks: I guess we had things to say. Our outfit was an internationalist brigade. Decidedly pre-industrial. A little loud, a lot louche. Not always in the best possible taste. And not quite fit, though it saddened and maddened us to recognise it, for wholesome family entertainment.”

Jarman’s feature films may not have been considered ‘wholesome’ in their day, but the director’s unique blending of his artistic sensibility and overt gay sexuality has ensured that they will long be remembered and celebrated.

In works such as Edward II (about the openly gay English king of the same name, adapted from the play by Christopher Marlowe, a gay contemporary of William Shakespeare) and Caravaggio (a biopic of the bisexual 16th century rogue and artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio) Jarman’s unique aesthetic is lucidly and beautifully displayed.

Caravaggio was a poet of the low-life who employed pimps and prostitutes as the models for the saints and angels he painted so lovingly; an artist whose work captivated the Italian society of the day even as his unconventional life shocked and scandalised them. As Jarman told the English newspaper The Guardian in 1986, “[Caravaggio] burnt away decorum and the ideal...knocked the saints out of the sky and onto the streets...his St John pictures are a succession of male nudes - straight forward physique photographs.”

In making Caravaggio, which is released on DVD this week, Jarman strove to capture the Italian painter’s innovative style as much as he sought to explore his unorthodox life. The film is shot in the way Caravaggio would have painted it, with lovingly lit scenes in which the painter’s works come to life on the screen; and narrated by Caravaggio himself (played by Nigel Terry) as he lies on his death bed, reflecting on his art and recalling his ménage à trois with the bare-knuckle boxer Ranuccio (Sean Bean) and Ranuccio’s girlfriend, the prostitute Lena (Tilda Swinton).

The deliberate inclusion of anachronisms - courtiers in doublets pounding away at upright typewriters, the sound of a train passing through a medieval city – ensures the story’s twined themes of creativity and passion are eternal.

Even as he himself was dying, Jarman found time to reflect on these themes anew, and their relevance to his own rich life.

“I am tired tonight. My eyes are out of focus, my body droops under the weight of the day, but as I leave you Queer lads let me leave you singing,” Jarman wrote in his 1992 autobiography, At Your Own Risk. “I had to write of a sad time as a witness – not to cloud your smiles – please read the cares of the world that I have locked in these pages; and after, put this book aside and love. May you of a better future, love without a care, and remember we loved too. As the shadows closed in, the stars came out.

“I am in love.”

Derek Jarman’s films Caravaggio and Wittgenstein are out now on DVD through Umbrella Entertainment.

Isaac Julian’s documentary about Jarman, Derek, screens at the Melbourne International Film Festival later this month.

This article originally appeared in MCV #391 on Thursday July 3.

La Mama reaches halfway mark

2008-06-30T19:09:00.000+10:00

La Mama is a little over half way to reaching its fundraising target of $1.7 million required to secure the purchase of their Faraday St home in Carlton after receiving generous donations of $350,000 from Jeanne Pratt of The Pratt Foundation and $250,000 from the Sidney Myer Fund.

La Mama’s Artistic Director Liz Jones said, “We are absolutely thrilled to receive such generous contributions from two of Melbourne’s leading philanthropic Funds. These financial contributions provide us with more hope that we will reach our target at this crucial time however we still need to raise another $700,000 to secure the purchase of our Faraday St home by settlement day Tuesday 2^nd September 2008. A lot of people in the community think that La Mama has already been saved but we unfortunately still have quite a way to go.”

The Minister for the Arts, Lynne Kosky MP, recently announced that the Victorian State Government will contribute $150,000 to La Mama’s cause. With the generosity of over 300 friends of La Mama and industry members, the deposit of $170,000 was raised and paid on May 27, 2008.

La Mama has also received very promising responses following discussions with The Melbourne City Council and a number of other philanthropic organisations and is still optimistic of receiving significant contributions from these sources.

However, as there remains a considerable shortfall to reach the target required within a short timeframe, La Mama still requires all the financial help available.

La Mama, has occupied the iconic building in Faraday St in the heart of Carlton since 1967. For the last 40 years the building has been rented from a local Melbourne family. The matriarch (and much-loved La Mama supporter) Rose died late last year and the Executors of her Estate notified La Mama that they wanted to sell the building offering La Mama first option. Recently the Executors of the Estate accepted La Mama’s offer of $1.7 million.

