Psycho Beach Party
Wed, 23 July 2003, 11:05 pmWalter Plinge14 posts in thread
Psycho Beach Party
Wed, 23 July 2003, 11:05 pmOnce upon a time....in a far away land....(other wise known as Kalamunda) .....King Nick.... got together the perfect cast to tell a summer time tale... in the middle of winter. Go Figure!!!
Somehow he managed to bribe, blackmail or coherce mulitple talented people to brave the journey, bare their bodies and souls to produce....
an amazingingly funny, cross of Hitchock meets Gidget in the true Blak Yak tradition of original, interesting off the wall theatre.
My friend and I laughed and laughed and couldn't believe the twists and turns. First there were the guys, talented hunks, enough to melt the winter frost away. The women were amazing, one of the most frightening Mothers -- a cross from Father Knows Best and the best of the horror shows, I hope Jenny McCann isn't too scarred from the experience. I felt I met true greatness when I watched Julia Dalby dazzle us all. Melissa Merchant showed a depth of range and character that was amazing, I would say she stole the show, but that would be untrue because each person on that stage owned their characters and were flawless in their parts.
Tim Edwards was unrecognizable as the Great Kanaka, a total change, very spooky. I could go on and on. But you have to get there, go and have the very best laugh, enjoy yourself. The MUSIC IS GREAT. (CD available in the lobby). Leave the kids behind (or cover their ears in a few parts). Take a trip back to the surf/beach days, I recommend this to everyone, be there or be square. Laugh yourself silly and chuckle at bits all the way home.
PS Watch out for Kim Wallace, she melts men with a glance, Adam & Troy will leave you gasping for air, Alex steals your heart, Michael and Francie groove along and Melanie is the best friend you always wished for.
PSII Costumes are lots of fun
PS III Kalamunda isn't really that far, you don't need a passport, well worth the journey, bring a friend, bring a group, just don't miss it.
Somehow he managed to bribe, blackmail or coherce mulitple talented people to brave the journey, bare their bodies and souls to produce....
an amazingingly funny, cross of Hitchock meets Gidget in the true Blak Yak tradition of original, interesting off the wall theatre.
My friend and I laughed and laughed and couldn't believe the twists and turns. First there were the guys, talented hunks, enough to melt the winter frost away. The women were amazing, one of the most frightening Mothers -- a cross from Father Knows Best and the best of the horror shows, I hope Jenny McCann isn't too scarred from the experience. I felt I met true greatness when I watched Julia Dalby dazzle us all. Melissa Merchant showed a depth of range and character that was amazing, I would say she stole the show, but that would be untrue because each person on that stage owned their characters and were flawless in their parts.
Tim Edwards was unrecognizable as the Great Kanaka, a total change, very spooky. I could go on and on. But you have to get there, go and have the very best laugh, enjoy yourself. The MUSIC IS GREAT. (CD available in the lobby). Leave the kids behind (or cover their ears in a few parts). Take a trip back to the surf/beach days, I recommend this to everyone, be there or be square. Laugh yourself silly and chuckle at bits all the way home.
PS Watch out for Kim Wallace, she melts men with a glance, Adam & Troy will leave you gasping for air, Alex steals your heart, Michael and Francie groove along and Melanie is the best friend you always wished for.
PSII Costumes are lots of fun
PS III Kalamunda isn't really that far, you don't need a passport, well worth the journey, bring a friend, bring a group, just don't miss it.
Re: Psycho Beach Party
Tue, 29 July 2003, 01:35 pmWalter Plinge
I too attended Saturday's performance of Psycho Beach Party, and was thoroughly delighted by the evening's performance. And unlike Mr Bilston, I feel that the play fully acheived its potential ... and then some.
I agree with Mr Bilston, in so far as, Ms Merchant's amazing performance as the protagonist "Chicklet". I was thoroughly impressed by both her depth and range of acting, and her ability to seamlessly slip from one character to the next. I loved the fact that the character transformations were not only vocal but also physical as well. Her performance was both humorous and touching, and the delivery in her final monologue was truly moving.
However, I do not agree with Mr Bilston that Ms Gault's performance as Berdine was "compelling", "humorous" or "energised". If anything, I felt that Ms Gault gave the only weak performance in what was otherwise an extremely strong cast. Her delivery was flat. Her monologues were tedious. And she appeared to have a rather limited sense of comic timing. I could see the humour that she was trying to acheive but unfortunately she just didn't seem to be able to reach it. This wasn't as noticeable when she was on stage with the rest of the cast, but it was very apparant during her monologues. And unlike Mr Bilston, I did not find the pace of the play to be overly long. If anything, the only time the play's dynamic pace did drop off, was during one of Ms Gault's monologues.
