Theatre Review: Mary Poppins

If you haven’t seen the stage production of Mary Poppins, I am asking you to put it on your ‘to do list’ for this year. Why? Because it is practically perfect in every way, just like the lady herself!

Currently showing at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne, no dollar has been spared in the cost of production. The stage is absolutely breathtaking, with street lanes and different rooms of the Banks’ house popping out from the floor and ceiling. Mary Poppins’ magical bag also makes an appearance, much to the delight of younger fans in the audience!

Verity Edwards and Matt Lee are the stars of the show as Mary and Bert respectively. Edwards’ mannerisms and movements echo those of a young Julie Andrews, while Lee lights up the stage with his effortless dancing and singing (I certainly have more respect for his opinions on So You Think You Can Dance after witnessing his talents).

While the basic storyline of bringing a father closer to his children is present, it mixes different aspects of the movie and book to create something a little different. This keeps the audience interested because no one can predict what happens next!

The famous songs from the movie are also reprised. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious has some amazing choreography, Jolly Holiday does not involve jumping into Bert’s drawings (I will not spoil what happens though), and Step in Time is a tap-dancing extraordinaire!

Of course all the favourite characters are still there, including Mr and Mrs Banks (Philip Quast and Marina Prior), the bird woman (an unrecognisable Debra Byrne), and many others. I was a little disappointed that Uncle Albert was missing (the laughing man from the movie for those who cannot remember), but I guess I cannot have everything!

For me, there were only two faults in the performance. Firstly, one of the shelves did not repair itself during Mary Poppins’ clean-up of the kitchen. My boyfriend and I were in hysterics when we noticed this, and I am pretty sure no one else in the audience picked this minor flaw! Secondly, because we were sitting in the stalls ($99 seats), our view was restricted during a couple of items. I would therefore recommend paying an extra $50 for your ticket if you want a practically perfect view!

5 out of 5 stars

Book Review: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

One of the most popular ‘chick lit’ novels to have been written over the last fifteen years, The Notebook can be described in just four words – a bittersweet love story.

The book follows Noah and Allie, who had a passionate summer romance as teenagers but never forgot each other. Three weeks before Allie is to marry her lawyer fiancé, she sees an article about Noah in the newspaper. Old feelings for Noah arise, and Allie decides to visit him. Of course, he has always been in love with her, so Allie becomes torn between two men.

This love triangle has been recorded in a notebook, and is read aloud by a little old man to his beloved wife, who now has advanced Alzheimer’s. No prizes for guessing who the old man and lady actually are...

Having seen the movie, but never read the book (shame on me!), I was intrigued and excited to find a beaten-up old copy at my local library. After reading the book, I think the movie does a better job at capturing Noah and Allie’s summer romance and demonstrating step-by-step how they actually fell in love. The book only touches on the initial romance, and prefers to focus on Allie returning to Noah for one last time. Having said that, the book does a far better job at exploring Alzheimer’s disease – the initial symptoms and diagnosis, to the rapid downward spiral of forgetting who you are, and how to do simple daily activities such as eating, showering, and dressing.

Like most of Sparks’ pieces, The Notebook is heavy on the melodramatic language and romantic rendezvous. However, if you look past this, it is worth the read simply for the information about Alzheimer’s. Sure, we all know it is a debilitating disease, but I think the book gives us a rare insight into how it also affects the wife or husband who has to see their partner rapidly decline right before their eyes.

4 out of 5 stars.