" l ‘ Stand up and be counted 1
What do you get it you cross two Y \_ -. directors, one oi Scottish theatre‘s greatest ‘characters' and a classic 70s i period piece? The new Lyceum production oi Trevor Griitiths‘ Comedians, ol course. lt‘sthe way I tell ‘ ’em. The major reservation about this ; revival could be that no sell-respecting comic does tell them like that any more. So what are 1991 audiences going to lind relevant to them. a 'I think that the issues the play raises 2 both politically and about humour are still with us,‘ insists director, Ian
inma- lGreen l Indians i
briilant an ill the " century
l’iiSS cull I
Ian Wooldridge oi the play is then a series oi stand-up routines, each oi which highlights the Wooldridge. ‘Thlngs haven‘t changed I political persuasion oi the comic.
L The Dancers' Guild. a ciasicaily trained company from Calcutta are returning to Edinburgh with a new show .
For A ranya A mrr'ra. choreographer. Manjusri Chaki-Sircartakes as her theme the Chipko movement.
In india ithas
aside lrom the fact that, in many respects, they have got worse. And it‘s a play that poses problems, dilemmas, : alternatives; it doesn‘t necessarily solve them. It lays the audience on the line and I think it will do that just as question themselves and question their much now as it did originally. own attitudes, question their own
‘A lot oi people leel that the class i racism, their own sexism. We're all
‘lt‘s wholly diiterent from most, ii not all, things you see inthe Lyceum,‘ claims Twist. Wooldridge continues, ‘ll 5 the audience iind some oi the material lunny, then inevitably they must
become the symbol ofa personal and community environmental campaign to prevent large—scale deforestation. especially in the foot-hills ofThe
divide in this country, the gap between rich and poor, has increased in the last twelve years,‘ adds assistant director
Ben Twist. ‘And since this is a play that
highlights the politics ol division it still
guilty of that because at the society we’ve been brought up in. The play is trying to make you think “What do you
. iind iunny and why?“ People laugh at
Bernard Manning- he’s a very popular
T comic and no matter how liberal you see yourseli being, you can’t help comedy tutor, Eddie Waters, who 1 laughing at him at times.‘ (Philip Parr) : guides each oi his students to an . Comedians will be at the Royal Lyceum eventual performance. The second hall f Theatre, Edinburgh ir0m 4-19 0010b“.
: Ui, you are awful
has a lot to say to an audience.‘ Jimmy Logan will play the part of
Himalayas.
The dance-drama is in six scenes depictingthe harmony of nature. tree worship. forest devastation as a result of merciless woodcutters and a final planting prayer for the nurturing of the land for future generations.
Manjusri studied at the University established by Rabindranath Tagore — the early Zilth-ccntury lndian philosopher and the first ever Asian winner ofthe Nobel Prize for literature. Over the years. the dancer became increasingly dissatisfied | with the male-centred view of the classical ‘nayika', or heroine. and traditional dance-dramas. leading her to break away and form The Dancers' (iuild.
Dik Mehta from'i'he Edinburgh-lndian Association has been instrumental in bringing Majusri back to Edinburgh three years after her first appearance. He is in no doubt about
i m
' - A at»: - t . Benoit Brecht wrote The Resistibie obviously shows that Brecht knew that Rise of Arturo m ".1941, He didn't Hitlerwould not be the last oi his kind know about the concentration camps or 5 ‘0 98in Dower.
§ the gas chambers or the ghettos but he ' Benn Will direct a cast of Six Who.
did know that Hitler was an imbecile. between them. Will play 32 parts. The So he made Ui, the minor henchman ol ; director and limited cast will have to be
an organised crime syndicate in i "UNIV drilled W 38 Bell" explains they ' Muscle Voice. the latest in the Chicago who rises to gain ultimate have Plenty 0' "eedom "_‘ 0m" 3'933- Miiican ‘new generation‘ billings. power, similarly ridiculous. And hey ‘The characters are written very g haS had to be relocated gamma-1,1,, :
the universal appeal ofthe dancer and her company.
presto, we have that old iavourite the analogy play. However, the director at
sketchily so it’s really up to you to
pump lile into them. And that‘s a lot at
3 Different from the close
approaching Dance Umbrella
tun. It‘s not naturalistic in any way, it‘s not subtle, it’s totally over the top in orderto highlight the ridiculousness oi these people and the kind oi greed and avarice which they thrive upon.’
‘We have to see how ridiculous Ui is and have to laugh at him so that we can get our anger up so that it doesn‘t happen again. We've got to be able to see through the machinations and the ialseness and the sell-consciousness oi these people. It‘s not like Hitler was hiding the tact anti pretending that he was actually a very sensitive and intelligent man. Brecht’s saying “Look ! he‘s telling you he‘s a buttoon, why can‘tyou realise it.“‘ (Philip Parr)
The Besistible Rise oi Arturo Ui begins an extensive tour atThe Motherwell Theatre on Friday 4 October.
(which shares some of its artists). : Muscle Voice is a noise ofitsown. 1 showing American and British , performers.
Nikki Miiican went to the States in January for research and talks with collaborator Mark Russell. Artistic Director of P5122. 1 ’ew York (a space similar to Third Eye‘s P82 with a matching programme). Together i they created and funded Muscle Voice.
The first triple bill includes Ishmael Houston Jones (USA) who has been ‘creating quite a lot ofinterest in the States' and this will be his first and only show in the UK. David Dorfman has built up his relationship with The Third Eye ever since New Moves 1989.
.1 7284's new production, Boanna Benn, f is wary oi drawing too many
‘Thesc are a fantastic i comparisons between the two
i
group of dancers. one of
the most exciting in india
and certainly one ofthe
most innovative. They
tackle real issues that face
people and they use the
dance form as a meansof conveying a social
message. Their dance is
undoubtedly modern but
based on classical foundations and they even throw in martial arts sothe
3 wholethingis very
powerful. very energetic.
and yet at the same time. wonderfully graceful.‘
The Dancers' (Jul/(l it'll/be a! The George Square Theatre. lidtnburgh on Saturday 5 October.
dictators.
‘l’m not going to make it specilically about Hitler because i think it you did that people would tail to seethe : relevance to otherworld leaders ol today. So, to me, it was an expose cl '2 the rise to power of a gangster. He i really made Hitler/Ui a clown— someone so ridiculous who has no social graces, no awareness, just barges into situations and yet who i actually gets somewhere. You can quote millions oi people to whom that could apply but I don‘t like making direct comparisons. The last lines at the play say “The bitch that gave birth to him is in heat again“ which
48The List 27 September— lilOctober 1991