Music, Lyrics and Text by Dave Malloy. Presented by Antipodes Theatre Company in association with Hayes Theatre Co.
Otherworldly and ghostly. Ghost Quartet offers a unique perspective to the other side and the healing power of music.
Reviewed by Justin Clarke
Hayes Theatre, Potts Point
8th Jan – 1st Feb, 2025
Tickets: https://hayestheatre.com.au/event/ghost-quartet/
Type: Actor-Musician, Musical, Ethereal
If you liked: Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Gothic Horror, The Twilight Zone
There are shows as a reviewer where you find it quite easy to put the production and experience into words and thoughts – theatre thoughts, if you will. Then there are others that require a great deal of rumination and reflection on exactly how to properly explore the watching of said production. Antipodes Theatre Company’s Ghost Quartet is one of these productions, and it’s for very good reason.
Director Brandon Pape has assembled an astonishing quartet in the form of Cameron Bajraktarevic-Hayward, David Butler, Hany Lee, and Willow Sizer who are situated on the four corners of the space. Set in traverse, Pape utilises Jodi Hope’s production design to create a space littered with materials of a gothic nature. From a dreary carpet most likely to be found in an old antique store, a skull donning a pair of rounded sunglasses, a Maker’s Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky bottle, and many, many different instruments, some of which I couldn’t even name.
They are watching us watching them, whilst watching themselves and the stories that are created in the centre of the space. They are a true quartet in every sense of the word as they harmonise vocally, instrumentally and physically to transport audiences into an ethereal plane with their music.
In true Dave Malloy fashion, the music is the key character and driving plot device to carry the show forward. Much like the long-titled Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, Molloy’s music is cyclical in nature and varied to create a flowing tide on which the performers vocalise their stories and the characters are interspersed throughout. If you’re looking for a musical with a plot that has a straight-forward beginning, middle and end, this is not the show. Nor does it suffer because of it.
Told over four track sides, seven centuries and ninety minutes, spirits are conjured and woven to span narratives that are exploratory in their intertextuality. To try to explain them all would be futile and wouldn’t necessarily do the show justice, but in short Molloy’s writing and lyrics borrow from ghostly tales of Edgar Allen Poe, Arabian Nights and carry airs of gothic literature. Together they take us into an ethereal plane of spirits (both metaphorically and those of the alcoholic variety) as four friends conjure stories that hold fables and fairytales alike.
…all the elements come together to create something truly magical.
As the quartet take the shape of the stories, the majority of the acting rests on Sizer and Lee’s shoulders, whilst Bajraktarevic-Hayward and Butler join in sporadically throughout, they are never far from the peripherals of the scenes. Sidney Younger’s lighting design illuminates Sizer as Evan Drill’s sound design heightens her vocality into another sphere, like scratching on a vinyl record, to envelope the space when telling the story of a ghostly train. Meanwhile Butler’s piano accompaniment is aided by synthetic sounds done live by hand, as Bajraktarevic-Hayward underscores the piece with powerful bass and cello accompaniment. Lee’s comedic timing throughout compliments Butler’s jokes and oh so bad puns, before she provides another side to her talents and gives an aria worthy ballad.
It all comes to two astounding and gutsy manoeuvres in the second half that – without giving spoilers – will both make you marvel at the quartet’s talent, and give you complete control over your own imagination. It also provides the most unique ending to a musical that can only be done in an intimate setting such as the Hayes Theatre. It’s one of those moments where all the elements of a production come together to create something truly magical.
I truly hope that I’ve done enough to spark even the most minute spark of interest for this production because amidst all the Sydney Festival frenzy this is a gem that deserves audience eyes and ears. A truly stunning start to the Hayes’ 2025 season that once again gives new artists space to reiterate the healing power of music led by a true quartet of performers.
Cast & Creatives
Starring Cameron Bajraktarevic-Hayward, David Butler, Hany Lee, and Willow Sizer
Covers: Sam Hamilton, Charlotte Kerr & Felix Star
Director Brandon Pape (he/him)
Musical Director David Butler (he/him)
Production Designer Jodi Hope (she/her)
Lighting Designer Sidney Younger (he/him)
Sound Designer Evan Drill (he/him)
Stage Manager Jemma Sproul (she/her)
Assistant Stage Manager Adelaide Tustian (she/her)
Rehearsal Stage Manager Ashleigh Walwyn (she/her)
Gadigal (Sydney) Associate Producer and Production Manager Laura Campbell
Naarm (Melbourne) Associate Producer and Marketing Cameron Steens
Sound Technician & Operator Em-Jay Dwyer (they/she)
Photo & Videographer Angel Leggas (he/him) 3 FATES MEDIA
Poster Design Kenney Designs
Antipodes Branding Rob Chivers
Publicist Rogue Projects
Foyer Performers Zoe Conolan-Glen (she/her) & Rose Knowles (she/her)
Launch Graphic Designer Julian Leon (he/him)
Invitation to Engagement Facilitator Flick (they/them)
Crew Caitlain Cowan (she/her), Callum Haddow (he/him) & Lara Kyriazis (she/her)
Theatre Thought: Are plot structures important to you in avant-garde musicals? Or do you prefer the music to lead you?
