Theatre
French accent Reza's poignant reflections on the death of her father. Heartfelt but also funny, Reza's astute observations make an indelible impression. (Catherine Bromley)
I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428, until 26 Aug. 3.20pm. L‘ lO—l.‘ l l (L‘Q—L‘IO).
OLEANNA
Modern classic, new angle 00..
Premiered ten years ago. David Mamet's story of sexrsm and political correctness has lost none of its dramatic power. Rather. by relocating the epic battle between a lecturer and a student to a British universrty. Guy Masterson's production gains a deeper relevance and forces an examination of social heirarchy and sexism in our own institutions.
In the role of the vain lecturer. Masterson drives home the infuriatineg patronising manner of self-satisfied privrlege while Beth Fitzgerald asserts an equally accomplished performance as the right-on student set on challenging the system. Forming an explosive combination. this proves provocative. divisive theatre. (Catherine Bromley)
I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428. until 26 Aug (not 12), noon. {IQ—l3 It) (£849).
1 00 A beautiful exploration of memory .00.
Bamboo sticks become trains. swings. steering wheels and bar stools with extraordinary precision in this stunning piece about four people‘s motivations when they‘re forced to chose one memory and erase all others for eternity. The stage presence of the actors is beautifully mea8ured as they merge humour. passion and desolation to generate forgotten failures and tragic illusions.
Each individual memory is seen as changeable and subjective. reminding the audience that memory isn't always about truth. but the
illusion of it. Put y0ur standard responses aside - this is a rare gem. (Anna Millar)
I The Smirnoff Underbelly 226 2428. until 25 Aug. 5pm. 57—53750 li‘6—l‘650)
THE DICE HOUSE Replacing God with
dice O...
Inspired by Luke Rhinehart's cult Dice
Man novels. Paul Lucas'
play poses questions of the limitations of choosing how we live Ourhves.
A psychiatrist blackmails a patient into kidnapping his wife from the Dice House. an institution where
GONER
patients live purely on chance. setting in motion a gloriously Surreal chain of events that mask a much darker moral. Performed with real conviction by a confident and genuinely talented cast. this is a pitch black comedy that you can‘t risk missing. Seriously funny. and funnily serious. this show c0uld make you take stock of the choices and chances of your own life. (Gareth Davies) I Pleasance Dome. 556 65:30, until 26 Aug (not 20). 3.20pm, 1 3.50—L‘950 (L 7. 50—88. 50).
Dark and hilarious social commentary 0....
THE COMPLETE WORKS OF SAMUEL BECKETT . . . OOOO
Absurd in-joke
There's a table. On it a jar. In it a brain. Man supports table. Brain controls man. Or does he. And so goes the first in ‘allegedly' a collection of Beckett's lost plays. Respectfully tongue-in-cheek, 'Foot Falls Flatly' reveals the true thoughts of a Riverdance star. while 'lf' goes on and on and on until the audience stops laughing. Begins
again. And stops again.
Though the humour is accessible for all. Beckett buffs will be
Brian Parks’ black comedy is in the mould of the Americana Absurdum group’s Vomit And Roses and Wolverine Dreams, which distinguished themselves in the Fringe of 2000. Darker than dark and played at tremendous pace, there are so many laughs packed into each line that while you giggle at one you miss the next.
The narrative is a wildly parodic soap. A distinguished, but hideously incompetent doctor greets his daughter at a private hospital, where she’s set to work examining shit in the basement. As one junior doctor attempts to woo her, another seeks to make his fortune by inventing Chemotherapy Barbie, complete with hair loss and exclamations about her impending demise when you pull
the string.
The young lady decides to make films about America’s black population, of whom she is frighteningly ignorant. Meanwhile we encounter the president, who is nearly as idiotic as his real life counterpart, and his two FBI minders whose paranoia has continued from the J Edgar Hoover period. These disparate groups encounter each other after an attempted assassination leaves the
president in a coma.
There is an acidic satiric vision in Parks’ script, which is both witty and astonishingly literate. Performed in what really amounted to a preview, the show looks set to improve still further, with the dexterity and timing of the performers already reaching a high level. Most of all, this play seems to address the unrecognised class system of the USA through its upper strata, dispensing rough but
well deserved justice to a decadent culture. Highly recommended. (Steve Cramer) I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428, until 26 Aug (not 15’). 3. 15pm, .i‘Q—lj l() (ta-1‘9). .
extra tickled by the in- jokey absurdism as the performers skillfully manipulate the audience's expectations and frankly. do what they want.
(Mererid Williams)
I Assembly Rooms, 226 2428, until 26 Aug (not 73), 7.25pm,
539—2 70 (28—59).
SLAVES OF STARBUCKS Scorn in the USA I...
If you didn't already suspect corporate capitalist America's uncanny resemblance to Hitler's Third Reich, you’ll be utterly convinced of it after seeing Peter Aterman‘s slick and surreal brand of character-based comedy. Gifted in making the outrageous strangely believable. he presents an apocalyptic vision of corporate America.
This is mass society gone mad where Aztec priests are engaged to make a killing on the stock market in more ways than one. where Olympic figure skaters celebrate incest as crucial experience on the road to success. A glimpse at what the Golden age of consumerism has in store. this is deadly dark satire at its best. (Catherine Bromley)
I Hill Street Theatre, 226 6522, until 26 Aug (not 74), 7pm, 58—86.
ZIPP!
Overcooking the food of love 00
One hundred musicals performed in one hour 15 minutes. or your
' ioney back: great if /0u love musicals. even better if you loathe them as you get the whole mess dealt with in one fell swoop. So says former Conservative MP Gyles Brandreth as he introduces four gifted performers and himself at the onset of this musical race against the clock. I, however have to disagree.
The horror of seeing Brandreth in suspenders and a gold lame posing pouch performing a snippet from The Roi v Horror Picture Show .'.ill stay with me forch-i and doubtless l wrll have nightmares about being
in a very large room full of very middle-class people. some of them young. all whooping and clapping along to some of the greatest crimes against music ever committed. (Catherine Bromley)
I Assembly Rooms, 226 2428, until 26 Aug, noon, SIG—£71 (SQ—£70).
THE FROG PRINCE
Mamet’s Grimm tale CO.
A shallow young prince gets turned into a frog and in his amphibious incarnation learns to be less snooty in David Mamet's semi-political interpretation of the Grimm Brothers fairytale. The stOry’s simply told so don't expect the kind of implicit adult references you’re privy to in The Simpsons or South Park.
But the costumes and set are resourceful — the Prince's new guise is recognised by the simple use of an olive green T-shirt and pants. a green swim-cap to cover his hair, and knee pads — as well as wonderfully elastic facial expressions. body movement. and the occasional ‘ribbit'. Undemanding and fairly enjoyable. (Anna Millar) I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428, until 26 Aug, 77.30am, ere—£11 (SQ—£70)
THE STORY OF LOVE AND HATE Mitchum-lite monologue 00
The story of Hollywood hellraiser Robert Mitchum ought to make great theatre. but writer/performer Andy Cox's comic monologue only touches upon the bad boy's lifestyle. The early years as a drifter during the Depression. the 1947 marijuana bust. the Confidential scandal rag lawsuit - there's nothing new for anyone with even a passing interest in Mitchum's career. Meanwhile. Cox supplies anecdotes about his own life growing up in Hull. attempting to draw parallels with the actor. But being busted by his dad after scoring a bag of weed does not make
8 1:") Aug 2002 THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE 85