In regards to the rest of the female cast, Ms McCann was side-splittingly funny as the unbalanced mother of young Chicklet. Her comic timing was impeccable and her facial expressions were hilarious. I will never look at a jock strap the same way again. Ms Dalby as the actress was also a riot. I loved the tantrum with the "trailer park" accent. Ms Wallace as Marvel Ann, the bitchy blond bombshell, is not only gorgeous (with the best mid-Winter tan I've ever seen), but also gave a fantastic performance (in delightfully skimpy attire). Her catty comments to Berdine and Chicklet were delivered with the perfect degree of venom, and her break-up scene with Starcat had me in stitches ... I'm astounded Mr Jones managed to keep a straight face.
In relation to the male cast of Psycho Beach, I wholeheartedly disagree with Mr Bilston's views. I didn't feel that Mr Edwards performance as the "Great Kanaka" was diminished at all. He has a solid grasp of comic timing, and managed to strike a perfect balance between the cool King of the Surfers, and Ann Bowman's lap-dog. His unusual accent took a little while to atune to but in the end I felt it provided his character with a quirky eccentricity.
Mr Jones as Starcat was in no way wooden or unloveable ... he perfectly parodied the style of the acting that was prevalent in the 1960s beach movies. I was impressed by his sense of when to play up a joke and when to play it straight ... he even looked like "MoonDoggy" from the Gidget films. I found his character to be very likeable ... even identifiable - especially during the Marvel Ann break-up scene (who hasn't experienced a similar, though probably less extreme, confrontation from a woman).
As for Mr Hall and Mr Shuttleworth, their portrayal of the gay surfer boys was light-hearted, tongue in cheek and humorous. I think that it was cleverly set up and while the 60s acting style was parodied, their romantic scenes together weren't hammed up or made to be appear anything but romantic. It was actually very sweet - and kudos to Mr Hall and Mr Shuttleworth for keeping straight faces during that swelling concerto.
I absolutely loved Psycho Beach Party. I've attended a number of play's this year, and so far I have to say that this has been a real highlight - one of my favourites. Excellent work. It's a fun, witty and light-hearted play ... I encourage everyone to go and check it out.
John Mitchell
I agree with Mr Bilston, in so far as, Ms Merchant's amazing performance as the protagonist "Chicklet". I was thoroughly impressed by both her depth and range of acting, and her ability to seamlessly slip from one character to the next. I loved the fact that the character transformations were not only vocal but also physical as well. Her performance was both humorous and touching, and the delivery in her final monologue was truly moving.
However, I do not agree with Mr Bilston that Ms Gault's performance as Berdine was "compelling", "humorous" or "energised". If anything, I felt that Ms Gault gave the only weak performance in what was otherwise an extremely strong cast. Her delivery was flat. Her monologues were tedious. And she appeared to have a rather limited sense of comic timing. I could see the humour that she was trying to acheive but unfortunately she just didn't seem to be able to reach it. This wasn't as noticeable when she was on stage with the rest of the cast, but it was very apparant during her monologues. And unlike Mr Bilston, I did not find the pace of the play to be overly long. If anything, the only time the play's dynamic pace did drop off, was during one of Ms Gault's monologues.
In regards to the rest of the female cast, Ms McCann was side-splittingly funny as the unbalanced mother of young Chicklet. Her comic timing was impeccable and her facial expressions were hilarious. I will never look at a jock strap the same way again. Ms Dalby as the actress was also a riot. I loved the tantrum with the "trailer park" accent. Ms Wallace as Marvel Ann, the bitchy blond bombshell, is not only gorgeous (with the best mid-Winter tan I've ever seen), but also gave a fantastic performance (in delightfully skimpy attire). Her catty comments to Berdine and Chicklet were delivered with the perfect degree of venom, and her break-up scene with Starcat had me in stitches ... I'm astounded Mr Jones managed to keep a straight face.
In relation to the male cast of Psycho Beach, I wholeheartedly disagree with Mr Bilston's views. I didn't feel that Mr Edwards performance as the "Great Kanaka" was diminished at all. He has a solid grasp of comic timing, and managed to strike a perfect balance between the cool King of the Surfers, and Ann Bowman's lap-dog. His unusual accent took a little while to atune to but in the end I felt it provided his character with a quirky eccentricity.
Mr Jones as Starcat was in no way wooden or unloveable ... he perfectly parodied the style of the acting that was prevalent in the 1960s beach movies. I was impressed by his sense of when to play up a joke and when to play it straight ... he even looked like "MoonDoggy" from the Gidget films. I found his character to be very likeable ... even identifiable - especially during the Marvel Ann break-up scene (who hasn't experienced a similar, though probably less extreme, confrontation from a woman).
As for Mr Hall and Mr Shuttleworth, their portrayal of the gay surfer boys was light-hearted, tongue in cheek and humorous. I think that it was cleverly set up and while the 60s acting style was parodied, their romantic scenes together weren't hammed up or made to be appear anything but romantic. It was actually very sweet - and kudos to Mr Hall and Mr Shuttleworth for keeping straight faces during that swelling concerto.
I absolutely loved Psycho Beach Party. I've attended a number of play's this year, and so far I have to say that this has been a real highlight - one of my favourites. Excellent work. It's a fun, witty and light-hearted play ... I encourage everyone to go and check it out.
John Mitchell
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