list.co.uk/festival Reviews | FESTIVAL THEATRE
TWO SORE LEGS Powerfully acted one-woman biography of Belfast mother-of-six ●●●●●
Playwright Brenda Murphy’s personal one-woman show tells the story of her mother Bridie, an Irish Catholic who had six children to a local married man with his own family. Beginning with her funeral, we’re given a humorous glimpse of the slightly eccentric woman, taking her granddaughter to a funeral parlour, before flashing back to the day she met Liam, and the path her life took as a result.
Solo performer Maria Connolly is an accomplished actor, recreating a cast of distinct characters from Bridie’s grumpy father and kind mother to the wider Belfast community of sneering gossips and interfering priests. Dramatic family scenes unfurl with all the tension and emotion of an ensemble cast. The script artfully blends storytelling, character acting and short bursts of song.
While the pace drops slightly in the latter half,
there is still plenty of heartache to come and emotions run high until the end. Two Sore Legs is a touching tribute to Murphy’s mother’s personality – a hard working woman who lived an extraordinary life in an oppressive society and never apologised for it. (Rowena McIntosh) ■ Assembly George Square, 623 3030, until 31 Aug (not 24), 12.35pm, £10–£13.
ECHOES BY HENRY NAYLOR Sturdy drama of women's role in society ●●●●● CITIZEN PUPPET Puppet show with masterful movement ●●●●●
A veteran of stage and screen, and previous Fringe First winner for The Collector, Henry Naylor’s pedigree is not in dispute. This sturdy play examines two intelligent young British women: Tillie, an outspoken Victorian maverick and Samira, a bright headstrong young Muslim in the present day.
They may be separated by over 175 years, but
their concerns are the same; both have faith, both marry brutish men who promised so much, and the shared dreams of contributing to society unravel as soon as the rings are on their fingers. Felicity Houlbrooke as Tillie and Filipa Braganca,
making her Fringe debut as Samira, are both superb, crossing the stage to within touching distance as their lives overlap in grim climaxes.
Political and cultural implications are plain – much
progress has been made, but there is still a long way to go in terms of human rights. The writing is taut, with evocative imagery
throughout. The central motif of insects representing at once freedom and something to be stamped on is a neat metaphor for women’s progress. But more imaginative staging choices would make this a truly special production. (Lorna Irvine) ■ Gilded Balloon, 622 6552, until 31 Aug, 5.30pm, £10.50–£12.50 (£9.50–£11.50).
A play within a play is challenging to portray, but a puppet show within a puppet show is a taller order. Blind Summit theatre execute this brilliantly.
There’s panic on stage as the show opens in Massieville. The body of a giant lays strewn about the village, the area’s famous beanstalk is missing and so is a young boy, Jack. The fairytale element invites the audience to suspend disbelief and listen to the puppet, notably Daz Mayhew – the ‘artistic one’ – who decides to show the audience what happened by putting on a play.
So follows an hour of skilled puppetry, ‘directed’ by the artsy hippie one, featuring a cast made up of an elderly landlady, a world-weary local detective and an extremely chatty teenager. The vocal work of the humans behind the puppets is impeccable, and their mastery of movement faultless.
That said, the story reaches its conclusion quickly, and could afford to play more with the puppets’ self awareness of their puppet state. This element goes down well with the audience, but is addressed all too infrequently. Ultimately, however, this is an intelligent piece of theatre, distinguished by skill and originality. (Rebecca Monks) ■ Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 30 Aug, 5pm, £9.50–£12 (£8.50–£10).
RAZ BY JIM CARTWRIGHT Cartwright's hardcore clubber monologue gets a blistering rendition by his son James ●●●●●
Probably still best known for the celebrated play and film of Little Voice, writer Jim Cartwright is a noted wordsmith who brings considerable linguistic dexterity to this simple but effective dissection of the mind of a male clubber. A pallet-lifter by day, Shane likes to style himself as a millionaire
come Friday night, when he launches himself into his local pubs and clubs for an orgy of drink, drugs and womanising. Shane’s opening appearance, clad only in pants emblazoned
with the Superman logo, strutting his washboard abs in a tanning salon, sets the tone; brash, boastful, reeking of small-town machismo.
As he dresses in his best shirt, Shane phones around his
friends, coordinating a night on the tiles with military precision. But as the drinks are downed with all manner of narcotics, and Cartwright revels in the sordid details, Shane begins to realise that there is something missing from his hedonistic lifestyle. Performing this one-man show as Shane, James Cartwright
makes sure that his machine-gun delivery of his father’s carefully chosen words don’t let RAZ down; he does them proud, slipping in and out of other characters – including a Welsh taxi driver – with ease, but never losing his grip on Shane’s deliberately errant character. The result is a blistering 50-minute monologue that sets the
bar high in terms of performance, with Cartwright bringing the intensity of Tom Hardy to his role; clubs may be closing all over the country, but a theatre production as visceral as RAZ bottles the spirit of the hardcore clubber, only to unceremoniously pour it into the gutter. (Eddie Harrison) ■ Assembly George Square, 623 3030, until 31 Aug (not 24), 4pm, £12.50–£13.50 (£11.50–£12.50).
20–31 Aug 2015 THE LIST FESTIVAL 85
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