Invisible Things | Alex Mizzen
Invisible Things showcases all that is possible with New Circus – that circus can be used as a modality for telling complex and rich stories, not just for tricks and applause. Through intricately planned choreography and improvisation, Alex creates a world that is both deeply engaging and breathtaking to watch.
Poison | Lot Vekemans
They paved the stage with woodchip and paths of white quartz. From the first step, the first crunch of the lily-white stones, I am transported to the quiet paths of cemeteries up and down the country, the courtyards of crematoriums.
Dinopocalypse | Ruckus Slam
What if dinosaurs did not die out in a mass extinction 65 million years ago and instead went underground and evolved over tens of millions of years into a vaguely humanoid species not too dissimilar from ourselves? And what if a catastrophic event drove them out of their homes and forced them to seek safety in our own and our government sought to contain them, both for their safety and for our own? And what would you do if you got a chance to visit the facility that contains them, at the launch of their dinosaur integration program?
Pub Choir
So, what makes Pub Choir, so popular? A lot of it comes down to the able direction of Astrid and Guitar Wizard, Waverney Yasso, who live by the ethos that everybody can sing, and it’s their mission to prove it. Each month, they choose a song, break it down into harmonies and effortlessly guide the group through the song until they’re singing in glorious harmony. All in under 90 minutes.
Humans | Circa
The cast slowly walks towards us, occasionally alone, often bumping into each other, influencing each other’s journey. They help each other, hold each other back and knock each other down, pull each other off their paths, and for much of the time try to find their own way.
Dance: A Double Bill | Sarah Aiken & Rebecca Jensen
The show centres largely around disruption and discomfort, there is a building soundscape that peaks in shrill and panicky noise while our principal dancers explores her surroundings.
Wasteland | Flipside Circus
They tumble onto the stage, a gang of thieves, a motley crew, a pack of energetic youth, in a futuristic set that reminds me of shades of Tankgirl, or Waterworld, or even Mad Max – all films way too old for any of the performers to have ever seen!
Resting Bitch Face | Common Thread Circus
The four multi-talented circus and physical theatre performers of Common Thread Circus aim to tear down and tear apart stereotypes and archetypes of modern life, particularly those faced by women, while doing it all with a tongue firmly planted in cheek.
Monsteria | GUSH
Does a woman become a monster when she refuses to be boxed by societal expectation? When she overconforms, and distorts her own true self? What maketh a monster? A creature beyond our control? A creature that will hurt us, in insidious ways? Do they come at us in the night, or are they waiting inside, just behind the closed eye?
A Rose Among Horns | Genevieve Butler
This is not a show for urban critics. This is a hoot of a show. It’s clever, and it’s complicated, but it’s also easy on the eye, and not so very hard to sing along. We already know how the story ends, after all.
There's Something About Mary(s ) | Cassie George
The songs are cleverly picked to provide an extra, often humorous layer to the story, while tugging at the nostalgia that often comes with music that we all know and love.
One the Bear | Black Honey Company
Decolonisation is an action, not an abstract concept. And it can be as simple as putting a new shape in an old box, a less-seen colour on a jaded set, a rarely-seen rhyme on a prestigious stage. Decolonisation is worthy work, but it doesn't have to feel worthy. It can feel like a whole lot of fun.
Bull | Kristian Šantić
Mythological creatures patched themselves together. Pan was present, Orpheus climbing from Hades, the horror and the cruelty of the Roman pantheon, the cold heart of Shizmu. A man in a cage, climbing to get out. The body that is frail that keeps on climbing. A creature is becoming.
Betty Grumble | Sex Clown Saves The World
Adults only, take no prisoners, leave no lover behind; this fucked up take on cabaret literally starts in a tip and ends in a furnace. It is scandalous, it is shocking, it is… political? Totally political. It’s debonair, it’s filthy, it’s fucking weird. It’s proper wired.
I just came to say goodbye | The Good Room
The audience rippled with trepidation for a minute, when they said this was a lock in. That’s right, my friends, once you are in you must stay in. And if you leave you can not come back. A fitting physical metaphor for the unfurling darkness ahead.
Per Te | Compagnia Finzi Pasca
They are almost reticent in their judicious use of acrobatic scenes. These are acrobats, but they have made a fable. The skills are there, but this is not a Cirque du Soleil-esque production. This is something else.
The Bluebird Mechanicals | Too Close to the Sun
Time moves, stands still. The narrator tells us our future. She has something to say. She has gone to great trouble to craft the tale. She has come a long way to tell us the story. We had best listen.
Danger Ensemble | The Hamlet Apocalypse
This show gets it. It gets that Shakespeare is funny. It gets that it ought to mean something. It pokes fun of it, whilst taking itself seriously at the same time. It is committed to the original, even as it tears it apart with both hands. It gets that tragedy is a car-crash, that you can't tear your eyes away from.
Regan Lynch Does It In Public
Regan dishes out his formative moments and his hero-worshipping reveries with equal measure, and it’s all good. He’s super charming, he’s easy to like. He sings, he dances, he gets his kit off. What's not to like.
I Am My Own Wife | Doug Wright | performed by Ben Gerrard
Some of the strongest words are Charlotte’s own, especially when she speaks about why she never restores anything, lest it loses its character. All scars are sacred time-keeping, all fault-lines are memories, all cracks are to be treasured; they are the living proof. Is she talking about antiques or human bodies. You get to choose.