Theatre
Naked Lies 8. Violent Messages Ilrivtol lit/n'rimentul llu'utre. I'lie (iii/1121'. 111111/27.4112. /l.5II/m1. .-\ftcr rejecting men. four vvotncn e\plore se\ual relationships. Nameless Slit ‘().\I (Soul/1 lvl11/ul l‘lu'utre (‘11.). (irevtrutrv Kirk lluuve. until 25 .4112. 3.55pm. l’hyxical theatre centring on four women incarcerated in prisons.
Narcissi Iv’l ‘1).8‘. .4112uvtine 'v. until 20 .4112. 1.55pm. .4 retelling of the (ireek myth. Nasty Boy coco Kama/1‘11
[’11 11/111 tinnv. [vomit/1'11 lv’omun l'.‘112le lot/21'. 1111111’2/).4112. 8411/1111. This is an unctnnfortable play: not because it is badly written. btit rather because it ix so well
w ritten and perfortned that the niggling tension and incredible claustrophobia of the stage spills over into the audience. (‘onfronted with the potential tragedy of a ‘nasly‘ layabottt telly -addict and his pension-draw ing mother trapped in xtaxix and at constant loggerhcadx one has to hav c a penchant for lv’mle l'iunilv xl) lc humour to find it amusing. If you don't. )ttti'll begin to feel like the arriving door-to-door salesman: forced into their company the potato masher becomes more and more attractive as a means of gaining some peace and quiet. Jim .‘vladden certainly prov ex that Sartre was right: hell is other people. (Roxe l‘olcy ) Neutrino C... l’leuvunee Home. until 2/).4112. 2.25pm. l’acy show that crackles with one-liners deftly delivered by a more than competent caxt. l'ringe l‘irxt w inner. No Exit Stun/(ml ( ’nit'ervitv .lltul 'l'lio'r. (' \i'nue. until 26.4112. //./!I11m. Sat'tt'e\ version of hell ix updated in this gender- bcnding production.
NOt So l'l11'11lt‘1’11/ li’tlt't'Ul. (1111’ lv’ovu/ I'rin2e llzeutre. 11111il25.4u2. ll/nn. .\luxical drama set in the Berlin cabaret scene.
0 The Notebook /)e ()n1lernemi112. .4ntner/1. Iv’1)\11l1.v1e1un Theatre. 1111/1/25 .4112. times t'111’\. See review panel.
The Notebook of Trigorin
.0. l'evtit'ul 'Ilu'utre (181311814. [)1‘1111111111111/ ( 1211111111111'1\ 'I‘lu'utre. until 25 .411L'. 7/1111. The liuropean premiere of Tennessee Williamx‘ free adaptation of .v\nton (’hekhov 'x I‘lie Se11211/l ix the ultttnate drama about being an artist. It ix perfect 'l'ennexxee Williamx‘ territory the mother/xon fi\ation. the role of compromise in a w ritcr's career. repressed passions which burst otit into last act insanity. Williams is more c\p|icit and bixc\ua| than (’hekhov. and hix adaptation is fascinating.
thought-provoking and has ambition.
The student actors from the t'niverxity Of Southern (‘aiifornia bravely try to rise to the occasion. Some of them succeed. including .-\|an T. l.ennick as the bisexual writer 'l‘rigotin. .\1'iel Joseph Tow ne as his younger adversary. and Jennifer M. [altar on sometimes tnagnificent form ax the older. vain actress. How ever the direction lets them down. by not digging beneath the surface. it lacks dy namixm.
This enterprising company need to be congratulated on taking over an out-of—thc- way l-‘ringe venue. and presentng its with xuch range of .-\merican drama.
(John Binnie)
Notes from a Small Island 0000 liri2ltt11n 'l‘lieutre liven/v. (ii/iletl Ital/111m 111 'Ieviot Ron Ilouve. until 27.4112. .t’pm. Thix Stl—tninutc take on the popular travelogue takes in l)()\ er. Weston Supei'-.\1are and (ilttsgtm lic‘litl‘c' ending \\ tllt tt cheesy. cheerful look at what‘s good about the I'K. Oleanna l'i'vtlt‘ul 'l'lu'utre ('S(‘ (S4. Urununorul ( tnnmunih llteutre. until 24
.4112. 4pm. l)av id .\lamet'x controversial and
compelling play abotit a professor accused by a student of harassment.
One Night Stand 0... krement X. Hill Street 'I'lu'tilre. until 27.4112. ll).25/nn. l’oxxibly the kookiext thing on the hinge ()ne .\'1'2/11 Stu/111 xtartx with xtilted heavy breathed \octtls ttltvl goes on to feature :1 couple. a club. a seduction. a domestic tantrum and odd breathy bouts of contemporary dance.