Founded in 1967 by Betty Burstall after she visited La Mama in New York, La Mama has been an incubator for many big names in Australian theatre with its alumni including national treasures such as Jack Hibberd, David Williamson, Cate Blanchett and Richard Frankland to name a few.

To make a donation or for more information on how you can help secure La Mama’s future please contact Liz Jones on tel. 03 9347 6948, mobile 0412 909 077 or liz@lamama.com.au. Donations are fully tax deductible.

And in other cinema news

2008-06-30T13:15:00.003+10:00

According to his page on the Internet Movie Database, Scottish actor James McAvoy is set to play Bilbo Baggins in the screen adaptation of The Hobbit to be directed by Guillermo del Toro. Anyone heard anything more concrete on this?

Why I want to see THE DARK KNIGHT more than ever

2008-06-30T13:08:00.002+10:00

Why? This review by Peter Travers in Rolling Stone:

"The haunting and visionary Dark Knight soars on the wings of untamed imagination. It's full of surprises you don't see coming. And just try to get it out of your dreams."

That's why.

Look: Who's back

2008-06-28T17:41:00.003+10:00

Under the guidance of writer/producer Russell T Davies, Doctor Who is queerer than ever, says Richard Watts.

In 2003, when the BBC announced that Russell T Davies, the creator of Queer as Folk, was to be put in charge of a new series of Doctor Who, few would have expected that the revived science fiction series about an alien wanderer in time and space would become one of the most lauded television programmes of the 21st century.

But not only did the new Doctor Who become a runaway success – inspiring two spin-off series to date in the child-friendly The Sarah Jane Adventures and the far darker, adult-oriented Torchwood; as well as generating critical and popular acclaim – it’s also become one of the most inclusive television programmes ever made in terms of representing gay, lesbian, bisexual and gender-fluid characters on-screen.

Anyone who has watched the last three seasons of Doctor Who will be familiar with some of the elements Davies has brought to the show; most notably the roguish, sexually-omnivorous Captain Jack Harkness, a Time Agent turned conman from the 51st Century, played by openly gay actor John Barrowman.

According to Davies, the inclusion of Captain Jack (first introduced in the 2005 story ‘The Empty Child’) was a deliberate attempt to subvert the usual depiction of bisexuality on television.

“I thought: ‘It’s time you introduce bisexuals properly into mainstream television,’” he recently told the New York Times. “The most boring drama would be – ‘Oh, I’m bisexual, oh my bleeding heart’ night-time drama. Tedious, dull. But if you say it’s a bisexual space pirate swaggering in with guns and attitude and cheek and humour into primetime family viewing - that was enormously attractive to me.”

Such characters aside, what’s the attraction of a programme like Doctor Who for lesbian and gay viewers? According to occasional MCV contributor and Sensis film critic Tim Hunter, it’s the titular character’s outsider status.

“It’s about the fact that he seems like an outsider from the rest of society. As a 13 year old boy who hadn’t quite come to terms with his sexuality yet, I just found that quite appealing,” Hunter says.

“The reason Doctor Who as a character has gay appeal is because he doesn’t necessarily identify with regular people; and I think a lot of gay men growing up tend to identify with that, because they too, including myself, feel like we’re outside of society; not quite the same as everyone else. The Doctor is like that too, but he embraces it … and I think there’s a lesson there for gay men; that being different isn’t necessarily a bad thing. And I think that’s become even more [pronounced] in this new series that Russell T Davies has been doing,” he concludes.

As well as introducing queer characters such as the omnisexual Captain Jack and the transgendered ‘last human’, the Lady Cassandra, Davies has also injected a gay sensibility into the programme; typified by the 2007 Christmas special, Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned.

The movie-length episode, which screens on ABC 1 this Sunday night, features gay icon Kylie Minogue in a story which references such camp delights as 1972’s The Poseidon Adventure and the 1997 film, Titanic, leavened with a healthy dash of science fiction.

“Kylie is probably my favourite guest we’ve had. Having her on the show was amazing. Just having her working with us was brilliant,” an enthusiastic Davies told Welsh newspaper the Swansea Evening Post earlier this month.

As well as La Minogue, Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned also stars out gay actor Russell Tovey (best known for his role as the sports-loving Rudge in the film The History Boys), and features a subplot involving marriage rights for androids: a clear reference to the on-going debate around same-sex marriage.

