For students who may not specialise in the arts but are committed to maintaining what’s left of Australia’s healthcare system, USyd’s medicine students have orchestrated a uniquely unforgettable performance at this year’s Med Revue. The showcase features a wild blend of chaotic hip-hop dances, Zoom calls to the haunted Dubbo campus, and subversively offbeat singing, culminating in hilarious parodies of ‘I’m Just Ken’ and ‘Bohemian Rhapsody” (to name a couple). Together, they capture the beautifully tragic med student experience. Showing from September 19 to 21 at USyd’s own Seymour Theatre, it was absolutely worth the watch.
The play opens with “the protagonist,” a suffering medical student who flits in and out of scenes wearing navy silk Peter Alexander pyjamas. He injects himself with 5 cans of Red Bull a night in a desperate attempt to pass the KAT (knowledge and application test), MMCA (Multi-Modal Clinical Assessment), RLA (Required Learning Activity), and countless other acronyms defined in the program’s life-saving glossary. Ultimately, he switches from student to patient, diagnosed with a perfectly intact Red Bull lodged in his brain. He stands as the perfect representation of med student life: sleepless nights where the mind drowns in textbooks, while the body transforms into a caffeinated beverage playground.
Fast-paced and energetic, the seamless change in lighting whisked the audience into a lively medical knowledge game show. The host — a grown man in speedos and a blazer — exuded the bravado only a true actor could possess. Behind him stood two opposing podiums. On one side, a gym bro lifting 3kg weights and a 6-foot-nepo-baby sporting serial killer glasses, on the other, two aspiring paediatric-psych-onco-cardio-neuro-analyst doctors, trekking their way through their first year of uni with overwhelming intelligence and sheer fatigue. Who will triumph in this “who’s the better doctor” face-off: the hardworking, sleep-deprived med students or the comic relief? This is a trick question.
Cut to ‘I want Med,’ an innovative rendition of Barbie’s ‘I’m Just Ken,’ featuring six dancers electrifying the stage with hip-hop moves synchronised in a lopsided triangle. Standing atop the infamous stretcher (the unsung hero of the show), the lead singer poured his heart into the song, asking the world why he “chose a life of nobility.” Was the singing slightly pitchy? Maybe. But the performance was undeniably entertaining as they humorously pondered the age-old question: “should I have done law instead?”
With plenty of singing and dancing from the Sydney campus, the play seamlessly oscillated between live performances and projector videos, allowing the students of the Dubbo campus to bask in the limelight. They did not disappoint, presenting a thrilling short film worthy of a spot at the Cannes Film Festival. My heart beat rapidly experiencing the cinematography of a haunting star-shaped balloon, the ominous presence of the KAT, and the everlasting entrapment of a med classroom, all capturing that eerie feeling of “just one more quiz, one more assignment, and then I can finally go home and party…”
Ultimately, the highlight of the play was the disease auction, hosted by a mesmerising auctioneer whose French accent was so convincing we practically transported to Paris. Adorned in a chic velvet beret and a floral dress, she showcased an array of visually stunning bacteria and fungi, including the gorgeous honeycomb shaped cellular debris. Bids began at $1,000 and soared to $1 million a pop, as auctioneers scrambled to secure their prize after finding out that the man behind the bacteria, “died in a public place.”
Med Revue was an absolute blast, hilariously capturing the tragedies of med student life while we sat back, chuckling at the thought that these talented individuals will be responsible for our health in about 10 years. With a diverse array of skits, unique parodies and impressive behind-the-scenes lighting and musical transitions, the show was both entertaining and a testament to the sharp wit and ingenuity of USyd’s med students.
