All Of My Friends Were There, The Guerrilla Museum at Theatre Works for the Melbourne Festival, Tuesday October 10th 2017

All Of My Friends Were There, The Guerrilla Museum at Theatre Works for the Melbourne Festival, Tuesday October 10th 2017

"All Of My Friends Were There" by The Guerrilla Museum was presented at Theatre Works for the Melbourne Festival, Tuesday October 10th 2017

For those new to my blog I write about the holistic experience of attending the theatre. I buy my own tickets. So if you want a re-telling of the story please refer to the links for further information or for further insights.  Note, that I may provide different links for repeated main words or phrases.  I write for my memories of what I have seen, and it is more of a stream of consciousness.

"All Of My Friends Were There" by The Guerrilla Museum  was presented at Theatre Works for the Melbourne Festival, Tuesday October 10th 2017

When we walked up Acland St to the theatre we passed a stretch black Hummer vehicle thinking it was for someone's celebration.  Well it was to be used in the show later.

I asked for a programme at the Box Office for "All Of My Friends Were There".  I did not see any one else with the one page programme.  It was such a shame as they could have provided more information and used both sides to promote their theatre group and show.

An announcement was made to collect your tickets from the Box Office and then to report to the two ladies at the front doors to be allotted into a group.  We were allotted into Group B which was the largest group.  Time could have been saved by having this process in place before the official 7.30 pm start time.  I estimated that ten to fifteen minutes was lost due to poor co-ordination and administration.

"All Of My Friends Were There" was a 1960's "happening".  It was an event.

Remember the Hummer vehicle we passed?  This drove up to the theatre and was used for a group who accompanied tonight's birthday boy, Rhys on a tour of Luna Park and a ride around St Kilda for 45 minutes while we helped to prepare his party.  We had 45 minutes before Rhys would arrive at the venue.

Group B was taken to the back door and entered a large area with a trestle table and silver chairs stacked.  There was a stage and decorations hung from the walls and ceiling.  There was a Disc Jockey or electrical technician and a bank of ushers or support staff standing against the back black curtains.

A group of performers stood in front of the stage.  Two were in elaborately attired in Bette Midler style"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" or "Andrew Sisters" blue uniforms.  We were welcomed by an introduction to the event.  Obviously a different person is celebrated at each performance according to their responses obtained from an audience survey.  Tonight we were to help prepare and celebrate Rhys' birthday.

We were shown some footage on the screens of who Rhys was to allow us to recognise him.

Our group was escorted from the large room and divided into smaller groups as we proceeded towards the exit.  I went with my partner, after climbing through a large hole to Rhys' bedroom.  Our group was mainly young and included a few over forty!  There were pictures on his bedroom walls and headphones on his bed.  We were directed to wear a set of headphones.  Each headphone set seemed to play a different sequence - as I swapped with my partner as I could not hear anything at first.

There were television and computer screens and various pieces of furniture and decoration.  It was a great space to discover.  A large thick shag pile rug lay in the centre of the room, and you had to be careful not to trip over it.  At first people did not know what to do.  I began to touch things and discover the space.  I even looked under the bed and pulled out three games - including Monopoly, Operation (unopened) and Lolli Plop.  I was made aware that the Operation game was not to be opened.  I asked Nicole the usher (or helper) "was there any wrapping paper to wrap Rhys' present?"  Sadly there was no wrapping paper and was told the Lolli Plop game was fun.  I said "I remembered this game from my 1960's childhood.  I did not have time to read the instructions and remembered that Lolli Plop was a game of skill.  I shared Lolli Plop with others who started to get into the spirit of the event.

The usher/helper said to me that there was bottle on the other side for "spin the bottle".  I went and spun the bottle that ended up pointing to me, and, so I spun it again.  A few young people looked on and were awkward and just observing and reluctant to get involved with anything other than the Lolli Plop game.  I kept playing "spin the bottle" and it pointed to my partner.  It was interesting that it did not point to anyone else.  Maybe it had a mind of its own - that we were having fun.

I opened a door at one stage and was given a cheeky grin by a young lady.  More of that later!

I was a bit shocked that many of these young people would be studying drama and were reluctant to begin to get involved.  It took many of them a few rooms to get into the spirit and hang loose.

We were instructed to take off our headsets and to proceed through the door to the next room.  I asked if we "would be going through all of the rooms?"  I was told "yes", (a white lie) and realised that each group would be having a very different experience.

