An intimate night of love sought and independence won, told through romantic, enthralling melodies by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black.

One of Weber’s more understated works, (as compared to Cats and Phantom of the Opera, for example) Tell me on a Sunday is the tale of a young, fresh faced British woman raised to place her idea of happiness on marrying and having children. When her marriage to an American man goes pear-shaped she pursues a series of new beaus, some more questionable than others, before realising that she alone is enough.

For a play written in 1980, this was a pretty empowering statement to put on the big stage. For a performance in 2024, the heroine’s reclamation of her own agency comes a bit late in the piece. Direction by Ben Blazey and the intimate staging of the show at Hayes theatre, in which the stage and the band are nestled close together and shrouded by warm light and velvet curtains, evokes the nostalgia needed to put yourself in the mind of someone seeing this in a time when the feminist movement hadn’t come quite as far as we know it today.

Erin Clare is the quintessential everywoman, wearing her heart on her sleeve and seeking to see the best in people. Her stage presence is captivating whether she’s in the girlish and earnest throws of a new relationship, or dejected and steely at their end.

The six piece band works with Clare to tell her story, and not once are they out of sync. Laura Power is a force to be reckoned with, playing four instruments instruments across the score.

There are several motifs that in their repetitive nature really give Clare room to play with the character’s evolution through nuanced changes to tone, expressions and intensity. The periodic letters she writes to her mum and the songs that signpost the end of each relationship evolve as she learns the hard way that fulfilment comes from within.

When all is said and one, our heroine is in a far better place than when we meet her: more confident and singing her biggest, boldest melodies yet.

Purchase your ticket to Tell Me On A Sunday here. 

Pinot Gris | Wine Pairing

Pinot Gris is a light and fruity drop that would pair well with the Sunday roast our heroine dreams of doing with her perfect family, and stands alone just as well.

Tell Me On A Sunday, Michelle Guthrie Presents with Hayes Theatre Co | Tasting Notes

Aussie Season	12 April to 12 May 2024, Hayes Theatre Co.
Ticket $	$60-85
Writer	Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lyrics by Don Black
Director	Ben Blazey
Theatre Type & Genre	Musical, romance
See it if you like	Wild, Eat Pray Love
Wine Pairing	Pinot Gris
Criteria for Wine Pairing	Pairs with classic dinners like roast chicken, but also can stand on it’s own