Throbbin' Wood - Zealous Productions
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
Reviewed by Kate O'Sullivan
Zealous Productions' Throbbin' Wood is a riotously entertaining night at the theatre, delivering exactly what audiences are likely hoping for: plenty of laughs, a healthy dose of cheeky innuendo, and enough energy to carry the audience through from start to finish. It's a production that knows exactly what it is and embraces the absurdity wholeheartedly.
The script is packed with clever jokes and shameless puns, and the cast clearly delight in every opportunity to land them. Even when the humour heads into gloriously ridiculous territory, there's a sense that everyone on stage is fully committed to the world they've created, making it easy for the audience to come along for the ride.
Samuel Moloney is an obvious crowd favourite as Silly Willy, bringing boundless enthusiasm, boyish charm and exactly the right level of pantomime flair to the role. Manuao Te Aotonga is equally enjoyable as the Sheriff of Frottingham, effortlessly drawing boos from the audience whenever he appears, while Chris Gerrish's wonderfully outrageous Nanny Fanny has the audience laughing throughout. Blake Jenkins is a solid comedic foil as Triar F***, and Elethea Sartorelli gives Maid Marian a likeable balance of innocence and confidence, navigating the script's more risqué moments with warmth and charm alongside Charles Sherrington as the eponymous Throbbin' Wood. The ensemble is strong across the board (Shoreina Pereira and Shenae White, with Maree Cole and Will Bassoon as the Horny Men), helping to maintain the production's relentless pace and infectious energy.
While the principal cast carries much of the action, the production also makes excellent use of its ensemble and supporting players. In a show with a relatively small company, they consistently create the feeling of a lived-in world, filling transitions and background moments with character and purpose that make the production feel much larger than its cast size.
The choreography (Shenae White pulling double duty), is another highlight. It embraces the show's cheeky, risqué humour without ever feeling gratuitous, instead becoming a natural extension of the world and the storytelling. Whether delivering a punchline or driving a musical number, the movement feels purposeful, polished and in keeping with the production's irreverent style.
Visually, the production captures the medieval-meets-camp aesthetic well. Costumes are fun, playful and fit the genre beautifully, balancing period styling with the show's decidedly adult sense of humour. However, the Fairy costume feels slightly less cohesive than the rest of the wardrobe and may have benefited from a slightly simpler approach to better match the established look.
The lighting design supports the production well, using colour, specials and follow spots to guide the audience's focus. The follow spots did sometimes lose performers as they moved, creating a few distracting moments, but these were relatively minor.
Opening night's biggest hurdle was the sound balance. The live band sounded great, but during many of the musical numbers the vocals were often overwhelmed, making lyrics difficult to distinguish even from only a few rows back. There were also a handful of microphones that entered late or failed to come on. These feel like opening night technical issues that will likely settle quickly across the season, but certainly disrupted the show on opening night.
The second act loses a little momentum as the script begins to stretch some of its jokes, though this is more a function of the writing than the performances themselves. Strong direction, confident musical direction and a cast that throws themselves wholeheartedly into every moment ensure Throbbin' Wood remains a thoroughly enjoyable, laugh-filled evening that never takes itself too seriously.
Reviewer Note: Kate has previously worked with members of this cast. Tickets for this review were provided by Zealous Productions.
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