everything to Marsha Norman‘s beautifully-crafted play. It is a story that examines the hopeless isolation and manifold emotional inadequacies ofa mid-American mother and daughter striving to understand one another. and reduced several of my neighbours to tears. Night, Mother deserves every accolade. (Simon Scott) Night. Mother, The Netherbow A rts Centre. 43 High Street. Until 30 Aug (not Suns), 8pm. £3 (£2).
; COMEDY WITHOUT TITLE
Bom out of the bloodbath of the Spanish Civil War this startling and innovative piece of theatre deals with the brutality and violence that became a daily reality for Spain in 1936. The author himself
1 ‘disappeared‘ when put up against a
tree and shot at dawn by the Fascists. In this British premiere ofthc play from the Yorick Theatre Company. Jonathan Oliver as Lorca and the author is uncannin assured in the midst ofpanic and alarm.
The haunting Spanish music. the torches flashed into the faces of the
i audience. and a genuine feeling of
fear in this production directed by Michael Batz. create a bloody and horrific atmosphere. The play ends with a broadcast from Sir Anthony Eden. supporting the official line of no sanctions and non-intervention in Franco‘s Spain. A chilling reminder
; ofso much present-day conflict.
(Helen Davidson) Comedy Without Title, St Cuthbert's Hall. King’s Stables Road (venue 50). 23, 30 A ug, 1.30—3.30pm. 28Aug, 9.30—ll.30pm. £3.50 (£2. 75).
ALBERTINE, IN FIVE TIMES
Michel Tremblay‘s perversely titled Albertine, in Five Times is so called because, of the six actresses on stage. five are playing the title role simultaneously. at different ages between 30 and 70. The sixth character is her sister. This remarkably conceived and executed device is skilfully sustained so that though complex. it is not confusing. and gives the play its truly distinctive quality. And in a resonant though inevitably static production. the all-women members of the
Canadian company give exemplary performances that fully carry the play‘s difficult structure. (Mark Shenton) Albertine, in Five Times, Tarragon Theatre. Toronto, Traverse (venue 15). Grassmarket. 22. 24 Aug, 2pm; 23 Aug, 9.30pm; 26, 28. 30Aug, 4.30pm.
McGOUGH AND MCCARTHY
Bearing in mind it‘s the Festival which has brought all the well-established acts to the Assembly Rooms‘ treadmill. most of which are used to performing in many different venues around the country. it‘s a pleasure to go to a show where much of the material is relevant to Edinburgh at this time.
; Both very well-known in their own i right. Roger McGough and Pete
McCarthy come together this year for the first time in a double act which combines their respective talents for poetry and stand-up comedy with a fair deal of merging in between. Not only do they have strong material — a lot of which is inspired by their Catholic upbringings - but their obvious enjoyment ofone another’s company on stage creates a very easy and receptive atmosphere— that and the five minute break to refill the beer glasses in the interval! The end result is a combination ofsuperb poems. some very funny skits, and easily one of the best evenings I‘ve had in the Fringe so far. (Hattie Evans) Roger McGough and Pete McCarthy in Cabaret, Supper Room, Assembly Rooms (venue 3) Until 30 Aug (not Mon 22), 8pm. £4.25 (£3.50).
A SLIGHT HITCH
Imagine a cartoon in 3-D and you begin to appreciate the art ofTrestle Theatre Company. Masks. created by the cast. are used to superb effect to make novel some familiar comic
I targets. It is truly amazing how the ' masks‘ fixed expressions appear to
change. to be emotionally responsive. and credit for this lies with the beautifully controlled mimingofthe actors.
In A Slight Hitch. a hapless pair of newly-weds have to cope with a
i succession ofoutrageous bugbears, i as well as with each other. Various
the airline steward and stewardess, the Spanish hoteliers, are all played by only four versatile actors. They smoothly dance their way in and out
of their farcical predicaments. This is T
the sort of show that has front of house watching in the aisles, and which easily gets a cult following. (Michael Mendenhall) A Slight Hitch, Trestle Theatre C 0, George Square Theatre (venue 3 7) Tickets: 6673 704. Until30Aug (n0t25) 9.45pm. £4 (£2.50).
SOLDIER SOLDIER
Essex University Theatre‘s version ofTony Parker‘s Soldier Soldier. dramatised by Richard Crane and directed by the other halfof the incredibly successful Fringe duo. Faynia Williams makes amazingly fluent and often exciting theatre. Based on the documentary accounts of soldiering— Parker interviewed army officers. service men and their
, families during times that included
i the Falkland's War as well as the ‘day i to day‘ horrors of Northern Ireland — i no consistent narrative develops and . the perfect cameos of army
personalities are punctuated with
. individual and themed accounts of army life. As a study ofthc British
Army it is illuminating. revealing there to be no one ‘type' but a complicated structure ofdifferent types accommodated by the army‘s
hierachy.
The cleverness of the drama is in
Q communicating the tacit hypotheses
that real individualism is suppressed by the system. leaving the army as a
sum ofits well absorbed parts able to
survive war in the Falklands or ‘policing’ the peace camps. The acting is totally convincing and the
direction only occasionally lacks
pace. As with all good
: drama-documentaries. it is easy to forget that you are seeing an
abstraction of reality and this is a most plausable one.(Nigel Billen)
, Soldier. Soldier, Essex University 2 Theatre/Demarco Productions. . Royal Mile Primary School. (venue
58) Canongate. A ug 21—2310pm. €3.50 (£2.50).
The insinuendos are a camp and captivating cabaret company of
% three explicitly and specifically gay
men. Not that this limits their appeal to a broader audience or indeed
. forces them to make any concessions
to one. Because they present a repertoire consisting principally of show standards, sometimes slightly subverted but for once not disrespectful to the original versions,
E there‘s something for everyone here, 5 though some of the more rarified
references may need interpreting. They are a likeable bunch and. according to your taste. quite fetching. It‘s one of the least pretentious, most promising acts on the Fringe. A pity they end so soon. (Mark Shenton) The lnsinuendos. Old St Paul’s Church Hall, Jeffrey Street (venue 45) 556 2687. Until 23 A ug. 11.45pm—12.45am. £2.50 (£1.50):
Martini-um:
EVENTSGIIE CONTRIBUTORS
Publisher Robin Hodge . Editors Nigel Billen. Sarah Hemming. Glasgow Editor Graham Caldwell. Associate Editor Allan Hunter. Design Simon Esterson. Publications Manager Sally Kinnes. Advertising Bill Gordon. Robert Dawson Scott. Accounts Richard Gray. Typesetting Jo Kennedy and Hewer Text. Production Editor Paul Keir. Production Assistant Triona Cary. Art Alice Bain. Books Alan Taylor. Classical Music Carol Main. Dance Alice Bain. Film Allan Hunter. Trevor Johnston. Folk/Jazz Norman Chalmers. Kids Sally Kinnes. Media Allan Hunter. Rock (Edinburgh) Alastair Mabbot. Rock (Glasgow) Andrea Miller and Stuart Spence. Sport Graham Caldlwell. Theatre Sarah Hemming. Photos Chris Hill. Illustrations Simon Gooch. onice Lynn Spowart. Camera Darien Printing Co.
Cover Paul Cox
Cover Design Simon Esterson and Stephen Coates.
THE TRAVERSE THEATRE
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The List 22 AL... -— 4 Sept 11