THE Sesame Street-esque set and doppelganger puppets might send you back to your childhood where “sunny days sweepin’ the clouds away and the air is sweet”, but Avenue Q is far from the G-rated children’s television show.
Prince Moo Productions is presenting the Tony Award- winning musical at Crown Theatre Perth until December 10, which packages the trials and tribulations of adulthood into a hilarious, toe-tapping, politically incorrect performance.
The audience is first introduced to main character Princeton (puppeteered by Ross Hannaford) who has recently graduated university and moves to Avenue Q while on the hunt to find his purpose in life and give it meaning.
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READ NOWHis opening song What Do You Do with a BA in English? sets the tone for a musical unafraid to talk about issues, including racism (Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist), homosexuality (If You Were Gay) and pornography (The Internet is For Porn).
The inclusion of characters Kate Monster (puppeteered by Amberly Cull) and Trekkie Monster (puppeteered by Vincent Hooper) are a clever depiction of race/racism and a plethora of references to their “fur” hit a home run each time.
Much like the show that inspired it, the musical has puppets alongside human characters but in this format the audience gets an up-close look at the puppeteers; seeing the emotion on their faces matching that of their character and the difficulty of voicing a puppet that is sometimes on the other side of the stage.
More: Vincent Hooper dishes adult humour in musical Avenue Q
Their talent is faultless and energy abounds as the pace hurtles from one song to the next.
Full of heart, Avenue Q examines the hardships of being an adult and has not dated despite being written nearly 15 years ago.
There is even a quip about Donald Trump for those concerned about his looming presidency.
Tickets at www.ticketmaster com.au.