Gay and lesbian characters also feature regularly in the programme’s fourth season, which starts on the ABC next week; a situation which has some fans up in arms about what they describe as Davies’ “gay agenda”.

“[I]t’s completely over-egging the series to have throwaway gay references all over the place just to give the show a PC, all-inclusive feel,” rants poster ‘Spud McSpud’ on the pop-culture website Ain’tItCoolNews.com. “[Davies] seems to want to portray in new Who the idea that there are gay/bi people in every walk of life, everywhere you go!”

Not everyone is so opposed to the regular representation of same-sex attracted characters on Doctor Who, however.

“[Davies] takes Doctor Who and pushes the envelope the whole time, not in terms of taste and decency but in terms of ideas and emotional intelligence, the size of feeling and epic stroke of narrative breadth,” Jane Tranter, the BBC’s head of fiction, told the New York Times last week.

No-one at the BBC had a problem with Captain Jack, or with any of Davies’s plotlines, she added.

“How ridiculous would it be that you would travel through time and space and only ever find heterosexual men?”

Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned screens on ABC 1 this Sunday June 29 at 7:30pm. Season Four of Doctor Who commences the following week.

This article originally appeared in MCV #390 on Thursday June 26.

Doctor Who Season Four Finale - SPOILERS!!!

2008-06-22T23:01:00.002+10:00

This pic is a promo image for the final two-parter for the current season four of Doctor Who. Fanboy heaven or what?

Circus Oz 30th Birthday Bash

2008-06-21T17:34:00.006+10:00

Last night saw saw the opening night of the 30th Birthday Bash for Circus Oz; the latest show under the company's Leunig-inspired big top in Birrarung Marr. A 30th birthday is no mean achievement for anyone, let alone a circus company which prides itself on its committment to social justice as much as daring and jaw-dropping physical feats, which is why last night's show was such a delight.

Even occasional first night nerves resulting in dropped juggling clubs and missed tumbles (of which, to be fair, there were only a few) and a couple of events that, placed back-to-back, saw the pace of the show drop off slightly, couldn't detract from the atmosphere or the spirit of the night, helped along by a jovial and noisy crowd packed under the canvas to witness an array of predominantly new acts.

Having spoken last week with Circus Oz's Artistic Director Mike Finch, I know the temptation was there to present a 'greatest hits' package; but instead, thanks to new funding which enables the company to now hold an extended circus lab development each year, there were heaps of new acts, brought to life by a range of new performers. There were also some spectacular old tricks slipped into the show as well; including the group bike, and a wonderfully-reworked contortion act, and a simply fantastic inverted routine in film noir style, in which a tough guy walks into a bar, sits at a table, pours himself a drink and soliliquizes - all performed suspended upside down from the roof.

Other highlights included some superb clowning and juggling routines; a breathtaking and beautiful Frankenstein-inspired act performed on aerial straps; a joyous jumble of kangaroo-clad acrobats aboard the teeterboard; the addition of inline skating for the first time in a Circus Oz show; and the most outstanding chair-balancing act which morphed into a magnificent, achingly beautiful static double trapeze routine: truly the highlight of the show.

If you've never seen Circus Oz before, this is definitely a production to see: a marvellous modern circus show that will thrill, amaze and entertain in equal measure. And if you have seen the company before, what better time to go back than for their 30th Birthday Bash?

Bravo, Circus Oz!

At last, I do

2008-06-17T12:54:00.003+10:00

AP Photo/Eric Risberg

After a long legal battle, gay and lesbian couples in California were legally allowed to marry as of 5:01pm on Monday June 16.

Del Martin (pictured, left) and Phyllis Lyon, who have been together for 50 years, became the first couple to wed; and were married by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom (standing behind them) at City Hall.

Martin and Lyon were co-founders of the first major lesbian organisation in the USA, the Daughters of Bilitis, in 1955. The couple have a long and proud history of fighting for women’s rights.

“When we first got together, we were not really thinking about getting married, we were thinking about getting together,” Lyon told a crowd of cheering supporters as the pair cut their wedding cake. “I think it's a wonderful day.”

Of course, not everyone is happy about this, as the following media release from the Westboro Baptist Church makes abundantly clear:

You know, somehow I kinda think they've forgotten that bit in the Bible about 'God is love'...

What do we want? BRAINS! When do we want it? BRAINS!

