Dimboola

Dandenong Theatre Company's presentation of Dimboola is a tasty treat and is must see viewing for anyone that has ever laughed... or eaten food!

Showing up 1970's Australia probably a little too accurately for those
that admit to remembering it (or forgetting it due to too many Melbourne Bitters for that matter), Dimboola is the tale of the action packed wedding reception of young newly-weds Morris (Morrie) and Maureen (Reen) McAdam. Jack Hibbert's script is a gem with hilarious characters for the cast to bring to life, and bring to life they certainly did!

I have never had the pleasure of seeing such an evenly matched cast in any production; every single player was excellent in their role. Comic timing and energy were in abundance at the Castle on opening night.

There is nothing like interactive theatre and there were plenty of chances for the audience to join in on the fun, however I'm not going to give them away! I will say though, during such activities I stole a bottle, and I can tell you,  they were drinking real beer! Although I did enjoy the scripted comedy, my highlights often came from the times when the actors came around to talk to us on the tables whilst the food was being served. You can't script interactions like that!

No actor ever dropped their character, a tremendous effort with such a risky move of improvisation with the audience. My highlight of the night was when Horrace sat down at our table with his plate and told us he "didn't know what this foreign crap 'Pasta Salad' was", and for a second there I could almost imagine my dear departed Poppa Trickey uttering such a thing....

Speaking of, if you don't like comedy, well just go along for the food!!! Who doesn't like a good spit roast?! And after commandeering my date's chocolate cake as well as consuming my own pavlova, I made an appointment for the gym the next day...

The costumes were incredibly brilliant / hideous. The bright colours and unflattering cuts of 70's fashion were out in abundance. The wedding band, headed by "Lionel" were a great addition to the show. Lighting and sound complimented the show well.

I don't want to give too much away, but my highlights were the banter between Mutton and Bayonet (and thank you so much for the dance!), the moral decay of Agatha in correlation with the amount of cooking sherry consumed, the battle of the fathers, and how Mavis managed to deal with her dear husband Horrace passing out.

I have small issue though, and as this is a review it can't be all nice, there were a few continuity issues I observed. For instance, Horrie talking like a drunken bogan yet singing with excellent diction and Astrid the young girl whose pink bra was peeking over the top of her dress... Small issues. Perhaps with the Directors being in the show made it more difficult to see everything all the time.

However, usually I'd be sceptical of the whole Directing whilst performing thing, but this cast seemed so tight knit it didn't seem to hinder the production in anyway.

My heartfelt congratulations to Co-Directors Kym Davies and Colin Morely who obviously ran a tight ship. I haven't had so much fun seeing a show for a long time, and I recommend it to all!! Dandenong have proved that you don't need huge sets, spectacular lighting or bucket loads of money to put on a great show. Money is not everything; talent, ingenuity and passion are.