Brisbane's brand spanking new Powerhouse Centre for the Live Arts is a 22 million dollar monument which has been heralded as the building which will make Brisbane the centre for the performing arts in the Asia Pacific region. And granted, the Powerhouse is an impressive sight to behold, with much of its original crumbling brick facade maintained and the new fittings blending in perfectly with its derelict v modern vibe. But if the choice of opening program is anything to go by, the Powerhouse will have its work cut out for it once the original novelty value has worn off.

Now I'm no great patron of the arts, but to these eyes The Rock N Roll Circus's brand new production Sonata For Ten Hands fell well short of being great theatre. Set to the music of Schumann and Brahms, Sonata For Ten Hands begins with scenes from a children's party and depicts the powerplays which take place between them. Act Two re-visits the same characters 30 years later to demonstrate how those early experiences shaped their lives.

Act One was perhaps one of the most painful pieces of theatre I've had to endure in my short lifetime. Heavily reliant on dated slapstick routines, the nadir was the treatment of a cast member with a prosthetic limb, who was teased in such a depraved manner that my partner was on the verge of walking out. The skills of the performers couldn't be faulted, and indeed, the strength they displayed in hoisting themselves around the stage (with its magnificent brick backdrop lit to stunning effect) was amazing, but the execution of whatever message they were trying to get across was sorely lacking. However, massive kudos must go to pianist Tamara Anne Cislowska, who almost succeeded in lifting the show to some heights with her brilliant ivory tickling, at one stage performing a 10-minute slab of the 2nd act blind-folded.

Admittedly, with a key cast member injured just days before the premiere, the Rock N Roll Circus were up against it from the outset. But I couldn't help but feeling that Sonata For Ten Hands was more than a little underdone. - Kris Swales

Rock N Roll Circus Website

Brisbane Powerhouse Website