Featuring Adelaide stage legend Isabella Norton as Maggie, popular leading man Kim Clark as Arthur and Matt Byrne as Arthur’s dastardly dentist brother Robbie. This is not to be missed!!!

Oct 5 - 22nd - CLICK HERE for more details Bookings through Venue*Tix 08 8225 8888 or www.venuetix.com.au

Mother & Son live at Holden Street

MBM presents classic ABC-TV sitcom on stage at Hindmarsh

Matt Byrne Media is gearing up to present Australia’s greatest TV sitcom, live on stage at the Holden Street Theatres this October.

Geoffrey Atherden’s long running ABC-TV sitcom turned the mischievous Maggie Beare and her long-suffering son Arthur into national treasures.

It won Gold and Sliver Logies for stars Ruth Cracknell and Garry McDonald and a viewing audience of millions for the show as they watched Maggie’s early stages of Alzheimer’s drive Arthur to distraction.

It even won the Australian Human Rights Commission Television Drama Award, for its even-tempered treatment of such a touchy and topical subject.

Adelaide stage legend Isabella Norton will play maddening Maggie and popular leading man Kim Clark will play the hapless Arthur in the SA Premiere season at Holden Street Theatres from October 5 to 8, 12 to 15 and 19 to 22 at 8 p.m.

Producer/director Matt Byrne said Mother And Son had been “ compulsive viewing” for Australian audiences for years.

“Having the chance to present it live with such talent as Isabella and Kim playing the leads is the perfect way to introduce the stage version to Adelaide fans,” Byrne says.

“Geoffrey Atherden’s script and characters are written with heart and great humour and they are people we can all identify with as Australia’s Baby Boomers approach an ageing future."

“Maggie is every dutiful son’s nightmare as she manipulates his life while slowly losing her marbles. Pushing his buttons is her cup of tea; she just can’t find the teapot.

The show will also feature Byrne as Arthur’s dastardly dentist brother Robbie, and Kim York as Robbie’s frustrated wife Liz, in the roles made famous by Henri Szeps and Judy Morris.

Laura Villani will play Maggie’s Greek neighbour Toula, Njal Venning will play her equally smothered son Costa, while John Sabine plays Maggie’s gentleman caller Lionel, and Reg Hamlyn and Bianca Levai play visiting police.

Mother & Son will run at The Studio at Holden Street Theatres at 34 Holden Street, Hindmarsh, from October 5-8, 12-15 and 19-22 at 8 p.m. with matinees on October 15 & 22 at 2 p.m.

Admission is Adults $25 and Concession $20.00 with Group Discounts for Groups of 10 or more. Bookings are available through VenueTix on 8225 8888 or online at www.venuetix.com.au Go to www.mattbyrnemedia.com.au for further details. 8262 4906

Spotlight Theatre Company will be presenting Stage Whisper by Kay Acaster in The Arch, Holden Street Theatres.

Performances Thursday 21-23, 27-30 July 2011 at 8:00 pm

Buy Tickets NOW

About the play: Approximately twenty years ago a production of the 1920’s melodrama Harrow Hall closed when the leading man Terence was accidentally but fatally stabbed during a performance. Now the Palace Theatre is under threat of redevelopment and some of the players are re-assembled to produce the play as part of the ‘Save The Palace Theatre’ fund raising campaign. However, the shadow cast by the death of Terence is a long one, more than one of the current cast are still affected by the accident…or was it? Why is Anne’s husband so keen to Save The Palace Theatre? What exactly is the connection they all have with the previous production? Why does Malcolm only communicate through his lighting? Gossip, infidelity, money and a stage whisper that still echoes around the theatre...with terrible consequences.

The roles of Cameron, Gloria and Anne are already cast. We are seeking the following:

Megan/Marigold: playing age early to mid twenties. Megan is a bit of a gossip, her mother used to be a Wardrobe Mistress and was something of a gossip herself, she definitely passed on the habit. Megan and Kingsley naturally gravitate to each other as they are the youngest cast members and their Harrow Hall characters are a couple but there is only a slight suggestion that they might become involved offstage. Megan is fairly strong willed, essentially good natured and not only passes on a lot of information to the audience during her conversations with Kingsley but actually learns a thing or two herself. Megan plays Marigold in Harrow Hall, engaged to Jerald but lusted after by Sir Dudley. Marigold is from an old county family but has a touch of ‘country maid’ about her, she might have a touch of a regional accent.

Kingsley/Jerald: playing age early to mid twenties. Kingsley is an architecture student at uni who has developed an interest in drama. He lives with his mother and, until recently, his step father. He is aware of the history of Harrow Hall and is a bit uneasy about the stabbing scene, for obvious reasons. His connection with the previous production is not clear until the play is nearly over. He is a little sensitive about certain topics and his motives are not always as they appear. Kingsley plays Jerald in Harrow Hall, the son of the house and therefore must have an English upper class accent. Both actors need to be able to act in both a modern, natural style as well as the accepted norm for a 1920’s melodrama. The latter is more flamboyant, perhaps a little stiff and generally ‘overdone’ but not completely over the top.

Rehearsals will be on Tuesday/Thursday evenings and some Sunday afternoons. The production is a co-operative. Auditionees will be asked to read from selected sections of the script, these are available in advance, just email requesting them. You are not expected to learn the audition piece(s).

