6pm—8pm FESTIVAL
Partition's sweet sorrow: A Tainted Dawn
THEATRE PREVIEW A Tainted Dawn
At the 50th anniversary International Festival, Tamasha Theatre Company commemorate another 50th anniversary - the partition of India. A Tainted Dawn (advertised in the Festival brochure as Partition) is a follow-up to the acclaimed show East Is East, which the company performed last year as a co-production with Birmingham Rep and London's Royal COUPL'ThG new show is an adaptation of nine short stories centring on partition.
Sudha Bhuchar and Kristine Landon-Smith co-founded Tamasha in 1989, with the aim of reflecting the Asian experience both in Britain and on the sub-continent through high-quality theatre. Earlier productions include Untouchable (1989) and Women Of The Dust (1993). Bhuchar (Meena in EastEnders) speaks of the company's desire to reflect the experience of
ordinary people. 'Our intent is to show these characters [as] not far off from
what's happened in Bosnia and Africa,’ she explains.
The play - which marks the re-opening of the Gateway Theatre, to be fully refurbished on a Lottery grant after the Festival - takes the form of a complex, interwoven narrative, bringing alive the experience of partition through the eyes of various characters. In one episode, violence arises from cultural crosscurrents on a train journey. In another, a Hindu boy is fostered by Muslims, then returned to his natural family, putting one in mind of the tense final scenes of Mike Leigh’s film, Secrets And Lies. 'We're interested in the human angle,’ as Bhuchar puts it. (Steve Cramer)
A Tainted Dawn (International Festr'va/)Aug 7 7—78 (not 13) 7.30pm; Sat 16, 2.30pm, £72 (£6).
THEATRE PREVIEW Elephant Wake
On several oc ( astons during this one- man show, performer and co-author Joey Tremblay wears a false elephant trunk over his nose and makes what he
calls 'a fart norse to the audience.’
culture’s struggle to survwe and the unquenchable power of imagination and humour
Set In French-Canadian Sasketchewan, It’s the story of a now- abandoned Village, St Vrerge The sole remaining Inhabitant IS Jean-Claude — described by Tremblay as 'a Ioner simpleton prairie bastard' —- who has a scheme for restoring the hamlet torts former thnvrng status.
The Creation of an enormous paprer- mache elephant may sound crazy, but makes perfect sense to lean-Claude, whose most precious memory IS the papier-mache 200 he made wrth hlS mother as a Clllld,
If all this seems remote from British
us that it's all about ’the Oppression of a more dominant Culture -- In this case English over French,’ Ring any bells? (Ed Grenby)
I Elephant Wake (Fringe) Catalyst Theatre (Canada), HI” Street Theatre (Venue 47) 226 6522, 70-30 Aug (not 77, 26) 7 30pm, £6 ([5).
Trunk call: Joey Tremblay in Elephant Wake
Knockabout stand-up? No: an achingly wustful play about loss, dispossessron, a
experience, Tremblay rs Qurck to remind
"IEIBIIIIESS narcissism"
"in name hullylmy"
mus-mum
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Pleance Till Aug - 3am Aug except ll, 18, 28 7.30pm VIII! Ill] 33 M31 556 6550
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