Monique Grbec

The internationally acclaimed Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner is electric, must-see theatre. Full of pop culture references and contemporary drama, it speaks to the way that social media impacts our lives. Written by British playwright Jasmine Lee-Jones and co-directed by Zindzi Okenyo and Shari Sebbens, this five-star iteration elicits roaring laughter, enthusiastic clapping, quiet gasps and a standing ovation from the captivated audience. The Beckett Theatre, part of the Malthouse Theatre in Southbank, is dressed as an unassuming, low-rise living space with a bed, Besser block bookshelves and a huge suspended lightbox. In darkness, the blue light of a mobile phone illuminates Cleo (Chika Ikogwe, of recent Heartbreak High fame) aka #incognegro lying on her bed laughing and chuckling as she scrolls through her phone.  Daylight and the sweet sound of morning birdsong seeps into the scene. The high-low whistle of a Twitter notification propels Cleo out of bed to pace the room: "WTF!" The lightbox beams bright white and features the cute blue bird of the Twitter logo. The next hour-and-a-half flies by.  Forbes has declared reality TV star Kylie Jenner as the “youngest self-made billionaire” and Cleo is outraged. On a rapid-fire rampage of social activism, she slashes the myth of self-made wealth, while also confronting cultural appropriation and the fetishising of Black women.  In the vacuum of the tweetstorm, Cleo’s childhood friend Kara (Iolanthe) arrives to offer suppor

"Why did I win, when so many others lost? What’s it cost?" Ponders tennis legend Evonne Goolagong Cawley in the opening sequence of Sunshine Super Girl. This delightful play washes the audience with glorious layers of sunshine sweetness; and in return, exuberant, life-affirming positivity radiates back in the form of joy-filled laughter, loud cheering and eventually a celebratory standing ovation.  Audience engagement and the aforementioned ovation are testimony to the visionary talent of writer-director Andrea James. Uplifting vignettes of family escapades and a supportive community pull at the heart strings, while the seamless fluidity of performance, set, wardrobe, lighting and sound is buoyed by the audience’s pride and relief that in 2022 the dark age of racism that Goolagong Cawley experienced has evolved – and our contemporary society is making progress toward the light of racial equality. The Melbourne Theatre Company's Southbank Theatre auditorium is extended beyond the stage and divided in two halves, with a desert-red clay tennis court in the centre. Set and costume designer Romanie Harper presents a ’70s and ’80s-inspired stylised tennis glamour that could easily grace the pages of a high-end fashion magazine. With support from video media designer Mic Gruchy, live-action landscapes carpet the stage and transport the narrative through time and place: from the clay tennis court to the manicured green grass courts of Wimbledon; and to the gentle ripples of the backw