Tony Moore - Director, Stage Whisper - 0400 579 530

WWW.SPOTLIGHTTHEATRE.INFO

UMBRELLA a CAPELLA

Umbrella Acappella is a group of everyday people with a passion for singing.

Our music springs from times early as Eden and as late as Ellington; from traditions of folk around the world; from mediaeval, opera and contemporary.

Umbrella Acappella is a group of everyday people with a passion for singing.

We each know that special feeling that comes from joining our voice with others in making a heartfelt music.

We sing at market places, at Folk Festivals and Mediaeval Fairs.

Led by expert conductor and singing coach Lyndon Piddington, we create a delicious a capella choral sound.

For more information om this up coming show please click here

For more information on Umrebbla a Capella please click here UMBRELLA A CAPELLA

MBM offering Six Dance Lessons In Six Weeks

Matt Byrne Media will present the SA Amateur Premiere of the well-heeled comedy, Six Dance Lessons In Six Weeks, at Holden Street Theatres from October 27 to November 13.

It’s a touching and human comedy about a formidable retired woman, Lily Harrison, who hires an acerbic dance instructor, Michael Minetti, to give her private dance lessons —one per week for six weeks— in her gulf-front condo in St. Petersburg Beach, Florida.

American playwright Richard Alfieri’s two-handed Broadway smash was a big hit for Nancye Hayes and Todd McKenney in Australia.

And now Adelaide’s own leading theatre lights, Chris Bussey and Kim Clark, will play the unlikely duo, of straight-laced preacher’s wife Lily and prickly ex-Broadway chorus boy Michael.

Producer/director/designer Matt Byrne said he had loved the show since seeing it at Her Majestys back in 2006, and was delighted to present the first local production.

“The audience laughed, they wept, it was a magical show with some very fancy dancing that really grabbed my imagination,” Byrne said.

“Chris Bussey and Kim Clark are my dream team to tackle this superb comedy. The show has fabulous music and dance, and also addresses the growing issues of ageism and intolerance."

“It is one of the funniest and surprisingly poignant evenings you will ever spend at the theatre.”

What begins as an antagonistic relationship blossoms into an intimate friendship as two people from very different backgrounds reveal their secrets, fears, and joys while dancing the Swing, Tango, Waltz, Foxtrot, Cha-Cha, and Contemporary Dance. Michael and Lily overcome their outward differences to discover an unlikely but profound connection. By the final lesson, Lily shares with Michael her most closely guarded secret and he delivers unstinting loyalty and compassion.

"Michael gives lessons in dance and Lily gives lessons in life _ it’s the perfect duet,” Byrne said.

The production will feature choreography by Daryl Willshire, with design ideas from Sally Newman, and costume co-ordination by the legendary Jude Menz.

Six Dance Lessons In Six Weeks has been translated into 12 languages and played in over 20 countries, becoming an international hit and one of the most produced plays in the world.

It will run at The Studio at the Holden Street Theatres at 34 Holden Street, Hindmarsh, from October 27-30, November 3-6 & 10-13 at 8 p.m., with matinees on November 6 & 13 at 2 p.m.

Admission is $25 Adults and $20 Concession and Group Discounts for 10 or more.. Book with VenueTix on 8225 8888 (agency fees apply) or call MBM on 8262 4906

Sunday, 22nd August, 2010 at 1.00 p.m.

Sherlock Holmes and ‘The Coming of the Fairies’by Ross Barrett

presents a public script-in-hand performance of an old favourite

Sherlock Holmes and "The Coming of the Fairies" is a bizarre comedy which commences as a conventional Sherlock Holmes melodrama. The comfort that the audience begins to feel with this traditional genre is disturbed by a number of inexplicable incidents, and is shattered completely when the author of the story, Arthur Conan Doyle, barges into the plot.

It becomes clear that what we are watching is not Sherlock Holmes battling with the arch criminal, Professor Moriarty, but Arthur Conan Doyle struggling with his desire to be recognised as a major literary figure, and not just the creator of pulp fiction.

Doyle's spiritualism and general gullibility is the antithesis of Holmes' cold logic. How could a gull such as Doyle have created the most analytical mind in fiction? This problem leads to a battle of the minds between Holmes and Doyle over who created whom. A confused Dr Watson finds himself a puppet, with antagonists fighting for control of his strings. The resolution questions whether it is authors or their characters that are the most lasting, and explores whether what we do is more important than what we are.

This witty comedy takes you on a bizarre journey into the mind that created two of the most enduring characters in fiction.

Directed by - Paula Carter

Cast

Don Chapman — Sherlock Holmes

John McFadyen — Arthur Conan Doyle

Bronwyn James — Louise Doyle

Michael Baldwin — Dr Watson

Sunday 20th June

DIMENSIONS by Ian McGrath

Diana’s old boss has arrived for a visit long after their professional –and private – association ended. Time has taken its toll, however; he’s much diminished and it soon becomes evident he’s in the early stages of dementia. Now their roles are reversed; he is dependent upon her and that frightens Diana; “.....there, but for the grace of gods....” Without the help of good friends how will she cope?

Ian McGrath’s script offers many lighter moments of wit and comedy that help to lighten the mood of this topical play.