2008-06-14T17:32:00.010+10:00

The 3rd annual Melbourne Zombie Shuffle was held today, and what a fantastic day it was! Big shout-outs to the lovely Ms Clem (pictured to my left, above, and also below) who got the whole rotting ball rolling, and whose company made for a great day out in the company of an undead horde that was at least 500 strong.

We came; we saw; we shambled, drooled, moaned, lurched and generally had a ball. Next year we'll be back, bigger and more cadaverous than ever!

You can read all about it on NineMSM.com - and even see a video featuring Clem and yours truly! And yes, more photos coming soon...

Secrets

2008-06-13T08:51:00.003+10:00

I am all a-quiver with excitement about the program for this year's Melbourne International Arts Festival, having attended a media briefing at the festival office on Wednesday, but unfortunately I am bound to secrecy and cannot, nay, must not blog about its contents for another month.

Suffice to say that Kristy's final festival program, her fourth, looks fantastic; with an array of local and international guests that already has me salivating. Sadly I'll have to miss the festival's last five days, as I'll be jaunting off to Morocco, but I reckon I'll be able to squeeze in a fair bit of fun before I go!

Melbourne International Arts Festival: October 9 - 25 2008

Life is a sexually transmitted terminal disease

2008-06-09T17:43:00.003+10:00

Since I dislike blog posts that start as apologies for not posting much lately (and why should I apologise? This is, after all, a blog kept primarily for my own amusement.) I won't start this post like that.

Instead, I might start it by sulking over the fact that I didn't get the Creative Fellowship at the State Library of Victoria I applied for earlier this year. I suspect I won't receive the Arts Victoria grant I've applied for either, being a pesemistic sort; which kind of throws a spanner in the works as far as my plans for the second half of the year go.

The grant and the Fellowship were all part of my plan to quit my job and refocus, at long last, on my creative writing, prior to my Morocco trip in October, but it looks like I'll have to come up with another plan instead. Bugger it.

On the plus side, I'm slowly re-adjusting to living on my own, and have started breaking a number of bad habits that I fell into during the last few years; ie, I've rediscovered my kitchen and have actually cooked regularly over the last couple of weeks since Mike moved out, instead of spending all my money on takeaway from the local Indian, Japanese, Vietnamese and Italian restaurants. I'm also drinking and drugging less.

God, don't tell my I'm finally starting to act my age?

Oh yes, I've also been out on a singular, uneventful, and certainly not leading anywhere date, but as it was, frankly, a bit of a non-event, I fail to see the point in blogging about it. Besides, I don't kiss and tell: not unless there's actually something worth telling, that is...

I've also seen a few movies in recent weeks that I haven't posted about: Iron Man, which was pretty dull; Prince Caspian, which was a definite improvement on The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, but still lacked any real zest, imagination or passion (I direct the blame squarely at director Andrew Adamson, who also co-wrote the screenplay for both Chronicles of Narnia films to date: thankfully Michael Apted is directing the third film in the franchise, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, so it may actually be a decent film); and today, The Orphanage, which was actually scary, subtle and intelligent. Of course, an American studio will probably re-make it, and spoil it in the process, but such is life...

You'll note I haven't seen any theatre of late. (Apologies to anyone who's come here from the Malthouse Theatre Company's website expecting plentiful and detailed theatre reviews. Try Theatrenotes instead.) I'm not quite sure why. Possibly I became rather performanced-out post Comedy Festival? Not sure. There may be other reasons. Whatever the case, the last couple of months have seen me staying in a great deal, and watching a lot of old Doctor Who episodes on DVD, in between weekly installments of the latest series.

So, in summary, I've been rather introspective of late, but don't worry: I have no plans to do a Ms Fits and kill this blog off. But until such time as I find the enthusiasm to write in detail about things I've seen and done again, I suspect posts will continue in the recent vein: brief, sporadic and indicative of my current preoccupations and old obsessions.

That said, should by some freakish accident I actually manage to fall in love, or at the very least get laid, I'll blog about that, too. I promise!

Gobbledigook

2008-06-06T13:52:00.004+10:00

In case you haven't already seen it, here's the new film clip for my favourite band in the world, Sigur Ros, for the song 'Gobbledigook', from their forthcoming album, með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust.

The return of Captain Jack

2008-06-04T11:04:00.003+10:00

He's rumoured to be making a return in the current UK series (season four) of Doctor Who, along with Rose (a "harder... sadder" version of her character, actor Billie Piper confirmed in a recent BBC interview) but it's now also confirmed that the dashing, devilish Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) will be back for the third season of Torchwood in 2008. No definite news yet on who is to flesh out the team following the tragic end of season two, however, though Mickey Smith and Martha Jones are both said to be possibilities.