The next room for our group had a table with plastic plates and hooters, with more headsets.  We each wore a headset.  Sadly no one blew a party horn or hooter either, while you could hear a hooter's tooting from another room.

On the table cheese cubes were stuck into a pineapple with toothpicks.  A platter of dip and celery and carrot sticks was placed proudly in the centre of the table.  Two young ladies entertained us by offering drinks and provided a cheap clown/contortionist type routine.  Her finale was standing on top of four coloured empty bottles while pushing herself through a contortionist's small hoop.  This required good balance, skill and flexibility.  Her opening sequence reminded me of a poor quality children's entertainer and realised that she was sending herself up gutless.  It was done on purpose as her finale was very good for such a short show.  I had my first plastic-glass of bubbles!  The clapping and cheering was modest as the group began to warm up.

We were instructed to proceed to another room that had black balloons and metallic coloured streamers strewn across the floor.  The room looked very festive with a television at one end covered in a few ornaments.

There were two fluffy large bowl shaped seats  (similar to papasans) on the left as you entered the room.  I realised that these seats were people wearing large furry costumes with elaborate large head gear.  I touched one of them and then shook its hand and received a welcoming response.  It would have been fun for someone to sit on one of these seats and to be grasped.  I guess I spoiled the joke by reaching out.  Oh well, it is a holistic party play ground.

Head phones hung from the wall and we each proceeded to wear a pair.  Each set of headphones seemed to play a different piece of music.

It was fun to discover each room with the elaborate design and production detail.

These two "seat characters" came to life and began to dance.  Gradually, they invited the group to join them in a dance.  My partner and I joined in dancing with each of these "seat characters".  We felt a bit sorry for the younger people who seemed so restrained to join in and have some fun.  Gradually they began to loosen up and sway a little.

The two "seat characters" stripped off their outer furry garments to reveal shiny jump suits underneath.  They continued to dance and finished back in their original seats still wearing their elaborate head wear.  Remember that someone who smiled at me earlier when I opened a door?  Well it must have been one of these "seat characters" in between gigs awaiting for their next group of party goers!

We were instructed to take off our headsets and to proceed to the next room, where there was a long bench of plastic plates with some remaining lollies.  Plastic bags and twist ties were made available and we were invited to help ourselves to make a lolly bag.  This was similar to when you used to leave a party in the 1960's and were given a party bag to take home. 

Chronologically, our Group B tour  made sense after the partying in the previous room.

Next we went into a long corridor with a bank of chairs and a water fountain.  This was a holding bay until we were summoned into the next area.

I think I recall we next went via the large first room where there was a group sitting around in a circle of chairs.  We passed through as we all looked at each other as voyeurs - knowing we were being voyeurs.  It was as if we were trying to seek out someone that we may recognise to save embarrassment.

Our group was directed outside. Then we were divided into two groups.  One group went into a tent with a man and rows of seats.  our group went to the barbeque area where we were welcomed by Rhys' uncle who offered us sausages on bread and drinks from an esky.  Many people helped themselves to the sausages or drinks offered.  The Uncle was chatting and improvising.  He even made a comment when our group dispersed, and gained the group's attention.  It was good to banter with him and allow him to improvise some more.  We were asked about the speech for Rhys.  I offered a toast to Rhys and also to thank the Uncle with a "cheers".  You just had to get into the spirit of the event to fully appreciate the experience.

A few people got into the mood of improvising.  We learned of some of Rhys' back-story and his education and his swimming prowess and how he saved his Uncle.  Lots of other information was filled in, including a poem that was supposedly written by an audience member.  I decided to have a drink and get into the fun.

A whistle blew as a clear signal that each segment had about 5 minutes to change to the next segment.  We then watched as the tent group came towards the barbeque. It was now our turn to be seated and assist with the speech for Rhys.  We were offered "closure" or "forced choice" technique responses to assist in preparing the speech for Rhys.

We were directed to the next room.  It felt that this was to be the last room from the scheduled one hour and ten minutes.

After the speech was prepared we were escorted back into the main room where the other groups had gathered.  We were offered drinks, fairy bread and cupcakes that I suspect one group had prepared earlier.  The room was abuzz and people were really into the event at this stage.

