Archive for category Traverse
The Dark Philosophers
Posted by Martin in Charlotte Monk-Chipman, Dark Philosophers, Traverse on August 19, 2011
THEATRE
***
The Dark Philosophers
Traverse
Created by National Theatre Wales in association with Told by an Idiot, the show is a theatrical adaptation of the collection of short stories (with the same title) by Welsh storyteller Gwyn Thomas, and the life of the author entwined. The result is a somewhat confusing collaboration, and if it was particularly brilliant, it went over my head.
The show was true to its storytelling routes, using the character of the deceased Gwyn Thomas as a narrator and folklorist song, which kept the momentum of the piece fluid. Although I confess I found the performance to drag at times and I adopted a sleepy haze around my head.
Interspersed with a naturalistic acting style, were fleeting stylised episodes and I sensed a Berkoff influence. But the overall shape of the performance seemed to lack a stylistic axis. A giant puppet is awkwardly thrust into the mix in replacement of an actor, and isn’t even manipulated in a convincing way. The rustic aesthetic gave the piece some grounding, but the impressive staging of a mountain of functioning dark wood wardrobes; used as entrances and exits could only anchor the piece as far as the visual content extends. But I didn’t feel the mask of the dead Thomas worked, and his looming presence on stage would have worked without it, certainly his physicality altered little from the other actors, and the mask didn’t really indicate death artistically. His role in the plot was clever, as he consistently supplied words and sentences for the characters to use, which enforced the presence of the writer, and his role in the stories.
I am at a loss to explain the purpose of the Parkinson chat show interludes with Dolly Parton and Billy Connolly, except to further unhinge the plot from reality and a fixed time frame; as if to make some pretentious comment about the immortality of the authors documented words. I still don’t know what to make of the performance, so if anything it should be praised for leaving an impact on its audience, but I fear that without the set designer, this performance would have laid to rest with the author whose life and works it celebrates.
I, Malvolio
Posted by Martin in I Malvolio, Martin Powell, Traverse on August 19, 2011
THEATRE
***
I, Malvolio
Traverse
I saw Tim Crouch last year in The Author, one of the most unconventional pieces of theatre I’ve ever seen. This year I spotted he was doing this show and thought I’d see him in something more normal. On this measure at least it failed. The Traverse 2 space may have looked more like it normally does but this was far from a piece of normal theatre. For a start the house lights never went down.
My old dad, who was a great lover of poetry, always used to say that Shakespeare’s words were wonderful but his plots were rubbish. I was reminded of this when watching this play where in character Crouch as Malvolio sets about deconstructing Twelth Night and the whole institution of theatre. Or rather he does when we get this far for first he has to establish a relationship with the other cast members – the entire audience.
Why are we so passive when in the theatre and accept it is not real? At one point it appears he is getting two members of the audience to hang him. We just sit there and do nothing. A quite deep and thought provoking challenge to our entire notion of theatre.
The Wheel
Posted by Martin in Rex de Vil, Traverse, Wheel on August 17, 2011
THEATRE
***
The Wheel
Traverse
From a Nazi occupied Poland to a war-torn Vietnam at the hands of Agent Orange, the characters of this offering by playwright Zinnie Harris embark on a journey spanning decades, desperately stumbling through various conflicts of the past century in an examination of youth, nature and war. Beginning in 19th Century Spain our heroine Beatriz (Catherine Walsh) finds herself carrying a nameless mute across continents and ages in a desperate attempt to return her to her father. However as their voyage progresses we come to suspect the child has some sort of powers, and whether these are miraculous or malign is unsure, especially when contrasted to the horrors of the war zone.
Although a confident production with some moments of beauty, I did not feel particularly moved or stirred by the action on stage. I feel Harris is aware that it’s easy to get caught up in the too obviously affecting juxtaposition of children and conflict, and so her inclusion of the child’s suspect power is an interesting addition however unfortunately this not expanded on or examined enough in my opinion. Catherine Walsh’s performance begins well though after an hour and a half of monotone shouting I found myself bored by her constant level of attack.
No question this is a good production, I’m just unsure of its focus.
Man of Valour
Posted by Martin in Man of Valour, Rex de Vil, Traverse on August 17, 2011
THEATRE
***
Man of Valour
Traverse
A virtually wordless solo performance by Paul Reid, ‘Man of Valour’ tells of an office drone’s confrontation of his past, the defiance of his demons through the lens of his overactive imagination. A humourous and at times touching performance, this production at Traverse adopts a refreshing translation of a warming fiction.
All the impact of an action movie is conjured by the high-octane performance given by Reid, whose mimes and self-generated sound effects build up the various settings and scenarios encountered by the production’s protagonist Farrell Blinks. One minute photocopying, the next entangled in a diabolical battle, Reid is able to summon a staggering variety of situations that demonstrate his focus and ability as a performer. Complemented by the minimal suggestive set and lighting design by Aedin Cosgrove, Reid’s performance is full of wit and pathos although one must confess there is only so much one can take of a man making his own sound effects and I feel I am not the only one who would agree that mime is perhaps best kept to a shorter time frame.