Opera Galactica .00. (intently 'l'lieutre. until 27.4112. 7pm. Richard l.ew is' operatic take on the Slur lliirvtrilogy ix a lot of fun. mi\ing in-iokex for the opera fans with xci-fi xlapxtick.
Our Bad Magnet oooo .4vve1n/1lv lv’oomv. until 27.4112. /.."(I/)1n. Sometimes it takes a meeting with old lTlL‘llLl\ to discover
just how close yott nev er were. When
liraixer (the leader). Paul (the follow er) and .«\Ian (the fat one) meet five years after the presumed death of their friend (iiggles (the weird genius with an alkic for a father). any noxtalgia that ix in the air is rather tempered by the tenxion. Alan‘s been bttilding heaters in the shed. l’aul'x been shagging Alan's wife and hawking (iigglex' writing to the highest bidder. and l’raixer has been. well. here and there. Douglas (1)1'1 Av l)oev11 Bronte) .\la\we|l'x play travels back to l)()_\s‘ childhood. superbly evoked by the four actors. before leaping back to the
present and leaving the three in a bitter old mess. .4 powerful and literate production. (Jatnes Stnart)
The Part of Bob Kingdom will be Played by an Actor .0 Assembly Rooms. until 27.4112. ll.45um. ()ne-man show exploring life from an ‘Anglicised Welsh’ childhood in (’ardiff to being an avid consumer of classic lilms.
A Peasant of El Salvador Dolphin Theatre. ('112. until 2/) .4112. 415/1111. l’olitical theatre xet in ii] Salvador. where a family ix destroy ed. Petrified Skin [(1)1111'1/111 St Step/telly. until 27.4112. 9pm. .\ladc shortly after the fall of the Berlin wall. 1’1'11-111‘1'11511'11 is the tale of man’s struggle to regain a sense of dignity and free will in the shadow of apartheid. 'l‘hrough dance itlttl tttltsic (Shoxtakovich) the piece depicts two men lighting through the political. ideological and psychological walls. which constrain them.
The Philanthropist(‘1)111141. ('mn'ne l’l11:11 Hotel. until 21) .4112. 3.30pm. (‘omic drama from (‘hrixtopher Hampton.
A Piece of Monologue Kama/1'11 l’rotluetions. Kama/1‘11 Runutn [1112/1' Lin/21'. until 21; .4112. [0.4511111 Samuel Beckett monologue in which a static figure in a nightxhirt recalls his life.
Pigs .. (' li'nue. (' Bel/1241121412 until 2!) .4112. 12.45pm. See Dance. Pipedreams .41'enn .Vort/i. (‘ \enue. until 26 .4112. 345/1121. Fascism tneetx farce in Jitn liow lcr'x political satire.
Play . Short (1111/ (iit‘llt' llllt'llll't’ ('11.. (‘ lenue. until 26 .4112. l/JU/tm. .4 weak script lets down this all-lesbian show about putting on a theatre production. Plum Mouth 0.. l111lfn'11\'~111)n‘lu're. l‘lie ('iulerlu'l/v. until 21) .4112. It). l5pm. If you are normal and vaguely sane and your idea of liringc hell ix an intensive case of audience participation. best give this one a miss. .4 huge dining table at which twelve visitors are invited to sit. l‘our performers join them and hoxt the worst dinner party you have ever been to. No boo/c. bad food and ctnlmrrasxing theatrical outbursts frotn the pretty female hoxtx ('laire Brennan. l’auline Lord. .4gnex Matthewx and Anna
rather
Pooh and Prah
As evening’s go, it is silly, ridiculous and
profound
Moving Objects sou Iii-111111111 Theatre. until 26 .4112. We often have occasion to criticise men who love their cars. but what of women who love cuddly toys or anyone who loves a photo. a hit of stone recovered from a holiday beach or their dead granddad's broken watch‘.’ All of these talismans of everyday life are displacement activities. tokens of love lost. or never gained in the first place. Writer and director David .Vlark Thomson‘s new drama deals with the power of such inanimate tokens. as the title suggests. but they're addressed within the context of a society where love is forced into such corners by a divisive class system.
Therese (Molly lnnes) is a woman with desperate financial and emotional issues. l won‘t give away their precise nature. for this is significant to the unfolding narrative. but she seeks the help of an old Jewish pawnbroker (Gareth Thomas) in raising the money for a nasty deed she sees as necessary. She parts with her equivalent of the family silver to finance an act of violence by a local hardman (Paul Samson) but in the process. the three become part of a violent emotional entanglement whose roots lie with lost fathers and frustrated affection.