A speaker rose to the stage and welcomed us to Rhys' birthday and told us that he would be arriving shortly.  We were to surprise him as he entered the building.  We were shown footage on the screen of Rhys and two speeches about Rhys.  There was footage of this evening's audience waiting outside the venue and recognisable audience members getting aboard the Hummer, including the Melbourne Festival Artistic Director Jonathon Holloway who attended the same show as us.

We were shown footage of Rhys' adventures during his 45 minute journey.  Then there was an announcement that Rhys had arrived.  The audience bobbed down and went silent.  He walked in to the obligatory "SURPRISE" and I think Rhys was genuinely surprised as he was swept onto the stage to the cheers and greetings from his new found friends.

The final section included speeches and the blowing out of the birthday cake.  Then it was party time with a small band playing a few songs, including "Celebration".

Security could have been a bit tighter with the number of back packs that were taken inside the first room and then left on the ground.  They were tripping hazards and there should have been a cloaking policy and a strict rule for no back packs or large items similar to "The Echo of the Shadow" from the 2016 Melbourne Festival.

I am grateful for the order that our group went through this experience - as it was like we had seen Rhys' back story via his bedroom, his party room, his barbeque and the speech to prepare.  It really did not matter what order you did this show, but here it made more chronological sense.

Safety wise there needed to be more attention to when people were bobbing down to move between each room as it was easy to bump your head.  Some one should have been in attendance and a bit more observant and assertive in providing instructions.  I held the opening for two young ladies behind me to show them how easy it is to guide the person behind you with out bumping your head.

Everyone was to experience a different event.  But collectively we would be celebrating Rhys' birthday!  I could see that this show could be very hit-or-miss depending upon the audience.  I felt that more support was needed by "stooges" or "planted actors" to encourage more participation as it seemed very under-cooked at times.

I read a review that mentioned something about a conga line or musical chairs.  I guess when we walked through the main room we witnessed the musical chairs game.  I felt a bit of the modern anxiety of the "fear of missing out" with the selfish "me" generation while watching this group playing games.  What this show did was transport me back to the 1960's childhood and the innocent fun we would have with basic birthday parties that were catered for on a shoe string budget.

My mother's story of growing up in the depression in Daylesford in the 1920's and 1930's was a cruel lesson in birthday party etiquette.  She was NEVER invited to a birthday party and swore that when, and if she had children she would always ensure that she made a birthday cake for her kids.  Tonight was like Mum was alive and we celebrated her legacy.  I played like a little kid and I am 58.  I had so much fun and was honouring my mother's spirit as she had passed away earlier this year, in February 2017.  No matter what - Mum's story has always been close to my heart.

I am glad I grew up in simpler times with daggy party games and basic party food.  This show was the memory of childhood, friends lost and remembered.  Most of all this show was about love and hope.

"All Of My Friends Were There" was an immersive experience and not quite up to the calibre of "Since I Suppose" or "The Echo of the Shadow" and with refinement it could be.  I think if were given the opportunity to experience every option then it may have been more fully realised.

This show also reminded me of a Change Management program "Reach Out" that Ansett Airlines ran with for their staff in July and August 1995 at a converted warehouse in North Melbourne.  I was invited to attend and it was one of the most immersive theatrical and educational experiences that I have encountered on a larger scale.  They had a room with musical instruments that had a team work theme and the ripple effect room that had a cause and consequence theme.  It goes to show that nothing is new as this was done nearly thirty years ago.  In fact, the show also reminded me of when I was in Grade Two in 1968 and the Grade Sixers made an immersive experience "happening" room to raise money for the missions.

I could attend "All Of My Friends Were There" again and hope to have a different experience.

"All Of My Friends Were There" needed more toilets for the audience.  One portable loo was not sufficient for the size of the crowd.

"All Of My Friends Were There" was great value for money and deserves to tour internationally as it is a unique experience.  Though, there are a few safety and security aspects that need tightening up before doing so.

"All Of My Friends Were There" obtained an 8.5/10.

The Bacchae, St Martins Theatre, Theatre Works, Melbourne Festival, Saturday October 24th 2015

The Bacchae, St Martins Theatre, Theatre Works,  Melbourne Festival,  Saturday October 24th 2015

"The Bacchae" is a co-production by St Martins Youth Arts Centre, Theatre Works and Fraught Outfit for the Melbourne Festival .  We attended the 7.30 pm performance on Saturday October 24th 2015 at Theatre Works in Acland St, St Kilda.

