Kala Gare as Sybylla Melvyn in My Brilliant Career. Image credit: Pia Johnson
My Brilliant Career redefines the trajectory of musical theatre with its iconic girlboss energy and unique Australian feel and sound.
For years there have been multiple attempts from the Australian theatre industry to create a musical that feels uniquely Australian which connects with its audiences, often resulting in nothing short of a lacklustre parody of Australian culture. Not this time…
My Brilliant Career is an absolute breath of fresh air that not only allows itself to sit in the grief of the heavy moments experienced in womanhood, but revels in the joy of finding your community and the feeling of being a ‘fellow Australian’ as the leading lady endearingly names the audience. Created by Sheridan Harbridge, Dean Bryant, Mathew Frank, and directed by Anne-Louise Sarks, this wonderful new production is uniquely self-aware in addressing its audience, allowing for the actor-audience relationship to feel like a partnership, fully welcoming the audience into the world being built.
Image credit: Pia Johnson
Based on Miles Franklin’s classic 1901 novel, My Brilliant Career follows the story of spirited young woman Sybylla Melvyn and her journey of choosing between marriage or a career in late 1800s Australia.
What is so brilliant about this story and the way that its told is that whilst a relationship and marriage aren’t at the forefront of Sybylla’s mind, this isn’t dismissed as a possibility for her, a very Jo March from Little Women adjacent character if you will – and we see this displayed throughout Sybylla’s on/off again romance with the suave Harry Beecham. However, this is ‘not a romance’ as Sybylla explains in the prologue, but rather, it paints the picture for how her life could look depending on the path she chooses, as reflected via her mother’s own journey as a wife and mother later in the story.
Kala Gare is an unstoppable force as Sybylla, bringing powerhouse vocals, grit, determination and youthful energy to the role. By the end of In the Wrong Key the audience knew they were in for a treat, rupturing in joyful applause. Cameron Bajraktarevic-Hayward is delightful as Frank, another of Sybylla’s suitors, with a particular stand-out performance in the number Brick. Drew Livingston brought incredible vocals as Father and Raj Labade made for a perfect Harry with equal levels of cheek and charm.
Not only is this show stacked with incredible actors and vocalists, but all actors onstage double as the band! We’re talking swapping cellos and guitars when the other is due to enter the scene as a new character. This is true artistry and an impressive choreographic decision by implementing the band into each scene. Other elements that I appreciated in this production was the use of onstage costume changes, particularly for Sybylla, with the stage manager popping on with the next costume piece and water bottle for Gare before running offstage again. This allowed the actors breathing space between scenes whilst also reminding the audience this is in fact a story we’re immersed in.
Some honorable mentions also include the integration of Acknowledgement of Country live on stage by Gare, rather than a pre-recorded message. This felt much more sincere and intentional and was a beautiful way of acknowledging both the lands that the story was being performed on and where it originally debuted. It would also be a crime to review this show and not comment on just how PRETTY it is. The pastel choices in costuming, flowers falling from the sky, disco balls propelled from the ceiling, soft blue hues for the backdrop and long grassy stage carpeting – this show has it all and is truly the cherry on the cake with its design choices.
This is a brilliant, fresh new piece of Australian musical theatre worth experiencing. My Brilliant Career closes its Australian tour in Wollongong this Sunday 17th May.
