I MISS
COMMUNISM Please comrade, I want some more
Croation writer- performer Ines Wurth's one-woman semi- autobiographical show looks back with nostalgia to her youth as a ‘Irttle commie girl“. Comic and tragic and featuring song and dance. the show spans World War II and the Serbo-Croatran-- Bosnian war. and it's full of references to
THE WRONG MAN
today's war torn world and to . . . Olive." lv. st. Accordineg \Nurth is thrilled that Mark ()m. eri Lester is coming to Edinburgh to see li.
'lt's specifically ()lrver from that lllt)‘.|(}. rneanrng Mark I esterp' Wurth says. 'because of the Influence he had on this child gr‘ov.'irig up under the communist regime' Oil‘.’(}l the orphan is alst a parallel to the repression of a child. country and government. ‘lt mall, is strange hov. in“. life has come full circle. front that little corrrrnie girl dreaming about ()lruer Twrst to now. 25> years later. the same Mark Lester becoming one ot the biggest supporters of the f;ii()‘.‘.'_ It's a hit spooky' iMrles l :eider‘
I Plural/ice [)1 rue. .">:'>o‘
(35:30, tutti/25} Aug “it? 7:3,. -1.’:':p/r‘. 5‘/".:'>(l~5‘8.5>() 5b 5',
,’).'t~)‘./l(}i‘.f§ (i Aug. 52:.
LORILEI Compassionate true story of human
goodness
l'hrr: rs the extraordhar‘g,
“s...
stor‘, ct l (ruler \J'ti‘lii‘ in,
at: Antenna". ‘.'.<’irr‘zar‘.
foilrjlt'. 3:?
sons lllillrit’ltrl from
tangle. .i new (liltmit II ‘rl‘iitr,
LiTl'.).'., i\r\.l\.
i\!i‘('il til 7!
{,ears atei. r 1'«».'.-.:.~:.-'. {9:13
more l ‘7 it.“ .n.
iitlltjitfih tilt: "KW-'1:
Ht:j>t:r)‘.t:. a lll<~hased ffi‘lllll‘. that carripaigns .1fIé‘1"i:;I ;;(t_l)lléli purushrrierrt. is followed ()1. a Iit‘fil f;l‘.()‘.'.’ discussion led by Clive Stafford Smith. Reprieve (illuflifl and lawyer on the I Jilttjitf‘, case. The sent it is less the factual laments surrounding the (L.if>t: tnar‘ the personal ::~Iigi‘t o? a (::;»'.irag<;-ous nan" .:f ".ox'. her «,_.-:r :a: anguish and ."itea: rfeter'nrriatron for '<:.t:'rgt: "jawe ‘.'.'a‘~, to (viii-I." rooted ‘.‘altles about mere, and human rights. Claire I’relai
I r“’reasgivce [Jo/ire. 5x36 3‘. r' (’9 Aug !.'l()f 5). ’45. Id". I’d». .‘?.:’j:')'/)l77. ~'~_'>-') S‘_’)."»'i l'.’ f‘o‘r. MANOPAUSE Humorous exploration of the male identity crisis
In, :1 I-i;tl:;:L.-l‘. to ‘rrid 'w‘ tin. :;e'isrti.e. wt'l"{j it"’.i {ll-{kit}
.tixl‘it’I/f Ilie‘, a'readj,
He was once Sinn Fein’s publicist and served time in jail for IRA-related crimes, but now DANNY MORRISON has a play on the Fringe. He explains what he‘s up to.
My play about the IRA opened in Belfast on the day that the IRA declared it was going ‘out of business’! It’s called timing. Fortunately, the IRA is just the context for a drama that explores universal rather than local or parochial issues. I had been charged with IRA membership, conspiring to kidnap and murder a police informer who I had never met and who never testified directly against me. The judge, Lord Chief Justice Sir Brian Hutton (who later exonerated Tony Blair from ‘sexing up’ the pre-war dossier on Iraq‘s weapons of
mass destruction) amended the charges but still sentenced me to eight years.
