Ride the Cyclone, The Musical
Creators: Jacob Richmond, Brooke Maxwell
Director: Kris Sergi
Eternity Playhouse, Darlinghurst
14 May 14 – 30 May, 2026
Ride the Cyclone, unusually, lives up to the hype. The present production performed by the youthful Company of Dramatic Arts (CODA) is funny, poignant, bizarre and surprisingly profound. The performance is dazzling in its energy and impact.
The Cyclone of the title is a roller coaster ride, excitedly embarked upon by the members of the St Cassian High School Chamber Choir from the small town of Uranium. Their adventure ends in a heartbreaking accident and the five teenagers find themselves in an indeterminate space between life and death. Puzzled and frightened, they are informed by an appropriately unsympathetic mechanical fortune teller, The Amazing Karnak (voiced by Michael Haratzis), that one of them will be awarded the chance to return to life.
The traumatised teenagers want to know which one and how the decision will be made but Karnak is strangely elliptical in his response. “Tell your story,” he says, “and you may be chosen.” Hardly helpful advice, and he further confuses them by introducing an additional contender, an unidentified victim of the accident. Furthermore, Karnak is a tricky fellow and changes the conditions of their quest arbitrarily.
As a plot device, the story works wonderfully well; each teen comes forward holding centre stage as they movingly own their failures, desires and regrets. Each solo is supported by the ensemble, costumed appropriately and amusingly, and the choreography is delivered perfectly. The smooth coordination of the whole is greatly assisted by the rotating circular stage, which has its own symbolic significance.
Each teen is a personality type and the casting is admirable. Natalie Patterson as the doll-like Doe, and a stranger to the group, always remembers to be at a loss and her voice, as she delivers her sorrowful almost-aria, is powerfully disturbing. The self-doubting but caring Constance “the nicest girl in town” is played by Kavisha Karunarathna with a hesitant authenticity and Ricky Potts (Liam Faulkner-Dimond), less physically able than the others, reveals a truly commanding secret self in his hilarious solo. Riley Druce as Mischa Bachinski is engaging as a “bad boy” originally from Ukraine, who turns out to be concealing a secret sorrow beneath his aggressive “gangsta” style.
A highlight of the solos is Brock Cramond’s performance as Noel Gruber, the closeted gay member of the group, whose love of Marlene Dietrich pays off in a theatrical and witty solo and dance. While apparently self-confident, Cramond sensitively conveys a less certain aspect to his character. But the show-stopper of the ensemble is Kayla Ingle-Olson as Ocean O’Connell-Rosenberg, the cleverest girl in town and the self-chosen spokesperson for the group. A powerhouse of vigour and wit, and a challenger of the status quo shaped by hippie parents, the ambitious Ocean, who has moments of vulnerability, is tested by the oracular Karnak.
While there is a sheaf of creatives to acknowledge for their part in the production of this roller coaster ride of emotions, there is not enough space. The director, the music director, the musicians behind the curtain, sound, choreography, costumes and set are all to be congratulated on a stunning production. A special mention goes to the AV design, which allows the audience a poignant glimpse of the lives of the lost.
