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meteordustI never expected to love this show as much as I do.
I mean, I like Tim Minchin a lot: great songwriter, great singer. And the premise was intriguing enough: a musician goes on a road trip with a piano across Australia. But I never know what to expect with Australian drama: is it going to be bleak, is it going to be funny, is it going to be the kind of funny that's bleak underneath?
Turns out, Upright is funny and poignant and hopeful, and punches you in the heart with all the feelings.
Lucky is driving from Sydney to Perth to visit his estranged dying mother, and obsessed with taking this upright piano with him. Meg is a teenage runaway, headed west for her own reasons, and carrying her own demons. When their paths literally collide, they have to join forces to drive, hitchhike, and scam their way across the desert.
I already knew that one of my favourite tropes is life-changing road trips. Apparently another is the brash opinionated kid who shakes up the life of the cranky tired adult. These two misfits start off clashing wildly, become reluctant allies, and grow into unlikely friends. Their journey is full of revelations, as we learn the secrets driving them. I love, love, love stories about wounded people who heal each other.
Milly Alcock is amazing. The last time I was this impressed by a talented young actress was Dafne Keen in Logan and Sophie Thatcher in Prospect. I hope she goes on to great success just like they have.
And! One of the writers is Kate Mulvany, whose Bell Shakespeare performances I loved, and who is an acclaimed playwright herself.
And! As Lucky and Meg drive across Australia, you get to see the beautiful landscapes of desert and ocean, and meet the diverse and vivid people who inhabit the place.
The show is hilariously funny, but also deeply emotional. And Tim Minchin gets to sing! Turns out that Upright is the show where the song "Carry You" comes from, that Missy Higgins sings and Tim Minchin wrote. Anyway, here are two performances of the songs, with clips from the show, not really spoilery:
"Carry You" sung by Missy Higgins. The official music video:
"Carry You" sung by Tim Minchin. From Upright Episode 5:
Oh yeah. They are making a Season 2!
I mean, I like Tim Minchin a lot: great songwriter, great singer. And the premise was intriguing enough: a musician goes on a road trip with a piano across Australia. But I never know what to expect with Australian drama: is it going to be bleak, is it going to be funny, is it going to be the kind of funny that's bleak underneath?
Turns out, Upright is funny and poignant and hopeful, and punches you in the heart with all the feelings.
Lucky is driving from Sydney to Perth to visit his estranged dying mother, and obsessed with taking this upright piano with him. Meg is a teenage runaway, headed west for her own reasons, and carrying her own demons. When their paths literally collide, they have to join forces to drive, hitchhike, and scam their way across the desert.
I already knew that one of my favourite tropes is life-changing road trips. Apparently another is the brash opinionated kid who shakes up the life of the cranky tired adult. These two misfits start off clashing wildly, become reluctant allies, and grow into unlikely friends. Their journey is full of revelations, as we learn the secrets driving them. I love, love, love stories about wounded people who heal each other.
Milly Alcock is amazing. The last time I was this impressed by a talented young actress was Dafne Keen in Logan and Sophie Thatcher in Prospect. I hope she goes on to great success just like they have.
And! One of the writers is Kate Mulvany, whose Bell Shakespeare performances I loved, and who is an acclaimed playwright herself.
And! As Lucky and Meg drive across Australia, you get to see the beautiful landscapes of desert and ocean, and meet the diverse and vivid people who inhabit the place.
The show is hilariously funny, but also deeply emotional. And Tim Minchin gets to sing! Turns out that Upright is the show where the song "Carry You" comes from, that Missy Higgins sings and Tim Minchin wrote. Anyway, here are two performances of the songs, with clips from the show, not really spoilery:
"Carry You" sung by Missy Higgins. The official music video:
"Carry You" sung by Tim Minchin. From Upright Episode 5:
Oh yeah. They are making a Season 2!