According to this website, however, at this stage the BBC has only green-lit five one-hour specials of Torchwood, with no word yet on whether we can expect more episodes after that. This makes sense, in a way, as it parallels the current plans for Doctor Who in 2009, which will also see only a limited number of one-off episodes produced, in order to allow David Tennant time off to play Hamlet; with season five not scheduled to screen until 2010 (sob!).

Meanwhile in other Who news, the ABC has confirmed season four, starting with the Christmas special starting Kylie Minogue, Voyage of the Damned, will screen on Sunday June 29.

For the most up-to-date page of Who news around, you may like to visit Sylvester McCoy's site (yes, the seventh Doctor) but beware: spoilers abound!

Next Wave micro-reviews

2008-05-31T14:03:00.005+10:00

Some more brief mini-reviews of a couple of shows I caught during Next Wave...

THE TENT
Created by writer/performer Matthew Prest; Danny Egar, tent construction; Clare Britton, puppeteer; Eddie Sharp, performer/co-deviser.

A Next Wave performance, The Tent was set within a purpose-build tent-cum-theatre that was both set for the show, and catalyst for the unfolding story we were priviledged to watch.

Michael (Prest), a still-adolescent 20-something, walks away from his life wearing only pajamas, and encounters the sage-like figure of Brett (Sharp), a worldly, well-read recluse who calls the tent home. Some years later, Michael, now just another city suit, takes us, the audience, on a similar journey; re-discovering the tent and telling us about his experiences within and around it, in between dishing out bowls of hot soup and passing around blankets to ward off the autumn chill.

Managing to invoke a sense of menace (just what is in the soup we're eating? Is the hermetic Brett, who Michael seems both in awe of and afraid of, about to return and catch us invading his home? How will he react is he does?) and a sense of wonder through the use of puppetry, projection, lighting, and the sudden and unexpected transformation of elements of the set, The Tent managed to frustrate and entertain in equal measure.

While technically marvellous, it felt lacking in substance, its story under-developed; and while performances were strong, I felt they failed to articulate the exploration of Dionisisian vs Apollonian worldviews that the piece was theoretically about, but given that this was Prest's first major production as the main creative artist, this fault is perhaps understandable. Nonetheless, a promising venture from this group of Sydney theatre-makers.

The Tent @ Next Wave Festival: season concluded.

SIX MINUTE SOUL MATE

A Brown Council production
Created and performed by Kelly Doley; Kate Blackmore; Fran Barrett and Diana Smith.

Another group of Sydney theatre-makers presented Six Minute Soul Mate, a production inspired by speed dating that explores the concept of intimacy in our time-poor culture, also as part of Next Wave.

Staging the work in a series of small rooms above the Carlton Hotel, which at various stages have been a brothel, exhibition spaces, and backpackers' accomodation, added poignancy to this at times uncomfortable performance, which consisted of a repeated series of theatrical vignettes which gained depth and drama as each character (which included a would-be funny man whose schtick barely hides his considerable misogyny, and a woman whose need is written all over her body) returned to present their monologue anew.

By turns amusing and touching - even, at one moment, frightening, as the lights were extinguished and the unseen character desperately implores someone, anyone to please just pash her - Six Minute Soul Mate was an endearing and promising work that unfortunately, like The Tent, felt not quite complete; as if it were a work in progress that was not yet fully realised.

Six Minute Soul Mate @ Next Wave Festival: season concluded.

Still sick, so more Who

2008-05-30T11:32:00.003+10:00

As I still haven't got over this ghastly lurgie that's been afflicting me for almost a week now (note to self: Eurovision parties the day after you've come down with a viral infection are a bad idea; fun, yes, but still a bad idea) I can't quite bring myself to blog about anything too serious just now. Instead, let me give in to my inner geek once again, and post a few more Doctor Who snippets for you all (and for me, if I'm being completely honest).

Firstly (and thanks to Simon for showing me this) author Neil The Sandman Gaiman is a big Who fan, and wrote this over on his journal upon hearing that current Doctor, David Tennant, is taking time off in 2009 to play Hamlet:

"I know that David Tennant's Hamlet isn't till July. And lots of people are going to be doing Dr Who in Hamlet jokes, so this is just me getting it out of the way early, to avoid the rush...

