Snacks - A Musical Tasting Plate brings together a well selected trio of short musicals, completely unrelated but...

Snacks - A Musical Tasting Plate brings together a well selected trio of short musicals, completely unrelated but well matched.

In just 1 hour's performance we were transported to a hillside corn farm, to Whitechapel, 1888 and to Long Island!

Ludicrous Display's performance was great. In a musical (unlike opera) it's kind of important to be able to hear the words, and so often diction isn't clear or the music overshadows it. But we were left in doubt as to the narrative. The highly skilled and dynamic John McPherson on keyboard "I'll be your pianist tonight!" spun out the sprightly music for the other performers and kept everyone on track, as well he should, being also the Musical Director.

Strawman

Music by Jinhee Kim
Book and Lyrics by Cal Silberstein

This piece had my favourite characters - the wonderful Anzu, played by James Marzec and his attendant crows. The performers must have been studying the antics, playfulness and intelligence of real crows, because they sure nailed it. A lot of fun to watch, and I'm sure, in the end, something could be worked out to everyone's satisfaction.

Ben Thomas and Olivia Everett were a strong duo as the star crossed lovers.

Darling Jack

Music by Nick Stephens
Book and Lyrics by Rebecca Hart

This was the most intense of the productions. Antonina Heymanson as Wendy Maybrick's innocence intelligence against the knowing Ben Thomas as Johnny Gill and Thomas Owen as the powerful and looming Dr Maybrick.
The inversion of a popular tale about another Wendy (and if you've read it, you'll recognise the darkness in the original) melded with the darkest legend of Whitechapel is a powerful one, and the performers make it resonate.
Completely chilling if you know anything at all about Whitechapel and 1888.

Schooled & Lettered

Music by Jacinth Greywoode and Lyrics by Chase O'Neill
Book by Jacinth Greywoode and Chase O'Neill

Wisely ending on a humorous note after the intensity of the second work, this comedy of manners had us all laughing - just the right delivery. Michaela Sheehy as the matter of fact farm girl was a great contrast to Olivia Everett as the ever so proper Barbara Ross, her Long Island estate hostess. James Marzec comes back as the highly eligible bachelor Charles Scott.

This was an interesting way to experience musicals - and what was interesting was that there was no movement of the props on set between the performances, the entire thing was set up to be useful to all three very different musicals. Some clever thought has gone into that.

Solid and well performed!

This is being performed at the Subiaco Arts Centre twice an evening, tonight and tomorrow night.

10/10 entertaining and finding a box of chocolatier chocolate that no one else has been at on the Sid and Nancy Scale.

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https://fringeworld.com.au/whats_on/snacks-a-musical-tasting-plate-fw2018