For those new to my blog I write about the holistic experience of attending the theatre.  So if you want a re-telling of the story please refer to the links for further information or for further insights.  Note, that I may provide different links for repeated main words or phrases.

 "The Bacchae" was conceived by Adena Jacobs and Aaron Orzech.  The production was directed by  Adena Jacobs with varying degrees of success.

Queuing up for General Admission in New York is better than Theatre Works' push and shove as the doors open.  In New York at the Broadway theatres the patrons queue outside to allow pedestrians to use the side-walk (footpath), while the same occurs at the Fringe and Off Broadway theatres.  They even queue for shows that have allocated seating due to the lack of foyer space.  We are so spoiled in Australia with our larger foyers.    Queuing in New York is a lovely respectful tradition for those who arrived early to have prime position, particularly for General Admission shows.

A person behind the bar made a pre-show announcement regarding turning off phones etc.  Many people were still outside and could not hear this announcement. I cannot understand why they do not use a microphone or learn to project their voice for the announcements.

Entering the theatre the usher wanted to take our whole ticket.  I like to keep my ticket minus stub with all of my programmes.  She said I could get it after the show.  I promptly tore off my stub and continued walking into the theatre.  Who is teaching these people Front of House protocols?  Have they ever had to do a box office reconciliation or budget the show.  Oh no that is what commercial theatres have to do!

A person tripped on the steps entering the theatre and someone came to their assistance.  Some of the steps are difficult to see as each row of seats are extremely close together.

The show began at about 7.39 pm and continues the 30 year tradition of every show that we have attended at the Melbourne Festival since 1986 has not started on time.

Waiting for the show to begin a light was flashing up above centre stage.  It reminded me of the lighting flash that killed Dionysus' mother Semele.  I thought this was a good effect to create an atmosphere.

The font in the programme was so small and quite difficult to read under the foyer's lighting. Thankfully I had read about "The Bacchae" and watched a few short documentaries to remind myself about the story.  Sadly this production did not provide clarity with the story, but rather visions from the story.

There were some strong images throughout the show and also some very long and laboured pauses.  In their press release they called it a meditation.  Some of the still moments were way too long as the audience were becoming restless.  The woman next to me looked at her watch as the opening meditation of a young girl standing and looking at the audience went for about five minutes.

There was the portable loo that a young lady exited from.  It was as if she was leaving her throne!

The main stage was at floor level with a raised stage at the rear.  There was a couch on stage left with a small orchestra.  A covered item was downstage left while the portable loo was upstage right.  In front of the the raised stage was a lot of black plastic covering something to be revealed later in the show.  This reveal was a great highlight both design wise and theatrically.

The young girl finally tells us about waking up to many alarms and getting ready for school and ironing her shirt and forgetting to turn on the iron.  She tells us that "I am Dionysus and if you do not believe me I will punish you" or words to that effect.  She then sits on a couch.   Another meditation = long pause!  She looks at the audience.  It was voyeuristic.  Apparently the character Pentheus is renowned as the first voyeur.

A Greek character lies on the raised stage and we hear amplified breathing.  I think it is Semele who has been struck by the lighting from the flashing lights we saw as we sat waiting.  Long pause and another meditation.  A young mid wife type character walks forward with her mouth covered in an industrial strength rubber mask, and her hands sporting long rubber gloves.  She helps give birth and a large golden item is retrieved.  I recognise the Greek shape but cannot recall its name.  Maybe it is the mask of Dionysus.

The young cast enter and stand against the wall stage right.  A boy soprano sings.  Others join in. The singing was beautiful.  What they sang I could not say but the sounds were beautiful to create a haunting atmosphere.

Gradually each person steps forward and sits on the ground in various poses with or without a prop. They all looked into the audience.  Again voyeuristic.  Are we or are they the voyeurs?  Another long meditation or pause.

The cast gradually come to life one by one.  The frenzy for each character is a teenage version with each in their own world.  One listens to her music via earphones from her phone, others are texting, another eats her packet of chips and shares them to one another performer. It is made obvious that all of these performers are individuals, as there is little interaction between each of the characters.

A small blow up children's wading pool was brought onto the lower stage.  Two performers finished blowing up the pool.  Another stream of performers came and emptied about three buckets of water into the wading pool.

One or two cast get into the wading pool with their shoes on.  By the way all of the female cast wear the same black shoes with a white edge around the sole.  Later they will be barefooted.

