Kiss & Cry

Kiss & Cry is a feat of technical wizardry that peels back the curtains and allows the audience in on the secret.

But for all the magic of seeing how this extraordinary piece is made, the audience is left wanting thanks to a storyline that never really ignites the way it should.

Performed on miniature sets by agile, dancing hands and filmed so the whole thing can be projected onto a big screen overlooking the stage, Kiss & Cry tells the story of an old woman sitting at a train station reminiscing about the loves she has lost over her lifetime. While the various set pieces are visually stunning and the audience is able to view the model sets as they are filmed, manipulated and pulled apart, we never really get enough sense of who this lonely old woman is or why our hearts should break every time her love falls apart.

Even without an essential hook into the story though, there is certainly plenty to keep the audience interested. The ice-skating routine performed by two twirling fingers is as majestic and graceful as watching the real thing and the sound, lighting and cinematography all deserve thunderous applause.

Carriageworks Bay 17 (finished)