It was in jail that I wrote most of my third novel, The Wrong Man. When I was released the IRA had called a ceasefire. But it broke down with the explosion at Canary Wharf, leaving me feeling depressed. A few years later I adapted the novel as my first play for the stage. I learnt quite a few lessons - about compressing a huge narrative with its sub-plots to a dialogue-driven core; and about how this, my new ‘baby’, would be changed and altered in its rearing by complete strangers — a director and actors! - who, wonderfully, brought their own alchemy to the creative process.
The Wrong Man deals with issues of loyalty and betrayal at the personal as well as the political level. It presents a unique, candid insight into not just the entrenched world of the IRA and its opponents but into the cost of struggle/conflict on families, particularly the women who are left to pick up the pieces. Leavened with dark humour, it is about the humanity of characters trapped in circumstances not of their own making.
I P/easance Dome. 6:36 (5:550. /' (’5) Aug are? 'l'i
have boyfriends. Man jokes: they're pants but we love 'em. And they're a kind still acceptable amongst the politically correct. Women jokes get on my tits. In modern sOCrety. men still always wear trousers (except maybe at ‘."J()(i(illl§)8l but girls have a whole history of oppression to bitch about: we demand a little respect. Composed of comedy sketches. songs and footage of public opinion. this show explores language. gender and the absurdity of social groups and asks where. if anywhere. does modern man really belong? The three young men who make up ll.»iarr()p.'rt/se charm, provoke and humour the audience. asking a lot of guestrons and toying wrth answers. If you're female ior gay). bash them wrth your hand bag on the way out. If you're a long- st fferrng male. enjoy. 'Clarre Prelal I Sl‘."(}(?f Ego. 0870 24] 0 lii’o‘, 4- 25) Aug. o".-l:');)rrt. .‘X‘i—L‘Q (EV—EB).
COME AGAIN - THE WORLD OF PETER COOK AND DUDLEY MOORE
Not so much Pete and Bud as Dud and Pete
Corrie Again might take yet another look at Britain's funniest and irlthrest comedy double act. but where last year's telewsron overload focused on Peter Cook in the wake of his death, this two- header is less Pete and Dud and more Dud and Pete.
“They 're an entrenched part of British seeretyf says the show's co- ".vrrter Nick Awde. 'But sorriething we felt hadn't been tackled before was them as a team.' And this summer there'll be a i.'."a\.e of interest in Dud. ()f the two he's the
‘ ‘ am; THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 61
entry-level character. 'We‘re fans of both,‘ says Awde's writing partner Chris Bartlett. “But the received wisdom is Dud was the stooge and Pete the tOrtured genius. There's no argument about Pete. but he was at his most brilliant and accessible with Dud. Dud brought a wholesomeness to Pete‘s subversion.‘ ‘Our show is led by their professional relationship,‘ says Awde. ‘lt's not a comedy,‘ Bartlett adds. ‘lt's a drama about funny peOpIe.‘ The last thing we wanted was a tribute.’ (Miles Fielder) I Assembly Rooms. 226 2428. until 29 Aug (not 77), 7 7. 75am, EQ—E 70 (£8—EQ). Preview 6 Aug. £5.
A MOBILE THRILLER/ BROKEN ROAD
A moving story
Last year's hit A Mobile Thriller merges with new play Broken Road. Writer Ryan Craig explains: ‘Essentially the former is a guy going to his assassination; the latter is the people going to commit it. But you only hear one side of the stOry. The two are woven together and at the end they join and both parties see the conclusion.‘ Communication between the two moving cars creates confusion en route. for the characters and for the three audience members. for whom the experience can be uncomfortable. as well as insanely unique. But this isn't just gimmicky fun. 'The stories are connected by theme,' says Craig. ‘They're talking about loneliness and disaffection in a big city: the lack of communication between two people spatially close to each other and the difficulty in finding your place in the world.‘ At $325 it's a pricey ride. but it's probably the most entertaining car journey yOu'll ever have. (Claire Piela) I The Hush Car. various locations, 226 0000. 70—27 Aug (not 75, 27), 8. 30pm; 70—27 Aug (not 15, 20. 21), 10.30pm, £725.