"To be, or not to be, that is the question. Weeelll.... More of A question really. Not THE question. Because, well, I mean, there are billions and billions of questions out there, and well, when I say billions, I mean, when you add in the answers, not just the questions, weeelll, you're looking at numbers that are positively astronomical and... for that matter the other question is what you lot are doing on this planet in the first place, and er, did anyone try just pushing this little red button?"

Heh. Cute. Gaiman certainly has Tennant's characterisation of the Doctor down well. Which makes this next snippet of fan-thought even more interesting...

From the comic-book gossip blog, Lying in the Gutters, on what Stephen Moffat taking over as the new chief writer/producer of Doctor Who might mean for the show:

"Well, some people see Steven as transforming Doctor Who into something very different. That's not true, Steven has been a cheerleader for Russell's work on the project from Day One and will continue in that vein. Indeed, he may well fight aganst what is expected of him. But odds are we'll get some more fun time travel stories out of it, maybe a slight tweak towards intricate structure, and some interesting geek-friendly names.
Such as the rumour running around my BBC sources that Neil Gaiman being approached to write an episode for 2010. That would be this Neil Gaiman, comic author, fantasy novelist, screenwriter, poet and writer of the Duran Duran Biography 1985... [W]hen I asked Neil if he'd care to comment, he pleaded the Francis saying, "You may very well think that, but I could not possibly comment."

I do very well think that. I do.

Of course, nothing will actually have been commissioned by the BBC at this stage, and there's many a slip 'twixt cup and prosthetic lip, but it's looking good.

Hmmm. Hmmmmmm. *tilts head to the left and strokes chin* Hmmmmmmmm, I say again.

Madness

2008-05-28T15:15:00.003+10:00

I've held off from blogging about the mob currently baying for Bill Henson's blood for a variety of reasons, not least because I've been sick since Saturday, the day after this furore erupted (which is also why I haven't blogged about some of the Next Wave shows I saw late last week, though I heop to get around to that later today or tomorrow). Having taken today off work to try and sleep through the worst of my current fog and fever, I thought it due time to catch up with things, Henson included.

The other reason I didn't blog about the situation is because I hoped, perhaps foolishly, that it would all blow over quite quickly. Far from it. Instead, it's only spurring on additional attacks on the arts and artists.

There are two main points I'm been thinking about as I read the papers in recent days. One being the fact that I feel truly sorry for people who can't seperate nudity from sex - and in this case, sexual abuse of children by adults. There is, to my mind, a vast difference between a photograph, painting or sculpture of a nude, and a pornographic image. Porn is created specifically to arouse carnal desire; it's invariably crude, simple, unsubtle stuff. A nude may be shown for an array of reasons: to comment on innocence, on the sheer poetic beauty of the physical form, or as perhaps is the case in Henson's work, to illuminate the emotional storm that swirls about us in our adolesence as we cross over from childhood to adulthood.

The other issue that haunts me as I type this is an awareness of how conservative our culture has become. Were a play like Shopping and Fucking to open this week, or another Piss Christ to be displayed, I don't doubt that there would be more obscenity cases waiting in the wings; more hand-rubbing conservatives waiting to lecture us; more media storms.

I also fear for the teenagers who have previously chosen - and I do not doubt that they had a choice, and that they considered their actions carefully, given the circumstances - to model for Henson. I do not doubt that the conservative crusaders baying for Henson's blood have done far more emotional damage to his models than posing for his work will ever have done.

Lastly, for a well-argued, well-reasoned and carefully phrased comment about the current situation, I recommend you visit Alison Croggon's blog, where you can read the open letter in support of Bill Henson signed by her and many of the other participants in the Arts & Culture stream at the Prime Minister's recent 2020 summit. And Alison, thank you for your valued contribution to the current debate that swirls around us - I lok forward to discussing the issue with you on SmartArts tomorrow at 9:30am.

More Who news

2008-05-26T11:51:00.001+10:00

Here's the new series four mid-season trailer, which confirms certain rumours about which old enemy of the Doctor is returning in the final episodes of this season...

Impressions (take two)

2008-05-22T22:48:00.004+10:00

Being some brief impressions - I wouldn't call them reviews - of some recently seen performances around town.

