FRINGE 2016 – Abbott –The Musical – Tandanya – 4K

By Peter Maddern

After last year’s runaway success, the George Glass combination has brought their show back updated for the events in the life of our previous Prime Minister of the past 12 months.

It is a mix of the amusing, the offbeat and the vicious with the scene around Malcolm Turnbull’s courting of Julie Bishop great and the polemic around Christmas Island puerile, bordering on the unpleasant.

Nic Conway’s Abbott is masterful; the mannerisms, ears and voice a delicious parody. However, the star of this year’s show is Daniel Murnane’s Malcolm Turnbull that portrays our current PM as unctuous, up himself and upper class; his understated play on these elements clearly setting himself apart from his colleagues (and probably the whole nation.)

The songs rip along and the production is slick. Where they go next year only fates in Canberra will likely dictate but this show hits a cord of strong political satire even if it plays to the overindulged prejudices amongst the luvvies who have dined out on Abbott for so many years and risks nil in hitting on any topic that may offend them.

Kryztoff Rating 4K

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