Double, double toil and trouble and you are in the world of Bell Shakespeare’s new production Mackenzie.
Billed as a Y2K era musical, Mackenzie owes more to Hannah Montana and Mean Girls than Shakespeare’s bloodiest of tragedies, and for ninety minutes or so we are all the more thankful for the levity in this new production.
Geed up by studio assistants before the start, the audience is already primed to be a part of this action as we are introduced to the brutal world of children’s television and its equally ruthless young stars.
We meet Mackenzie (Kimberley Hodgson), who is a talented cog in the wheel of The Daliah Show, and her mother, Ruth (Nikki Britton), who has never seen a stage she doesn’t like, preferably with her daughter at its centre.
Like all would be stars, Mackenzie has a fan boy and ‘gay ethnic Zac Efron’ in Beau, played to the hilt by Ryan González. Enter Pickle (Jane Watt), a makeup artist who is prone to visions, and sees only good things for Mackenzie.
With Ruth’s help, Daliah (Anusha Thomas) is soon off the scene and a new banner is unfurled announcing The Mackenzie Show, accompanied by much singing and dancing. Over seeing the transition is the studio boss played by Billie Palin, who cuts a villainous figure dressed in a power suit.
As Mackenzie ages from 13 to 18 she feels the clock on her existence at the top of teen TV is ticking, and before we know it she is reaching her mature phase.
If you don’t go looking for Banquo’s ghost, Mackenzie is a lot of fun with some good songs and dancing, while retaining many of Macbeth’s original themes of ambition, obsession, guilt, narcissism and madness.
Writer Yve Blake has written a play that embraces the audience and never talks down the characters, no matter how deep their flaws run. She is an unapologetic fan of the Y2K era and its stars such as Brittany and Christina, the fashions of baby tees, halter tops and matching sets.
That Blake has run this show loose along the lines of Macbeth has seen it embraced by Bell Shakespeare who have aimed it at a very important younger audience.
All of the actors deliver across a range of disciplines that include singing and dancing, Kimberley Hodgson and Nikki Britton are the standouts, along with Ryan González’s Beau. Palin, Thomas and Watt play various characters but Palin’s butch lesbian caterer demands applause.
Director Virginia Gay has this show on her resume as her second success this year, after the earlier Mama Does Derby. In Mackenzie, she proves that she knows how to keep a show tight while maximising movement in the song and dance numbers.
Keerthi Subramanyam’s set is minimal, but her costumes are hot and evoke the era perfectly, while Kelsey Lee’s lighting is striking and Tom Lowndes’ powerful sound elevates the singing and dancing.
Mackenzie is a show that is a whole lot of fun enhanced by good performances and dance numbers.
Mackenzie
The Neilson Nutshell, Pier 2/3, Hickson Road, Walsh Bay (Sydney)
Performance: Friday 12 June 2026
Season continues to 18 July 2026
Bookings: www.bellshakespeare.com.au
Fairfax Studio – Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne
Season: 24 July – 9 August 2026 (preview: 23 July)
Bookings: www.artscentremelbourne.com.au
For more information, visit: www.bellshakespeare.com.au for details.
Images: Jane Watt, Kimberley Hodgson, Ryan González and Billie Palin in Mackenzie – photo by Brett Boardman | Anusha Thomas and Kimberley Hodgson in Mackenzie – photo by Brett Boardman | Ryan González and Kimberley Hodgson in Mackenzie – photo by Brett Boardman | Anusha Thomas, Ryan González, Nikki Britton (hidden), Jane Watt, Billie Palin and Kimberley Hodgson (centre) in Mackenzie – photo by Brett Boardman
Review: John Moyle