(I deleted last night's version of this post as I was in a foul mood when I posted it, and figured I might have been a bit too harsh on at least one of the shows I was discussing. On retrospect, it's still crap, but I wanted to be more considered in my condemnation...)

Bangarra Dance Theatre: Mathinna

The latest work by indigenous dance troupe Bangarra explores the life story of a young Indigenous woman, Mathinna, who was removed from her family at a young age and raised in the household of the Governor of Tasmania. Choreographed by Stephen Page, this production tells her story - a tale of vulnerability and a search for identity - through dance. While featuring a beautiful set and striking lighting design, I found the story itself presented almost too literally; an impression given weight by David Page's score, which lacked shading and subtlety. That said, a more abstract exploration of the work may have failed to convey the key elements of Mathinna's story, which was clearly central to Page's approach to the work.

"This is not a happy story. It’s about now, and the Stolen Generation … and at the same time, it was really about the spiritual world that Mathinna was connected to, and what happens to her after her death. It was always going to be a challenge," Page told MCV earlier this month.

Mathinna is now showing at the The Arts Centre, Playhouse until May 24

The Australian Shakespeare Company: Richard III Unhinged

This new production of Richard III by Glenn Elston's Australian Shakespeare Company could be read as an attempt by Elston, best known for his unashamedly crowd-pleasing outdoor productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and other plays, to be taken seriously as a director. If so, it's an abject failure.

The production stars, among others, Brendan O'Connor (perhaps best known at present for a recurring role on the soap opera Neighbours) as the villainous titular character, Richard of Gloucester; Phillip Cameron-Smith as Richard's eldest brother, King Edward IV; Denis Coard as the second-eldest brother George of Clarence; and a hopelessly miscast Lisa Angrove in a scenery-chewing role as the elder Queen Margaret, whose shrieked and muttered warnings to the court about Richard's villainy go quite unheeded.

The casting is one of the first of many flaws in this production. Save for O'Connor, who brings at least some charisma to his role, and his sly asides to the audience; the majority of actors were, to be blunt, dreadful. The casting of Elston's own young sons as the doomed Princes Richard and Edward suggested nepotism at best; at worst a director blind to the faults of the entire production; their dialogue was delivered seeminly without understanding; and their lines were rushed. Elsewhere, flair and stage presence were singularly lacking, save perhaps for Francesca Waters as the Duchess of York.

The staging, too, left much to be desired. Clarence's murderers were played strictly for laughs, rather than as the indecisive criminals they should be, which coupled with the murder itself, played out high above the rear of the set, robbed the crime of any true sense of drama or infamy. Elsewhere, when Richard is forced to 'play nice' with the young Princes he is planning to kill, Elston has him snarling in barely concealed rage; another mis-step out of keeping with Shakespeare's presentation of the character.

In short, a lifeless, painful and excruciatingly bad iteration of Richard III. Over all, I can honestly say that this was the single worst production of the Bard I have ever suffered through. I heartily recommend you avoid it at all costs.

Richard III Unhinged is playing at the Athenaeum Theatre until June 1st.

Who news

2008-05-21T09:58:00.004+10:00

According to a report from the BBC (so like, it's probably rather accurate) acclaimed screenwriter Steven Moffat is to take over from Russell T Davies as Executive Producer of Doctor Who for the show's fifth season (or season 31, if you include the classic series) which will screen in 2010.

This is excellent news, as Moffat has given us the best episodes of the new series to date: the two part 'The Empty Child'/'The Doctor Dances' in season one, the exquisite 'The Girl in the Fireplace' in season two, and the totally chilling 'Blink' in season three.

To quote the media release:

"My entire career has been a Secret Plan to get this job," said Steven Moffat. "I applied before but I got knocked back cos the BBC wanted someone else. Also I was seven. Anyway, I'm glad the BBC has finally seen the light, and it's a huge honour to be following Russell into the best - and the toughest - job in television. I say "toughest" cos Russell's at my window right now, pointing and laughing."

You can read all the details here. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go and work myself up into a state of slavering fanboyish excitement...

Are you ready for Eurovision?

2008-05-19T13:57:00.006+10:00

Ah, Eurovision, how I love thee. I'm a relatively recent convert to the over-the-top camp kitsch which is the annual Eurovision Song Contest (thanks to Ms Sam opening my eyes for me at a party a few years ago) but it's rapidly become something that I absolutely love.

