Melbourne Observer - Wednesday, October 16, 2013 - Page 109
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Observer Showbiz Every Week in the Melbourne Observer
Radio: New breakfast team for Nova ............. Page 110 Threatre: Alleged comedy from Rod Quantock ...... Page 111 The Spoiler: Advance plotlines for TV soapies .......... Page 111 Jim and Aaron: Top 10, best movies and DVDs ............ Page 112 Cheryl Threadgold: Local theatre shows, auditions ........... Page 113 PLUS THE LOVATT”S MEGA CROSSWORD
Ross and John take top radio award ■ Melbourne 3AW’s top rating breakfast team, Ross Stevenson and John Burns, won the Best On-Air Team (Metro AM) in the Commercial Radio Awards presented in Brisbane on Saaturday. This is their second Best On-Air Team gong, having also taken out the award in 2011. Best Current Affairs Presenter was
won by 3AW presenter Neil Mitchell for the second year running. Best Talk Presenter was won by 2GB’s Ray Hadley, who adds this to his collection of more than 20 sport, current affairs and talk ACRAs won throughout his career. The Kyle and Jackie O Show, Southern Cross Austereo’s top rating breakfast program in Sydney, has
won the Best On-Air Team (Metro FM) category. The team, who won their 50th consecutive ratings survey last month, have been on air together for nearly nine years and won the top ACRA accolade in 2006, 2007 and 2011. Producer of the program, Gemma O’Neill won Best Show Producer (Entertainment/Music).
Nova’s Sydney breakfast team, Fitzy and Wippa (Ryan Fitzgerald and Michael Wipfli) won three awards: Best Networked Program for the Best of Fitzy & Wippa, Best Station Produced Comedy Segment for Cookie Jars Parody and Best Multimedia Execution for their many well known song parodies. Best Newcomer to radio went to
Jane Hall, Mix 101.1 Melbourne presenter who co-hosts the breakfast show with Chrissie Swan. Winners in other major awards announced included Best Music Special - Richard Wilkins, Smooth 91.5 FM – John Farnham Special, which also took a gong for its Michael Bublé promotions. ● Turn To Page 116
IT’S A BIRD, IT’S A PLANE The Greatest Is Love
● Roland Rocchiccioli ■ You need tenacity and guts to survive in the world of showbiz, and actor and television personality Roland Rocchiccioli has plenty of both. Roland wrote a fine two-handed play called The Greatest Is Love, a drama of war time separation which starts in war-torn London, takes in the fall of Singapore and ends in Perth, Western Australian in 1997. It's the story of Rupert and Diana, told through a collection of poignant love letters spanning their life together. The play sheds a personal light on the pain of separation during the Second World War and the struggle to return to normality afterwards. These letters paint a picture of romance and honesty, and look at how we are all human and fallible. Roland and fellow actor Glenda Linscott will perform The Greatest Is Love at Melbourne Town Hall on Sunday (Oct. 20) at 3pm, but their performance isn't the first, and that's where the story becomes rather amazing and exciting. Having had difficulty getting firm interest from Australian managements, Roland decided to go straight to the top and investigate overseas possibilities. And that's how the play was launched earlier this year at Brighton in England, with the roles being played by Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville (Lord Grantham) and Caroline Langrishe from television's Judge John Deed! The English premiere was so well received that there are plans for Hugh Bonneville to do a season of The Greatest Is Love in 2014, with an American season also on the cards. Roland Rocchiccioli is one of those dynamic people who has done pretty so much in the arts field, from acting to directing to publicising and everything in between. A man who commands great respect for his talents, it will be wonderful to see him team with Glenda Linscott in the Melbourne Town Hall performance for charity. Bookings: www.oztix.com.au - Julie Houghton
By CHERYL THREADGOLD
● Blake Testro as Clark Kent/Superman. Photo: Karl McNamara ■ Fab Nobs Musical Theatre has clinched another resounding success, this time revisiting the original Superman adventure comic strips to present the quirky send-up musical It’s A Bird … It’s A Plane … It’s Superman! at 33 Industry Place, Bayswater until October 26. With music by Charles Strouse, book by David Newman and Robert Benton, and lyrics by Lee Adams, the plot involves failed scientist Dr Sedgewick seeking to expose and defeat heroic Superman, symbol of good. As a sub-plot, Daily Planet columnist Max Mencken resents Lois Lane’s attraction to Superman. Off-stage heroes include director Karl McNamara, who has also designed the ingenious comic-strip style set and devised the fun choreographed movement. Bravo! Musical Director Danny Forward has skilfully reorchestrated the original huge score for a five-piece rock band. The songs are unfamiliar, but the music is toe-tappingly terrific. Vanessa Burke’s superb lighting design, Shawn Klueh’s great sound and Nicholas Kong’s colourful costumes contribute significantly to the show’s visual impact, and ‘meanwhile …’ updates on a TV screen add further atmosphere. Amid loveable gags from the golden age of musical theatre, first-class performers present beautiful, vocally powerful performances. Blake Testro is perfectly cast as Clark Kent/Superman, characterising the hero’s strength, vulnerability/Kent’s shyness, while Amy Larsen sparkles as Lois Lane. Daniel O’Kane uses show-biz flair as Max, while James Kearney makes the role of Dr Sedgewick his own. Lauren Edwards does great work as dolly-bird Sydney, as does Nicholas Barca (Jim) and Andrew Amos (Father Ling), joined by the lively citizens of Metropolis. More theatre companies will now no doubt be ‘up, up and away’ to present this beaut show. It will be a hard act following Fab Nobs’ sensational production. Performances: October 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26 at 8pm and October 20 at 5pm Venue: The Fab Factory, 33 Industry Place, Bayswater Bookings: 0401 018 846 www.fabnobstheatre.com.au - Cheryl Threadgold
Princess Ida
● Lydia Kovesi in Princess Ida ■ Take the story of a royal princess who decides to flee a violent home, reject a planned marriage and instead establish a women's university, and you have the start of the plot of Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta Princess Ida. But that's not all - the prince to whom Ida was betrothed to as a baby decides to storm the bastion that is the women's university and claim her hand. But he reckons without Ida's tenacity and that of her fellow female friends. While this sounds like an unusually feminist plot from those masters of topsy-turveydom, of course injustices are righted and there is a happy ending. Along the way there are some hilarious moments and some truly wonderful music. The Gilbert and Sullivan Society of Victoria is staging Princess Ida at the Alexander Theatre, Monash University, Wellington Rd, Clayton on October 19, 25 and 26 at 8pm with matinees on October 19 and 26 at 2pm. Directed by Ron Pidcock and assistant director Andy Payne, and musically directed by Alan Barker with assistance from Jenny Caire, Princess Ida features some fine G and S performers, including Richard Burman, Adrian Glaubert, Lucas Richter and Jenny Wakefield, with Lydia Kovesi in the title role. www.monash.edu.au/mapa - Julie Houghton