THEATRE: CRY HAVOC’S JULIUS CAESAR

It sounds decidedly like a battle whoop. “Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war,” mutters Antony in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Emerging theatre company Cry Havoc, stocked with fresh talent hot off the NIDA and WAAPA circuit, is dedicated to serving up classics – the Bard himself, Euripides and Kafka included – with a contemporary, dewy-eyed twist. Begun by highschool friends Kate Revz and Gemma Panita, and joined by actor James Mackay and playwright Joanna Erskine, the group look like they’d be more comfortable on an indie fashion shoot than on the stage, spouting Shakespeare no less. But with some serious credentials behind them, and Australia’s favourite bad boy star Marcus Graham lending his patronage, looks could be deceiving. Appropriately, Julius Caesar is the first one to get a makeover. “It’s more than just politics … more than power and how it’s manipulated,” says Revz. “It’s also about fate, faith and the most potent of human relationships.” Theatre troupes of Australia, take heed.

 Oct 27-Nov 14, atyp’s Studio 1, The Wharf, Pier 4/5 Hickson Rd, Walsh Bay, $20-29, 9251 3900 or cryhavoc.com.au