Opening in a visually-spectacular fashion, ‘The Rabbits’ is spellbindingly good from its eye-popping opening to its emotionally-charged ending.
Based on the infamous book by John Marsden and eerily illustrated by Shaun Tan, ‘The Rabbits’ is a collaboration between Opera Australia and Barking Gecko Theatre Company and brings together some of Australia’s most creative talents. Starring the silvery-voiced Kate Miller-Heidke, the show enthrals effortlessly - and aside from a minor fire alarm malfunction in the middle of the performance - the entire audience never took their eyes from the stage.
Miller-Heidke also composed the score and was responsible for making the production an epic aural adventure. Joining her behind-the-scenes was Gabriela Tylesova who created the sets and costumes which brought Tan’s imagery to life, and Lally Katz who transformed Marsden's words into a mesmerising libretto.
The show only ran for one hour in total without an interval, but those sixty minutes were filled with fraught frenetic energy and an ominous underlying evil. The story is a retelling of the colonisation of Australia, as told through the experiences of the native marsupials, who realise in horror that the invading rabbits are about to destroy their land and way of life. The story echoes through familiar scenarios – any place that experiences progress and growth also must experience change, clashes and chaos.
The performers in the roles of the marsupials were committed, their voices encapsulating the pain and searing those emotions into you through song. But equally, on the other side of the fence, the singers playing the rabbits were just as convincing. And above them all appeared the ethereal, otherworldly Miller-Heidke who appeared to shimmer from her post atop the marsupials mountain. Looking like a cross between Helena Bonham Carter and the White Witch from 'Narnia', Miller-Miller-Heike guides the story, narrating and commentating through song, and some of the best moments of the show are courtesy of her.
Acknowledged by the industry, ’The Rabbits' has won four Helpmann Awards, including Best New Australian Work, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, and Best Production for Children. 
