What’s your party trick? Eye-rolling? Cool. Flame-swallowing? That’s impressive. How about a synoptic one-man version of a Shakesperian tragedy done in the voice of over fifty characters from the longest running animated series of all time?

No? Hmm, guess it’s just Rick Miller, then. The lanky Canadian performer is in town for MacHomer, a solo performance of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The head of Sector 7G, Homer Simpson, takes on the titular role; and practically every other regular from Springfield makes an appearance – from the Sea Captain to Akira and back. Miller, just quietly, knows which voices he’s not great at – Bart and Lisa Simpson only appear briefly – but the impressions that he gets right here are almost shocking in just how impressive they are.

The audience spent their interaction with Miller and his performance in two states of mind. The first was in laughter – and there were plenty of reasons to throughout. Ned Flanders’ turn as Banquo, throwing a “doodily” and “dokily” into the fire of Shakesperian language, definitely got a few chuckles; particularly from the younger audience. The “when shall we three meet again” witches (The Sea Captain, Moe Syzlak and Seymour Skinner) also received some laughter at their appearance at the very beginning – particularly Miller’s facial mannerisms reflecting the character brilliantly.

The second state of mind was simply one of awe and admiration. You should have heard the gasps in the audience as Miller read a letter from “MacHomie” in the voice of Marge Simpson (here playing Lady MacHomer). Or when Barney “MacDuff” Gumble first parades on to the stage in a triumphant, burping mess – the reception to both his arrival and his rendition was very uplifting. It was difficult to comprehend that every action, voice and movement happening before our very eyes was the work of just one man.

Despite sticking almost entirely to the original language and text of the play, Miller still manages to make the experience entirely his own. Video screens, music and even a segment of puppetry all equate to a very unique creation that engages its audience and lures them in to a bizarre pastiche world, like a ‘Treehouse of Horror’ gone wrong. It’s a performance one should prepare for: by all means, read as much of the play and watch as much of The Simpsons as you possible can before attending. But don’t expect to ever see either party in the same light again.

“Is this a dagger I see before me? Or is it a pizza?”

MacHomer is playing at the following venues:

Sydney Theatre Company
Jan 21 – Jan 23

Queensland PAC
Jan 24 – Jan 30

Merrigong Theatre Company, Wollongong
Feb 02 – Feb 07

Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre, Bathurst
Feb 08 – Feb 09, 2010