Sydney Herald, October 11, 2004 (Australia)
by Bryce Hallett
Poised for a rousing swansong

From marathons of communal singing in Federation Square to stirring ballads in Her Majesty's Theatre - the Melbourne International Arts Festival is celebrating the voice in the most democratic and rousing fashion it can.

For her last Melbourne Festival, artistic director Robyn Archer has provided a rich and remarkable program that not only reflects the focus of her own performing career but one that pulls together a great number and variety of strands. The event encompasses one-man shows, a yodel Mass sung by a choir from the Swiss Alps, innovative screen culture, song and dance collaborations, and epic musical adventure.

The one-man puppet virtuoso Ronnie Burkett may not have a 30-strong cast at his disposal but his mastery of marionettes and his vocal gymnastics create the illusion of an epic in the most intimate of spaces.

Two years ago the Canadian puppeteer, playwright and performer took the Melbourne Festival by storm with his extraordinary show Tinka's New Dress. Now he follows suit with the equally remarkable, densely worded and entrancing Provenance. It, too, has a dramatic sting in its tail.

Provenance examines notions of beauty, self-loathing and fear as it charts the journey of Pity (Pittance) Bean, a graduate obsessed with an enigmatic painting of a beautiful, androgynous boy titled "Tender". Her quest takes her to a brothel in Vienna where she makes startling discoveries about the origins and history of the painting while confronting aspects of her own identity and self-worth.

Burkett weaves a wondrous tapestry of characters and ideas, a fabric that's full of witty and wise texture and enough colour to confront and surprise. And the joy of watching the performer is the way he lets the seams of his magic-making show.

Provenance demands attention given the incessant nature of the play of ideas and the baroque-like density of the language. It's an amazing feat and Burkett again reveals himself to be a showman in the true sense of the word. He appears to pluck magic from the air while communicating serious, deeply disturbing ideas about beauty, rash judgement and prejudice. Provenance not only peers intently into the mirror to look at human nature but strips its propensity for camouflage and pretence bare. Like Tinka's New Dress, it's certain to become a festival hit.

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