FESTIVAL THEATRE | Reviews
N A P A Y Y E M H S E M A R R © O T O H P
N N E P D O R © O T O H P
WHEN BLAIR HAD BUSH AND BUNGA Political mockery of vintage heritage ●●●●●
Although When Blair had Bush . . . advertises itself as satire, its broad comedy, flash of naked breasts and light farcical plot makes it more like a 1970s sitcom. There are recognisable portraits of Tony and Cherie Blair, a predictably dumb George W Bush and a lecherous Berlusconi. The characters and humour are painted in broad strokes and the serious political points – the politicians are plotting their invasion of Iraq with obvious dishonesty – are swept away in the rush of comedy turns.
If some of the characters are too close to stock types, and the displays of flesh gratuitous, When Blair had Bush . . . does have historical antecedents in the wild mockery of Aristophanic comedy. Like the ancient Athenian’s comedies, this script is ready to attack politicians, but less concerned with political detail. Bush is a Christian maniac – his drink problem leads him to sharing an incoherent prayer session with Blair – while Blair is a hen-pecked husband, desperate to look cool in front of the idiotic Texan. The play conjures up a world governed by the weak, the dishonest and the demented.
This cynicism, however, never expands into more precise satire. Despite their antics, the politicians are vaguely sympathetic: Blair is more naïve man-child than potential war criminal. The jokes about Cherie’s love of money give way to a generic humour about her shrewish nature.
At times, the caricatures of the local maids and police borders
on the offensive: although the action is set in the early 2000s, with the UK and USA on the brink of bringing down Saddam Hussein, it looks back to an older time, when comedy was as likely to mock those without as much as those with power, and Benny Hill was not yet unfashionable. (Gareth K Vile) ■ Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 31 Aug (not 24), 7pm, £13.50–£16.50 (£12–£15).
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Y E N O H A C N N A J © O T O H P
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JESUS, QUEEN OF HEAVEN LGBTQI spin on religion at Summerhall ●●●●● BUTTERFLY A beautiful blend of movement and puppetry communicates a tragic spiral of grief ●●●●●
TAR BABY Roll up for the most subversive, perversely funny, carnival in town ●●●●●
Celebrated playwright Jo Clifford starts the morning with a sermon. But this is no simple Christian prayer session, in spite of the accoutrements (votive candles, bread and wine, white robe) rather, a paean to ‘the other’ in society: the weak, oppressed, troubled and sick, through the rainbow prism of the LGBTQI community. Clifford, herself a trans gender woman, delivers a
show that is profound and moving, witty and filthy, a wake-up call to tolerance, love and acceptance with an intoxicating secular potency. She is defiant and beatific, delighted that people find her perverse.
It only strengthens her resolve to challenge their deep-seated prejudice and perceived notions of the family unit: ‘My daughter took me aside, and said, “Dad . . . you’re going to be a grandma”.’
It takes an incredible strength of will to be so loving – even towards tax inspectors. But for the first time at the festival, many people in the audience (or congregation) are whispering ‘Amen’, amid strangers; touched and really meaning it, true believers of hope for change. A tender, thought- provoking piece of work. (Lorna Irvine) ■ Summerhall, 560 1581, until 30 Aug (not 24 & 25), 10.45am, £12 (£10).
84 THE LIST FESTIVAL 20–31 Aug 2015
Written, directed by and starring Ramesh Meyyappan, Butterfly is a mesmerising piece of physical theatre. Without saying a single word, the show tells the story of Butterfly, a female kite maker and the two men who desire her. In the later stages of the play, a puppet of a
young boy is introduced. Initially adorably playful, his blank features take on a more sinister nature as his curiosity appears increasingly calculated against her. The performance is rich in symbolism, the central character as beautiful and fragile as her namesake. Initially joyful and independent, she creates and flies colourful kites, but when the men’s attraction twists into violence she becomes trapped in her anguish. (Rowena McIntosh) ■ Greenside @ Infirmary Street, 618 6968, until 29 Aug (not 23), 8.45pm, £12 (£10).
Tar Baby is a metaphor for a sticky situation co-opted by the Ku Klux Klan as a racist insult. American performer Desiree Burch, who co-wrote this blistering piece with Dan Kitrosser, reclaims the phrase in a carnivalesque performance that is part autobiography, part history lesson. Burch forces truth pills on the audience, both metaphorically and literally, initially in the form of cotton balls and packets of sugar, both symbols of black slavery. She is a sweet then sadistic ringmaster, pushing liberal guilt buttons.
A white male audience member is selected and made up in white clown make-up. Burch persuades him to blacken her skin, alluding to the time a director complained she ‘wasn’t black enough’. ‘What colour is the void?’ she asks. ‘What colour is nothing?’
Towards the end, Burch delivers a scathing monologue that engulfs the audience in a tidal wave of rage at casual everyday racism and the recent cop killings of African-American citizens. Tar Baby is brutal and beautiful – often hilarious – and absolutely vital. (Lorna Irvine) ■ Gilded Balloon, 622 6552, until 31 Aug (not 26), noon, £9–£10 (£7–£8).