Worth a watch, though I feel that regardless of Reid’s impressive and sustained performance that had some audience members standing in applause, this production will not engage everyone.
What Remains
Posted by Martin in Rex de Vil, Traverse, What Remains on August 17, 2011
THEATRE
**
What Remains
Traverse (at University of Edinburgh’s Medical School Anatomy Department)
A promenade experience taking place in the impressive and grand Anatomy Department of the University’s Medical School, ‘What Remains’ combines music, theatre and installation to relay the story of obsessive pianost Maestro Gilbert K Pendergast and his doomed pupils. A self-confessed horror story inspired by the works of the genre’s masters such as Hitchcock and Cronenburg, one is to expect some melodrama, some extravagance. Regardless of this, the production was unable to avoid moments of cringe worthy cliché leading me once again to wonder if the novelty of an interactive performance has masked a lack in content (see review for Hotel Medea).
Opening the experience with a haunting piano solo, there can be no challenge to the fact that David Paul Jones, the composer and performer of ‘What Remains’, is an exceedingly gifted musician. Attacking the ivories like nothing I have ever seen before, Jones’s solo was a crazed composition that led me to believe the evening would sustain a mature and engaging experience, aware of its own extravagance and with a sense of irony. Unfortunately, despite some early interactive installations that were slick and considered, the evening slid into a succession of wearisome and overdone motifs such as Jones’ descending of a staircase in a papier-mâché blood stained mask and a murderous ‘plan’ crafted from torn newspaper clippings. When on the staircase, Jones performed a version of an Anthony and The Johnsons song that’s lyrics seemed to have no tie-in to the plot the audience were gathering the details of, and to be honest was embarrassing in its execution, especially when awake to Jones’ own compositional skill.
What this production needs is some serious editing, a stripping away of the hackneyed components that ruined some initial moments of worth. Only then will the production successfully sit with the incredible location, a space suited perfectly to the increasingly popular medium of interactive and promenade performance, worthy of experiencing beyond this confusing offering by the Traverse.
The Wheel
Posted by Martin in Martin Powell, Traverse, Wheel on August 14, 2011
THEATRE
****
The Wheel
Traverse
The National Theatre of Scotland, whose production this is, have recently started using the slogan “five dramatic years”. Can they really have been around only for 5 years? Such has been their impact they feel like they have been around half my life and I’m much older than 10.
If there is one word that sums up every production of theirs I’ve seen it would be “ambitious” and while that word would certainly sum up this show I did wonder early on if awful or atrocious might be better A words. Indeed, if your idea of theatre is something light and fluffy those might be words you would choose. However sometimes theatre comes along that is hard work but worth the journey. This play by Zinnie Harris and directed by Vicky Featherstone is one such.
Although it has a cast of 14 the main character is Beatriz (Catherine Walsh), a woman from Northern Spain from perhaps 150 years ago who on her sister’s wedding day discovers the country is at war. We follow her metaphorical journey through war, as she picks up 3 children and tries to care for them. A story of how people and communities cope with war. The sacrifices they have to make and what they put up with. Yet it is also a story of soldiers, what war means for them and how they search for a miracle to get out of it or just to return to normal life.
The chronology is itself conflated for while things may have started off 150 years ago, we hear the sound of planes and talk of gas being used by the Germans. There is a scene involving trains. Was this perhaps a reference to the Kindertransport, used in the late 30s to get Jewish children out of Germany and into the UK, or perhaps a reference to the different trains taking people to the death camps? I may have been reading too much into this scene but this is a great play where so much of it comes not just from the script but from the thoughts it provokes.
Later there are references that I took to be Vietnam and Abu Ghirab but you might take them differently. And then at the end everything is back how it was at the start, but not quite. The wheel coming full circle? One generation learning nothing from the past? Perhaps. Go and see and make up your own mind.
Now what were those two words I was searching for? Yes, awesome and astounding.
What Remains
Posted by Martin in Martin Powell, Traverse, What Remains on August 13, 2011
THEATRE*****
What Remains
Traverse @ Edinburgh University Medical School Anatomy Department
I’ve heard it said that to call drug dealers “pushers” is the wrong model. It would be more accurate to call drug users “pullers”. I was reminded of this when trying to get a ticket for Grid Iron’s latest show. I was first introduced to the company by a friend in 1998 and took my first fix. I was hooked. These masters of site specific theatre manage to turn out powerful drugs that everyone wants. You wouldn’t believe the lengths I went to to get a ticket for their show Barflies two years ago.
To help cope with this craving the company are this year doing three shows a night. It doesn’t seem to have worked. The tickets again sold out almost before they went on sale. I hope they can put it on again so more people can share this experience.
