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Recent Episodes

Across the Aisle is a podcast for people who love the arts but don’t get along as much as they would like to. If you’re looking to be inspired to see more exhibitions, film, theatre, or would like to live vicariously through our show going hosts, please subscribe on your podcasting app or listen here.

Animal Farm,
This is Living

Image is closely cropped on a woman's chest in a military style overcoat, red sash and hand in the breast of the jacket. She is holding a rubber chicken mask.

HELLO PIGGIES. We get down and dirty with The Bloomshed and their meltingly good ⁠Animal Farm⁠. In Intermission we discuss the Venn overlap between this and Barbie. Our second act takes us to the Malthouse for ⁠This is Living⁠ – Ash Flanders ode to chronically ill queers who want to run away to the country (Carla was ATTACKED).

And in Coming Soon we recommend the ⁠Pulse⁠ program at Melbourne Fringe and the ⁠REWIRE⁠ program at Geelong Arts Centre. This was a truly joyous return to form, and felt like the before time with a little more existential death rattle thrown in. Our favourite! Long live queer irony as the pathway to pleasure and salvation.

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Grand Theft Theatre,
Identity

Image from The Hum. A group of dancers perform in front of a large round screen. The stage is black and the round screen is lit with red light. They are raising a dancer on their back, in the middle of a circle.

Happy winter listeners! We hope this finds you well and rugged up. This month we discuss ⁠Pony Cam’s Grand Theft Theatre⁠ and the shows that have left an indelible mark on us. Intermission chatter plugs the HBO show ⁠Barry⁠ (better than Succession? you decide!) and the Music Viva ⁠International Chamber Music Championship⁠. Our second act is the Australian Ballet’s double bill ⁠Identity⁠. An odd pairing we couldn’t wrap our brains around. Our Coming Soon recommendations are ⁠This is Living⁠, ⁠An Uprising of Dreams⁠, the ⁠Women’s World Cup⁠ and hyper local video store documentary ⁠Rainbow Video⁠.

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I Liked it But…,
Happy Days

Judith Lucy in a floral shirt is facing the camera smiling in front of a green background.


Happy days are here again, or are they? This month we head to Little Creature’s in Geelong for an education in contemporary dance (and pizza) with Joel Bray’s ⁠I Liked it But…⁠ and do a rare mission to the MTC to see Becketts absurdist tragicomic provocation ⁠Happy Days⁠. In Intermission we discuss our favourite Little Creatures moments, ⁠Loaded at Malthouse Theatre⁠ and ⁠Sydney Dance Company at Geelong Arts Centre⁠. Recommendations for Coming Soon are ⁠Clarice Beckett at Geelong Gallery⁠, ⁠Shadow Spirit at Rising⁠, La Mama’s new festival ⁠Explorations⁠ (featuring ⁠Pony Cam’s Boobs in Space⁠) and ⁠Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition⁠. Please tell a friend about our show today! <3 Carla, Philip and Ron.

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Episode Archive

About Us

Across the Aisle is an award-winning performing arts criticism podcast based in Melbourne that first ran monthly 2015-2019, and has returned in a less regular fashion in 2022. Each episode hosts Carla and Philip chose a performance or art object to experience and discuss in depth. During “intermission” Carla and Phil talk their favourite pop culture moments of the previous month and in “coming soon” they highlight upcoming shows, exhibitions, films, anything culture related.

Across the Aisle was created specifically to provide long form criticism and promotion of live performance pieces that do not usually get covered, in depth, in traditional arts media. In a pandemic world our show has expanded to incorporate all art forms. Our mission statement is to champion work starring, and made, by women, LGBTIQA+ people, disabled people, Indigenous artists, older people and people of colour.

Phil, Carla and Ron accepting the Arts and Entertainment award at the 2015 Australia Podcast Awards from Claudia Taranto. All four are standing and smiling to camera, Carla is holding the award.
Australian Podcast Awards, Arts and Entertainment 2018 Winner
Australian Podcast Awards 2019 Winner

Meet Team Aisle

We live, love, record and make on the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri, Boon Wurrung and Wadawurrung people of the Kulin Nation. Land that was never ceded. Land that was, and always will be, Aboriginal.

Headshot of Carla Donnelly. Carla has brown hair style in a bob, with fringe. She is looking to the camera and smiling. She is wearing round glasses and a navy blue jumper.

Carla Donnelly – Creator, Host

Carla is the creator of podcasts Across the Aisle, Club Soderbergh and re:Discovery. She was a judge for the Green Room Awards and Melbourne Fringe Festival on the Independent Theatre panel for 4 years and is now settling into her sea change on the Surf Coast.

Phil looking to camera with an alluring gaze.

Philip Thiel – Host

Philip is an English and literature teacher, blogger and cultural consumer from Melbourne, Victoria. His writing and poetry has been published in Traffic, Death Mook and Victorian Writer. He has a particular interest in immersive performance pieces.

Ron smiles looking out a train window.

Ron Killeen – Sound Engineer, Mix

Ron is a digital media producer in Melbourne, Victoria. He is also a closet train spotter, accomplished musician and immersive theatre conspirator. Ron has performed in events appearing in Adelaide Fringe, Brisbane Festival and Dark Mofo.
Carla, Ron and Phil take a selfie at the Australian Podcast Awards.

Support Us

We believe theatre, art and the performing arts are for everyone. We make our podcast so that listeners don’t need to see the shows, or focus of discussion, to feel included. Theatre and art curation is a performance of our times; it’s from this angle that we approached our criticism. Deep cuts, queer theory, feminism and the promotion of minority lead narratives abounded.

In its first incarnation Across the Aisle ran for 4 years publishing 49 episodes, covering almost 100 performances. We resumed in 2022 and hope for another 49 more. If you have enjoyed our back catalogue, used our coverage in a grant application or promotion of your work please buy us a drink.


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Contact Us

Hello! We love hearing from you! If you’d like to get in touch please use the links below.


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