PERFORMANCE DATES 2022

Thursday 10th November 7:30pm

Napoleon in Exile & All The World's a stage

Friday 11th November 7:30pm

One Season's King & Locked In

Saturday 12th November 2:00pm

One Season's King & Locked In

Saturday 12th November 7:30pm

One Season’s King & All The World's a stage 

ONE SEASON'S KING by George MacEwan Green

Directed by Scott Ramsay Assistant Director. Jess Hunt
Cast: Grant Finlay, James Wight, Michael Dullard & Saari Frochot-Chauhan
About: The play is unusual and evocative, with a simple stage setting, stylized presentation and a formalised dance sequence. There are moments of humour, sadness and rivalry as three men in the life of a charismatic woman retell their stories.

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE

An exploration of Shakespeare’s most popular monologues

Directed by Evalina Woodward

About: A collaboration of all the best Shakespeare monologues paired with physical theatre and projection work

Monologues performed by: Evalina Woodward ( Lady MacBeth), Daisy Pratt-White (Romeo), Sharon Millist (Joan de Purcelle), Jess Hunt (Titania), Chris Hobson (Capulet), Nathan Halse & Tau Moemau (Shylock), Michael Dullard (Petruchio), Kiba Reeves (Hamlet) & Jesse Ishai (Othello)

Ensemble Cast: Daisy Pratt-White, Margaret Nolan, Evalina Woodward, Thomas Filby, Sharon Millist, Chris Hobson, Kiba Reeves, Jesse Ishai, Patrick Waters, Michael Dullard

LOCKED IN

by Jane & Jim Jefferies

Directed by Ralph Shipard
Cast: Sharon Newth, Grant Finlay, Wendy Collishaw, Glenys Tatti, Chris Hobson
About: Grace has Locked-In Syndrome, in which a person is completely unable to move but can still hear and understand everything around her. Her life is revealed in flashbacks as her husband and her father debate whether or not to end life-support.

NAPOLEON IN EXILE by Daniel Reitz

Directed by Tania Maxwell
Cast: Julia Day & Daniel Soncin
About: A single mother finally realises the importance of preparing her twenty three year old autistic son Corey, to be able to fend for himself. Corey is currently unemployed, lazy and not interested in changing his ways, until......a certain conversation takes place.

VICTORIAN DRAMA LEAGUE - PERFORMANCE REVIEW

SH4RDS!

Reviewed by Deborah Fabbro 12 Nov 2022

Theatre Company: Synchronicity Performing Arts

REVIEW

Each performance of Synchronicity’s season entitled ‘Sh4rds!’ included two one-act pieces. There are 4 pieces in total throughout the series. They are short and sharp, like a shard, hence the title.

On the night I attended the first play was ‘One Season’s King’ by George MacEwan Green, directed by Scott Ramsay and his assistant director, Jess Hunt. After interval we were treated to a series of some of Shakespeare’s wonderful monologues directed by Evalina Woodward.

Performed at the excellent Black Box space, The Engine Room, a venue I’ve attended a number of times, each piece used the bare stage with just a white panel upstage that had shiny mirror-like shards on the SL side, the design of Geoff and Wendy Collishaw. The simplicity was enhanced by Ralph Shipard’s subtle, dramatic and all things in between, lighting design which brilliantly captured the right mood for the first play, ‘One Season’s King’ and also the monologues that comprised ‘All The World’s a Stage’.

‘One Season’s King’ is an English play, written in 1972, that tells the stories of three men in the life of a charismatic woman, Eveline, from their initial meeting with her to how their paths cross again and again. Each of the men is from a different class and has differing life expectations; the one thing uniting them is their rivalry for a place in Eveline’s life. Saari Frochot-Chauhan shone in the role of Eveline. Her strong stage presence ensured that the character held her own in the male dominated world she inhabited. Her bearing and deportment was outstanding not only in the dance sequence but also in her general movement about the stage. The diction and clarity of her delivery was brilliant and I loved her Shirley Temple number.

Her most likely suitor, based on his societal position is Charles played by Grant Finlay who brought the right aristocratic bearing to the role and perfected the perfect stammer. James Wight gave a nicely tuned performance as the middle class Edward, who recognises that he could have a chance with Eveline. Completing the trio was the self-made Sam, not afraid to step outside his station in life to vie for Eveline’s hand. Michael Dullard displayed great physicality in this role. The tension of the rivalry between them was conveyed impeccably. The directors constructed a mannered and non-realistic staging which heightened the story-telling and enhanced the humour and sadness inherent in the play. One of the highlights of this was the recounting of Eveline’s driving a lorry through the rain and the human wipers. A beautiful script beautifully presented.

After interval we were treated to ‘All the World’s a Stage’ – described as a collaboration of all the best Shakespeare Monologues paired with physical theatre and projection work.

WOW! What vision and ingenuity was employed by director Evalina Woodward, herself one of monologists, and her 12 performers. Opening with a filmed sequence of the performers articulating single words or phrases of the great Bard’s that we all know from common, everyday use, the stage was set for an amazing ride through the rich and evocative literary canon of Shakespeare. The presentation of the monologues variously featured and/or incorporated dynamic movement, film sequences, song, underscoring with music to enhance or emphasise each piece.

The performers were Evalina Woodward (Macbeth and Lady Macbeth), Daisy Pratt-White (Romeo), Sharon Millist (Joan de [sic] Purcelle), Jess Hunt (Titania), Chris Hobson (Capulet), Nathan Halse and Tau Moemau (Shylock), Michael Dullard (Petruchio), Kiba Reeves (Hamlet), Jesse Ishai (Othello)
Ensemble – Daisy Pratt-White, Margaret Nolan, Evalina Woodward, Thomas Filby, Sharon Millist, Chris Hobson, Kiba Reeves, Jesse Ishai, Patrick Waters, Michael Dullard. All were dressed in black and sometimes added a costume piece as befitted the character. This simple staging with sometimes dramatic lighting, occasional projection of a word relevant to the monologue and naturalistic delivery, served to focus on the language, making it accessible.

All were wonderful but highlights included Daisy Pratt-White’s Romeo, Jess Hunt’s Titania and Shylock’s monologue delivered as an innovative dual recitation by Nathan Halse and Tau Moemau. As Sharon Millist was unable to perform on the night the recording of her previous performance was screened.

The director stated in her programme notes that her aim was to dispel the myth that Shakespeare is difficult and inaccessible. Personally I have devoured Shakespeare’s works since I was fortunate enough to have a passionate English teacher who instilled a love of them in me. For those who were not in that category, I am sure that this performance will have opened up the wonderful world of Shakespeare to them.

I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to attend my first production at Synchronicity Performing Arts and cannot wait to see their future productions.

Bendigo Advertiser, front page, Nov 10th

Bendigo Times Newspaper Articles

Radio Interview with Evalina Woodward