cultural_philistine
HAL_9000Review of Halpern & Johnson (Ensemble Theatre)
January 25th 2008 05:23
Halpern & Johnson is a brilliant two-hander. Starring Henri Szeps (Joseph Halpern) and Garry McDonald (Dennis Johnson) it concerns two elderly gentlemen who meet at the graveside of the woman they both loved. The twist is that Florence's husband, Joseph Halpern, did not know about the existence of the other until Florence's death.
This play is possibly better than my benchmark for all other plays, A View from the Bridge (Ensemble 2005). Although the plot is much simpler, the performances of these two television and theatre veterans, especially McDonald, are impeccable. It is a delight to see them both together again since their days in "Mother and Son".
Directed by Mark Kilmurry, the play is written by Lionel Goldstein and deals with issues of love and betrayal with honesty and humour. This is one of those rare productions where your eyes are glued to the actors and you lose track of time.
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Halpern & Johnson was playing from Thursday 22 November 2007 to Saturday 19 January 2008. More information is available from the Ensemble Theatre website.
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Writtern by Lionel Goldstein.
Director: Mark Kilmurry.
Designer: Nicholas Dare.
Lighting designer: Martin Kinnane.
Cast: --
Henri Szeps as "Joseph Halpern".
Garry McDonald as "Dennis Johnson".
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Further reading:
-- Ensemble Theatre website
-- Australian Stage Online
-- Sydney Morning Herald
-- Australian Jewish News
-- Stage Noise
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Bayly's Restaurant
The service is warm and attentive and, most importantly, the quality of the food has markedly improved since it first changed chefs. Thanks for this -- good food makes a big difference to a good night out.
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