Did you know Melbourne had the longest lockdown in the world? Judith and Denise know because they were fucking there. And so, of course, were the Melbourne audience at the opening night of their two-woman return-to-comedy show, Still Here . The performing arts has gone in-and-out of existence in Melbourne over the past two years and reflections on lockdown and the pandemic have appeared in various forms over that time. Festivals popped up in person and online and while we’re not out of the woods yet, at least we’re out of our houses. Judith Lucy and Denise Scott have a lot to make fun of looking back at 2020 and 2021 – foregrounding the fact that they haven’t been able to work at all and in their advancing years, having more time to reflect doesn’t always lead to great outcomes. Denise is stuck at home with her husband of 41 years, who refuses to listen to her when he’s preparing for a colonoscopy. And Judith’s only adventures are a back-alley haircut and occasionally seeing her
The story of An American in Paris is simple, in the way old movie musical romances are, and complicated because we know the course of true love never runs smoothly. Lise, a French ballet dancer, on the verge of becoming a star, is pursued by three suitors: Adam, a pianist, Jerry, a visual artist and Henri, a cabaret singer, who is hiding the truth about himself from his parents. Set in post-World War II France, against the backdrop of a city recovering from being occupied by the Nazis, the character interactions are a pure joy: all three men meet before discovering, much later, they are all in love with the same woman. Henri is already Lise’s boyfriend, but he’s scared to lose her if he doesn’t propose marriage. Adam thinks writing a ballet for her will be enough to get her attention. Jerry is under no allusion that his art might catch her eye, so he doggedly chases her, even in the wake of her protestations. The problematic old trope of the man continuing to ask a woman out even