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Cafe Latte
Presented by:
Mornington CEF Players
Venue:
St Peter's Hall, Mornington
Reviewer:
Robbie Carmellotti
Date
Reviewed:
Friday 29th May,
2009
Ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at your favourite Cafe?
Well, I can’t really say I have thought about it much, but after
seeing the world premiere of Drew Lanes Cafe Latte in Mornington on
Friday evening, it has certainly provoked some thought, but also
makes me question the sanity of all cafe workers, and the
shenanigans at play in between service.
Written, composed and Directed by Drew Lane, with him also being
credited for; choreography, musical direction, lighting design,
sound operation, photography and the programme, one might ask if he
has control issues? Though I assume he simply lives by the fact, ‘If
you want anything done, do it yourself’ which I fully admire, though
I don’t envy the stress levels that would have been involved in
getting this production off the ground.
Entering the intimate hall of St Peters, it was pleasant to see a
creative set, using the whole stage and parts of the auditorium to
make up the Cafe that is, Cafe Latte. The seating was set with an
aisle and this was incorporated for the performers to enter and exit
throughout the show, so it was a very up close experience, you
really got to feel involved in what was going on. Several people
were listed for looking after the set, but I’m unsure who is
responsible for the exact design, but well done to all, it was a
very creative use of space. Also on a technical note, the lighting
by Mark Wilson and Drew Lane was well designed for the space, and
lit the action subtly and at times creatively.
As a show, from an audience member’s perspective (I don’t claim to
be able to comment on the difficulties of writing a full 2 act
musical, as it is far beyond my talents, and I give my full
admiration to Drew and others like him) I found myself conflicted.
Did I like it? Did I not like it? Was it funny? Was it not funny? To
be honest I’m not sure! Reason being that I couldn’t quite grasp
what the actual point or genre of what the show was, as it had so
many different sub plots and often contradicting storylines that it
was hard to connect with the show in depth. The synopsis made it
sound simple, your average cafe, anywhere in Melbourne, where over
the course of one night (though it starts in the morning) their
lives are exposed. Perhaps too much was exposed? Or perhaps it just
wasn’t portrayed in the right light? This show could have been
awesome if it were directed in an over the top soap opera style,
taking the piss on everything, rather than trying to make it all so
sincere. What also crossed my mind was that this could have worked a
bit like Spring Awakening as the songs were more often than not
random, they could have picked up a microphone, belted out their
feelings and then jumped back into reality. Though these were just
thoughts I had while struggling to hear the performers because of no
microphones and slow dialogue.
Drew Lanes stage direction I thought was quite good, his transition
from scene to scene was smooth and his dialogue blocking was great
for the setting. His actors did drag the dialogue a little, though
it was clear they all had a pretty descent understanding of what
type of person they had to portray. Musically I have to wonder if
there is enough contrast in the sound for this show to be taken any
further than the amateur stage, as the music tended to sound very
similar from start to finish, perhaps there was not enough
versatility in the music to captivate and leave people wanting
more... I’ve left with most of the songs blended together and not
really being able to pin point real differences.
The shows standout for me was Dan Maurer who played John, the dope
smoking, untrustworthy rock star wanna be. His comic timing was
brilliant, and he had the audience in hysterics with almost every
line.
I also quite liked Anne Gasko who played Melinda, the Bi Sexual
tramp who is secretly a virgin. Also Luke Hales as Kelly the cliché
gay waiter. Both of these performers worked really well with what
they had, though most of their comedy value was crass and
predictable it certainly got laughs. Both are talented singers and
they worked hard from start to finish.
Cameo by Ash Cooper as Brett, the abusive husband provided some
unexpected fight scenes, in particular one slap across Melinda’s
face that had the audience gasping. I’m not sure why he really hit
her, but pretend hit everyone else.
Alex Kangur as Samantha is a first timer to theatre outside of
school, she has a great singing voice and I encourage her to keep
pressing forward. Lots of talent. One thing that disturbed me
staging wise for this character was when she sang her big ballad
about battling teen pregnancy, she sang the whole thing sitting on
the toilet, granted she wasn’t ‘going’ to the toilet, but still it
distracted from the song.
The final 2 lead performers were Anthony Doig as Dave and Genevieve
Lutz as Joanne. Dave played the owner of the cafe, we saw him argue
constantly with his whiny wife Carly, (Cassarndra Bills played this
minor role, and left a great impression). Dave goes through an
array of emotions, angry boss, friendly boss, anti drug campaigner,
love interest, father figure, gambling addict, financial mess,
marital issues. It’s a constant roller coaster or emotions from
start to finish, and I can’t say I sat and was enthralled by
Anthony’s acting skills and diversity, but with a lead role that
seems as scattered as this, I have to wonder who could pull it off
with easy conviction. Genevieve, had a difficult role also, and a
tough one for someone making their theatrical debut. This role is
difficult in the sense that it is the heart of the show so to speak,
all she does is mope around, depressed with her life, her songs are
all slow, and the character is ‘nice’, she is the mother figure of
the cafe. She does get one of the best lines in the show “Jump
Slut”, I don’t want to discourage Genevieve because she did have
‘blah’ role in relation to the other upbeat crazy characters, so it
was a bit hard for her to shine, I look forward to seeing her
develop as a performer over the next few years.
I went to closing night which is a shame because I would have loved
to have recommend everyone go see this show, so you could compare
your opinion to mine. On the upside to that I may receive less TP
backlash if everyone was to disagree with me. So I wish Drew, the
cast, CEF, all the best with future endeavours, and again I say I’m
envious of those able to get original work on the stage, and in this
case, complete with a cast recording.
Robbie is a theatre addict with a passion for-Directing,
Choreographing and Performing. He has played roles such as Mike and
Greg- CHORUS LINE, Mungojerrie- CATS, Bernardo- WEST SIDE STORY, The
Cat- HONK & King Herod-JSC. He comes from a background in Latin
Dancesport where he works as a full time teacher, lecturer and
adjudicator. Career highlights include representing Australia at the
World Latin, winning the Thailand and Taipei Internationals. He has
worked with companies such as Whitehorse, Nova, Williamstown Little
Theatre, Windmill, DTC, and Fab Nobs. He is currently in pre
production to direct RENT with Fab Nob’s theatre.
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