With some of their recent shows I’ve felt why are they not simply doing this in a theatre? Not so this year. I must have walked past that archway in Teviot Place thousands of times but never been inside, clearly regarding it as a private not a public space. So just to go through it and look at the architecture was itself a revelation before getting into the performance space. Described as a promenade it is much more than that. Before going in the audience is divided into 3 groups who will see the show in a different order. We go in and are introduced to Gilbert K Prendergast (David Paul Jones), the maestro at The Conservatoire of the Anatomy of Music who demonstrates his skills at the piano. Then we split into groups and are led through a series of spaces and appear perhaps as aspiring students at the illustrious conservatoire. Yet running throughout is another theme of anatomy. Are we perhaps going to undergo surgery or is someone wielding a knife in an altogether less friendly way, and if so who and why?
I’ll say no more, I don’t want to ruin the experience for you and anyway I suspect every performance is slightly different as there is more to this than being passive participants. A truly memorable superb production once again from Grid Iron.
Futureproof
Posted by Martin in Futureproof, Tony Challis, Traverse on August 13, 2011
THEATRE
***
Futureproof
Traverse
Freak-shows have been used as a vehicle for drama for many generations, with very varied results. Here a group who put on a travelling show are said to be timeless, though much suggests the Victorian time, including a reference to Merrick – the Elephant Man.
There is a bearded armless lady, a hermaphrodite, a mute who is also the mermaid. The fattest man. Etc. The Boss decides that more is needed for the punters. He wants everyone to become more “normal” to shock the public. So the fattest man slims, the bearded lady shaves etc.
There is much reference to their poverty, and maybe there is meant to be a suggestion of today’s employment situation.
The thing that most disappointed me was how thin much of the script was – farewells that were no more than good-bye and many a cliché. The cast did very well with the material. The slim fattest man made chewing on a lettuce leaf seems like tasting a banquet.
But I waited and waited for the language and characterisation to come alive. In vain. And the conjoined twins were remarkably athletic. How much thought about the real lives of people in this situation had gone into this production?
(I have just read that this one has won a Fringe First. Ah, well…)
Ten Plagues
Posted by Martin in Ten Plagues, Tony Challis, Traverse on August 12, 2011
THEATRE
****
Ten Plagues
Traverse
This is a stunningly different and very absorbing show. The day I saw it Marc Almond seemed to need a little time to warm up, but when he did the whole thing was riveting.
The libretto is by Mark Ravenhill and the music is by Conor Mitchell.
The setting is ostensibly London in 1665, the year of the Plague. One third of the population dying in a season. There is also reference to the Ten Plagues of the Old Testament. And evident concern with a more recent event, the spread of AIDS in the 1980s. This is made clear in the visuals which surround and follow Almond at times, -young men with much to offer, but what is offered is not always accepted.
One of the stronger emotions expressed is a kind of guilt – amongst all the fear of the plague, those who have it are shunned – and Almond is seen to reject a young man who shows him a lesion. There are numbers that take you deeply into the world of the 17th century plague – the idea of a curfew for the well, so that the sick could take the air by night, -and how then do they interact? And the pit – into which bodies are cast, and the idea of running to the pit and jumping in if sick, to be with the bodies there.
All pretty dark stuff, but all sung and performed with passion, and there is the ending, of survival, a new day and new life, but forever changed by the experience.
I would thoroughly recommend going along and being swept up into this show, into its deep feeling and passion, in a show which is uplifting and cathartic at the end, and also to see Marc Almond do something quite different and challenging and doing it very well.
The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart
Posted by Martin in Rex de Vil, Strange Undoing/Prudencia Hart, Traverse on August 11, 2011
THEATRE
*****
The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart
Traverse at Ghillie Dhu
Written by David Greig, ‘The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart’ provides a striking celebration of Border Ballads, full of both satirical wit and moments of heart wrenching beauty. Prudencia Hart is a high-strung academic, who after becoming caught in a snowy Kelso takes a journey of self-discovery and emotional awakening via a series of enchanting encounters, comic characters and Katy Perry karaoke.
Combining stirring folk music and balladry with the contemporary Greig has recognized the power of creating a hybrid of both old and new, and combining this with an innovative use of the Ghillie Dhu bar space by director Wils Wilson the magic of the afternoon performance is continually sustained – the snow our heroine finds herself stranded by is conjured buy the audience’s torn napkins, the ice cold air invoked by the chiming of glasses, and the venue’s bar transforming from car to lecture hall. A violin solo in the second half of the performance had me in shivers as the humour of Greig’s satirical ballad retreated for moments of haunting poignancy. The music is a definite highlight, with each member of the cast having not only a confident singing voice but also skills branching a variety of instruments, from bagpipes to guitar, drums to recorders, complementing the folk inspired soundtrack and even coming together to create a mesmerizing discordant reworking of a Kylie Minogue track at the end. What with such an intricate script and impassioned soundtrack one does consider whether the company has considered a radio translation of the piece. Either way enjoyment is ensured – grab a ticket now.