Russia's Dima Bilan

From Finland: Teräsbetoni

Andorra's Gisela

Big hair. Inane lyrics. Wonderfully ghastly costumes. Drinking games. Eurovision is lurid, spectacular, and wonderful. Will you be watching?

Crime does not pay

2008-05-18T15:23:00.003+10:00

Some villainous poltroons have robbed a warehouse, stealing gear from The Suitcase Royale and other fine performing folk. There's a benefit being held this coming Sunday May 25 in order to get some money together so they can replace their stolen equipment. Please say you'll come, do.

There will be performances by: POST (SYD), the Brown Council (SYD), the Caravan of Love, the Black Lung, Bron Batton, Film by the Safari Team, Live Music, swingin DJs and much more (to be announced) hosted by the Suitcase Royale at 25A Eastment St Northcote. Doors open at 8pm, performances around 9pm. A mere $10 entry!

Considerations

2008-05-18T14:44:00.005+10:00

I've had a couple of things on my mind this week, including work issues and lifestyle changes; the catalyst for such contemplation being the imminent departure of my housemate to his new abode.

Mike moved in at the start of last year, and having recently entered the world of the home-ownership (namely a one-bedroom apartment in Clifton Hill) he's moving out tomorrow. It's been fun having him around, and certainly having someone to share the bills and rent has made my life a bit easier, though in some ways it's also allowed me to continue my somewhat eratic and indulgent lifestyle. With Mike moving out, I'm now facing the decision of whether to find another flatmate (recognising that finding someone who can put up with me could be tricky) or go back to living on my own, which I did for six years before he moved in.

At the moment I'm leaning towards living by myself again; I miss having a study - a dedicated workspace is advantageous when I'm writing - and with the spare room freed up again for my computer and bookcases, I'll also be seriously able to de-clutter the loungeroom, which, as any of my guests will testify, is in something of a state, with books piled on the floor, stacks of CDs everywhere, and media releases and invitations scattered across it all like confetti on a church's steps after a particularly crazy wedding.

However, going back to living alone will mean making some significant financial readjustments. I'm already facing having to save some serious bucks for the Morocco trip in October; added to that is the fact that I'm about to be going back to paying the rent and bills on my own again.

Given that I'm something of a wastrel when it comes to my finances; and that for the last several years I've lived decadently and excessively (balanced out with periods of poverty because I've splurged on a couple of CDs instead of remembering to buy food); and that I drink to excess far too often; if I want to be able to afford living on my own again, it's time for me to make some changes.

I have to start cooking instead of getting take-away from the local restaurants every night. I have to start having several alcohol free days a week, instead of drinking a bottle of wine every night. Basically, I have to grow up a little, and stop living like I did when I was still in my mid-20s; get some focus back, and then see what life turns up. It should be interesting.

And of course, while all this has been running through my mind, I've also been maintaining my usual ecclectic lifestyle. In the past week I've:

Been to the opening of the 11th Spanish Film Festival, the character-driven comedy-drama Seven Billiard Tables (a little slow-moving, but full of solid performances, especially from the two female leads, Maribel Verdu and Blanca Portillo); and watched the contemporary flamenco-inspired musical Scandalous - Why Do They Rub Their Little Feet Together - another Spanish film with three strong female leads, representing three generations of one family; as well as some rather cute squatters... The festival is on until May 25 at Cinema Como and the Westgarth; I'm rather keen on checking out its horror/thriller program, Cine Fantastico.
Attended the opening night of the biennial Next Wave festival, curated by my mate Jeff Khan, its Artistic Director. Go you!
Watched some classic film noir in preperation for an interview on RRR on Thursday; as well as some classic old episodes of Doctor Who from the 1970s (the Tom Baker era, for those of you who were wondering).
Angsted over whether to attend the opening night of Mathinna, the new work by Bangarra Dance Theatre, or the opening night of Opera Australia's new production of My Fair Lady on Friday night (the dance piece won out).
DJ'd at the Laird Hotel, playing rock and indie, at a new monthly queer night organised by my mate Glen.

It's been rather hectic, as you might imagine!

Films I totally want to see #397

2008-05-12T15:28:00.003+10:00

Until today (thanks, Defamer!) I hadn't heard anything about Twilight, a new teen vampire movie based on the young adult fiction series by Stephenie Meyer, which looks pretty damn cool. Check out the trailer and tell me what you think...

I reckon I might have to track the books down, too.

International Day Against Homophobia May 17

2008-05-12T12:59:00.002+10:00