This is a gorgeously moving piece of theatre. with a whiffof the fairytale under an apparently social realist exterior. Much of the mythic side of the narration comes from Thomas‘s beautifully weighted performance as part magic toymaker and part concentration camp survivor. but lanes and Samson are also immensely watchable. If its end begs more questions than it answers. this still stands as a grand night out. (Steve (‘ramer)
44 THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE 14m; t; Sr :1, 2“
.‘vlorris. Failed loves are eluded to in brief monologues and the girls take it in turns to crawl under the table and speak into a microphone. This bonkers performance piece is a sort of madcap freeform take on .4lii211il’s Party with a side order of Beckettian repetition. ()dd yet strangely memorable. (Paul Dale)
Pooh and Prah coco .4 K1115. Kinneiliu St Stephens. until 27.4112. times vary. Despite its late time and relatively distant venue. I’oo/i 1(- l’ru/I has been gathering decent crowds. and on the basis of tonight's show it‘s easy to see why. The Russian performers run through the gamut of physical theatre. mime. acrobatics and slapstick in a show that gleefully warps cliched scenarios. .4 bank robbery mutates into a strange meeting. what looks like a divorce turns into the saga of a sinking ship. and an alcoholic finds a strange treasure trove in these deeontestualixed and often inexplicable episodes. The three actors prance. fight and reduce the ordered stage to a mess of cluttered debris. while the production uses silence as a vacuum to be filled by their suggestion. .-\s evenings go. this is silly. ridiculous and rather profound. (James Smart)
Popcorn Benet ('uttv presents liltun and Home! in Hollywood. (' lenue. until 26 .4112. 8.50pm. Ben lilton‘s comic thriller.
Port And Lemon: The Mystery Behind Sherlock Holmes 'I'lie Nether/111w 'I‘lu'utre. .Vi'llu'rlum' Thrill/'1’. until I Sep. .i’pm. John (’argill 'l‘hompson'x take on the popular fictional detective. Postcards from Maupassant 0... 'lim I'rieiuls I’i‘inluetions. Kama/in Ronuut [2'112le 1.111121). until 25 .4112. 5.50pm. The detailed intimacies of life uncovered in these snippets are not just psychological but also sensory as the climate and the people of .\laupassant comes to life. What is remarkable is the versatility of the three actorx who effortlessly flit from scene to scene convincingly depicting the cold logistics of a strained marriage one moment and the lingering sexual desires of old age the next. The minimal staging and intimate venue are a clear advantage for a production which relies on stich rapid connection with its audience. (Rose Foley) Postscript Diverse .4111‘111‘1ions. until 25 .4112. 7. [5111". Showcase for new writing.
A Pot of Gold - Desperado Diverse .41t1‘111‘1i11ny. until 25 .4112. 9.15pm. (‘omic antics involving mixers and treasure. Princess Plimsole oooo Plt’rlMlllt'l’. until 27.4112. noon. Tired of simply hearing abotit the adventures that lie outwith the palace. l’t'itlcess l’litnsole longs to experience them for herself. So, accompanied by her faithful friend Breakfast the butler. she sets off on a journey of self- discovery. The whole cast give entliusiaxtic but understated perft)rmanccs. allowing this seemingly simple tale to be interpreted on a multitude of lev els. :\s ridiculous as it is poignant this wee l’ringc gem is definitely one for all the family. (Anna Millar) Private Angelo lit/mnu A'- ('r11llu. until 25 .4112. timev i'ury'. lit'ic l.inklater\ tale of an Italian soldier. l-‘our stars in both The livenin2 .Venzv and The Scotsman.
The Proof Ile ()Iulernemin2. .4ntn'er/i_ Iv’ov11ll.vee11m 'I'lteutre. until 25.4112. times rurv. See review panel.
The Proper Charlies .4j11r I’rudtieu‘mis, Old St l’11ul'.v (‘lture/i 1(- llull. until 2/) .4112. Ill/m1. ('omie dialogttc and physical antics frotn three xtci'eoty pes.
Pull My Strings 0... National Student 'l’lu'utre ('11. (XS/t ‘1. (Belle .4112ele. until 26 .4112. 4/1111. ('aptivating performances and a deft. funny script combine to tnake this play one of this year's more impressive l‘t'inge offerings. Quentin Crisp/Resident Alien 0... Bette Bourne. .4.v.veml1/v Rooms, until 27.4112. l/.5()11m. .4 stand-out performance by Bette Bourne holding court