Festival Theatre
THE GRAVEDIGGERS Gravedigging comedy that doesn’t dig deep enough ●●●●● The title may sound sombre but there’s little in the action of Charley Miles’ play that resembles the funereal – except, perhaps, its pace. It recreates the slow rhythm of daily life in a small Yorkshire town far too
accurately, encasing the play in a sleepy mid-afternoon feel from which it’s difficult to awaken. Gravediggers John and Doug take
on new recruit Freddie, whose hyperactive behaviour shatters their quiet, regimented lifestyle. Their fumbling interactions with local characters, including a much-admired female vicar and the friendly
neighbourhood goth, has a quaint, Midsomer Murders-like atmosphere to it, albeit without the lurking criminals. There are some sound performances
here from the cast of 17- and 18-year olds, in particular Henry Hawkesworth as the humble John and Humphrey McColl’s gnarled, ageing Doug, who is responsible for many of the play’s well- timed comic moments. But its folksy charm needs more animation and the script’s failure to develop an engaging plot with convincing relationships makes this a largely unfulfilling 80 minutes of theatre – though its witty end comes as some compensation. (Yasmin Sulaiman) ■ The Spaces @ The Royal College of Surgeons, 0845 508 8515, until 29 Aug (not 23), 12.35pm or 3.05pm, £6 (£5).
FORGOTTEN THINGS Bittersweet, intelligent family farce ●●●●●
EAST 10TH STREET: SELF PORTRAIT WITH EMPTY HOUSE Three storeys of NYC stories ●●●●●
Edgar Oliver will not be the only actor taking on the Everyman persona this August. Like innumerable stand-up comics and solo performers, he presents himself as the still centre of a chaotic world. By identifying with him, we can share his strange experiences and laugh as one. Except there is something distinctly un-Everyman about Oliver. Billed as a ‘legendary New York theatre icon’, he narrates his own story about living in a Big Apple rooming house with a fascinatingly emphatic delivery and an actorly accent so ripe it sounds as if he learnt to speak English by careful study of old Laurence Olivier recordings.
It means that when he details the goings on of the curious residents who
rent rooms in the same house as him and his sister – and they do indeed sound an oddball lot – you can’t help wondering what eccentric contribution Oliver made to the place himself. Unless you count the story of his infatuation and near seduction of a younger actor – a narrative that seems awkwardly tacked on to the main body of his piece – you never really find out. To his credit, Oliver was never whisked away into care, which is the fate of most of his fellow residents. What you do get is an amusing collage of eccentricity as he itemises the
neurotic – not to mention lethal – habits of his housemates, ranging from obsessive cleaning to the bottling of faeces. He relates it all with such a wide-eyed sense of wonder that you find yourself marvelling – and laughing – at the variety of human behaviour rather than getting hung up about mental illness.
Suicidal teenager Toby, more-than- half-mad granny Lilly and manic, self- centred, bickering parents Philip and Margot form the spectacularly dysfunctional family at the centre of this bittersweet play. All of them have forgotten things, mainly how to listen to one another. Touching on issues of mental health, teenage suicide and the alarming ease with which we persuade ourselves that packing our elderly off to care homes is best for everyone, this play is by no means lightweight, yet the subject matter is approached in a way that is accessible and really very funny. It is, though, a dark humour, one that pulls no punches and doesn’t cloud the serious considerations that must be triggered by the events on stage.
It adds up to a vivid vignette, but one that has no greater purpose than a Jo Mousley gives an inspired
good yarn entertainingly told. (Mark Fisher) ■ Traverse Theatre, 228 1404, 24 Aug, times vary, £14–£16 (£10–£11). performance as gleefully foul-mouthed Lilly, the grandmother losing her mind
60 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 20–27 Aug 2009
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to dementia, having perfected the movement of an elderly lady, while the rest of the cast move swiftly around the stage, keeping everything pacy and constantly entertaining. Be prepared, then, for utter silliness, but silliness with intelligence and the power to move emotionally. (Laura Ennor) ■ Pleasance Dome, 556 6550, until 31 Aug (not 24), 1.50pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7–£8). THE EVENT Brilliant deconstruction of stand-up ●●●●●
Like so many brilliant ideas the thinking behind this superb show is simple: stand-up deconstructed. A comedian walks on stage to begin what his audience assumes will be a standard comedy routine. Expectations are immediately overturned, however, with a monologue delivered in the third person that describes in a very self- reflexive manner the various elements of the show, or event, and their relationship to one another: the man (performing), the words (written for him), the strangers (watching), the technician (controlling the lighting), etc. It’s very clever and very droll, and it’s beautifully performed by David Calvitto, who teases out all the subtle nuances of playwright John Clancy’s multi-layered script.
Clancy, a Fringe veteran who had a big hit two years ago with Fatboy, apparently wrote The Event after seeing one too many awful stand-ups in Edinburgh. He’s clearly mining a rich seam here, and if the show did nothing more than deconstruct stand- up it would still be a winner. But Clancy takes things much further by moving seamlessly into an existential discussion about our place in this crazy world and then – and this is his masterstroke – returns to his original subject, now offered as the perfect metaphor for life. Absolute genius. (Miles Fielder) ■ Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 31 Aug, 1.10pm, £10–£11 (£9–£10).
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