Some great images included the warriors lining up in black bikinis with stockings over their heads wearing black baseball caps and their bodies smeared with oil.  They performed a routine counting and repeating the moves.  I found this choreographically created a strong image of young warrior type goddesses.  Gradually they stopped as the leader continued alone and then gold liquid ran from her groin and down her legs.

Some of the images would be confronting for people realising that these are young girls.  In some ways I was worried that the wrong type of person could be viewing this show as the girls are very young.  If I were a parent I would have been very worried.

The young boy soprano in his long socks, basketball boots and baseball cap went up to the raised stage and sat on the black draped sofa and opened a Coca-Cola.  (Great product placement and advertising too!) It was a youthful version of a blokey male kicking back with a drink of choice. A great image.

A large gift bag is placed stage right.  Later the bag will be emptied and the performers' black shoes will be retrieved.  There will lots of checking for names inside the shoes and swapping and matching to ensure the correct performer receives their own shoes.  This was one of the few times that the characters shared or offered help.  It is like a gorge of consumerism and was a great image of seeking the same personalised item and reminiscent of the quest for the latest gadget or consumable.

Underneath the black plastic raises a large blow up.  It is as if it is rising out of the ashes and is a great piece of stage design and engineering.  The blow up transforms and creates a large head with a mouth wide open and a tongue hanging out.  The mouth opening was like a frame of the raised stage behind.  More so it was theatrically intriguing for us as the audience to see what it would become.  I think it was a blown up version of the mask of Dionysus with its tongue sticking out.

Later all of the cast wear long phallic symbols from their waists.  This could be the section where they all turn into snakes.  Each goes into a frenzy of heightened sexual pleasure.  One even urinates proudly, while others swing their members around, others masturbate in various poses, one plays with her member as if a machine gun behind the couch. (I wonder if this idea was copied from Batsheva Dance Company's "Last Work"?)

On the raised stage a large Minnie Mouse head is played with.  I wonder if Disney approved of this being used?  It was foretelling the beheading.

A large piece of meat covered in plastic cling-wrap was beaten by a girl with a baseball bat.  She created a pulsating rhythm with each swing of the bat.

Another monologue from the Messenger outlines aspects of the story of "The Bacchae".

The sexual frenzy erupts and then quietens as a performer enters wearing 1970's platform open toe shoes and a shirt dress with a revealing back-line.  She steps upstage to the others and takes off her dress to reveal she is topless.  It is similar to Pentheus being found out.  This young lady who I think represented Pentheus kneels with her back to the audience and she holds her head forward so that we cannot see her head any-more.  Another steps forward with a baseball bat and swings it to behead the kneeling girl. Blackout!  A strong ending but I wanted the grieving scene of the mother realising that she had killed her own son.

The music was well played by the small ensemble of musicians.  Vocally the singers provided pure sounds.

"The Bacchae" is a complex story and this version was from a different perspective as we could see the women throughout.  I felt sickened by the exploitation of the youth in this production as we were made voyeurs without us knowing in advance.  I would not have attended had I known as it was more pornographic with their vulnerability.

 "The Bacchae" reminded me of "Lord of the Flies" with the brutality and orgiastic rituals.

This production reminded me of the 1970's productions from the archives of the avant-garde from Megan Terry, Jean-Claude van Itallie or theatres such as The Living Theatre in New York.

I wrote the following feedback on a survey from Theatre Works:

I was disgusted that it was more pornographic than any porn I have ever seen.  We were trapped in the audience and forced to become voyeurs of these under age performers masturbating etc.  I am curious if they received parental permission to perform this work.  I have seen many avant-garde performances and had these performers been over 18 years it would have changed my perception. There was no warning at how graphic this show was to be.  It was not the graphic nature but the age of the young girls oiling themselves etc.  They were basically child bait and playing the seductive mirror of voyeurism.  Not impressed with this aspect.  But thought some of the imagery was good.

We have seen many shows at Theatre Works. We will be very careful about what we will see there in the future.  We have been to 30 Melbourne Festivals and this was the most confronting show we have seen - due to the under age performers.  They subjected us to more antics than Hair, Let My People Come, Oh Calcutta etc.  It made some hard core ADULT porn look tame.

I have attended fringe festivals in many other cities around the world.  This was a good quality fringe festival show and an average Melbourne Festival show.

Overall I gave this a 6.5/10,    My partner gave it a 4/10.