A year later, the premise behind Melbourne Model: the Musical is just as brilliant and relevant. At only an hour and half, this is a musical that delivers a message and seventeen songs without tiring its viewer.
Reworked slightly from last year's version, 2009's Melbourne Model: The Musical brings into parody more recent events, from the Eastern Resource Centre redevelopment to Rudd's `shitstorm'. Despite this, however, it is very much the story that had to be told: Melbourne University's change from a place of education to a place of business.
The stereotyping is great and the source of much the humour, from the Student Union leader Bathsheba (Danielle Asciak) with her spread legs and dishevelled clothes to Wally Higgins Beaumont (Liam Murphey), the private school, full-fee paying, Ormond attending, Liberal club President. Then there is the Boston Consulting Intern, i.e. the labour party representative, Jessie G. (Jen Mackie) and D.Lo, the Socialist party member ready to `pamphlet the shit out of them'. The show, however, is carried by the devilishly devious Glyn Davis (Reuben Brown), whose homoerotic hip thrusts and sexualised strut make each of his onstage appearances an enjoyably disturbing experience.
Vocally the cast is very strong – the chorus held their own and were incredibly comprehensible, a feat which is often difficult in the Union Theatre. Bathsheba was a perfect match for Asciak’s powerful vocals, as was the oh-so-smooth and impressive range of Brown for Glyn Davis. Wally (Murphey), seemed shaky in the opening number but from then on delivered the goods song after song.
What could've been brilliant but seemed to fall short due to either technical difficulties or lack of rehearsal was the rap-off between D.Lo and Peter McPhee (Sam Rankin). With this number, D.Lo (Adam Russell) impressed with his rap skills, but Rankin often let his punch line slip away. Probably the most memorable number is `Asia!!' in which every one of Seamus Magee's (Geoffrey Blainey) racist lines was met with politically incorrect delight.
The absolute gratuitousness of the sexual references in this musical will appeal to the simplest members of its audience but it is really the story itself which makes this a must-see production. It might have been a daunting task to take the reins from last year’s cast and crew, but under the direction of Ben Landau, the 2009 Melbourne Model: the Musical succeeds in both entertaining and impassioning its audience -- to the point where cast and audience chant together in the union's protest: `Bullshit, Come off it'.
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Posted Friday 3 April, 2009. Updated Friday 3 April, 2009.
