‘THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER'
THING IS A RELATIVELY RECENT ACQUISITION
Ho pas
Masashi Fujimoto, Emperor in the King's, Edinburgh panto
The season for the sanitised revival of folk tales is upon us again. Steve Cramer examines sex and politics in this traditional Christmas form.
‘ nd the) li\ed happil} until the} died.‘ llitlx
ran the characterixtic out ol thoxe l'eu lolk
talex that actuall_\ ended. alter a good deal
ol- \iolence. \xith relati\cl_\ .xane rexolutionx. "l‘lie
littlilill) e\cr alter" thing ix a relati\el_\ recent
acquixition. xttlllL‘Wllill ne\\ er. in lact. than the
tradition ol‘ panto. But the darker xide ix xtill there.
containing all the ritex ol‘ paxxage information that
xomc parentx are reluctant to impart to their children. So it‘x prett_\ hand}. in xome rexpectx.
So uh} not hring the kidx along to a little tale ahout menxtruation thix (‘hrixtmaxl’ 'I‘hat‘x “hat )ilti'll get at the l._\ ceum. “here. in the original S/cc/iink' Hui/iii; a girl ol If». the age at \xhich. tradition had it. lltc‘ tiltl lTlUUtl-IL‘llillg lk‘gtltt. L‘\]k‘t'lL‘ltL‘L‘\ lltc‘ ~itilll‘lic‘} into adulthood. .\lan_\ p.x_\choanal_\tic tlieorixtx dixagree. claiming the original tale. “here the prickcd linger x_\ntholi.xex xe\ual intercourxc. and the locked room and .xpindle \irginit}. \xcre ahout the l‘irxt L‘\|M‘l‘lc‘liL‘L‘ Ul. \ililx lliL‘ \titlxttg‘c. \Vlttlchc‘l‘ lliL‘ hackground. we can he .xure that Stuart l’aterxon'x \erxion. under the axtute direction ol‘ 'l‘on) (‘ounic. \\ill charm and delight enottgh to let )ou l'orget the .xe\ual .xuhte\t il‘_\ou \\ ixh.
lt‘x harder to excape the implicationx ol’ Aha/din. a liar more political al‘l‘air altogether. 'l‘here'x e\et') reaxon to l‘eel tear in international al‘l‘airx at the moment. a.x the \xorld tremhlex in anticipation ol the nut act ol' \iolence li'om a xmall group ol‘ px} chotic
religioux l‘anaticx. .-\nd the onex (innit/c ol‘
\Vaxhington are a hit ol‘ a \xorr}. too. In thix atmoxl‘liere. the colonialixt narrati\e ol' Alta/din. \xith itx pmxerlul. hut .xomelitm controllahle .\liddle liaxtern genie. xx’iiilitilixc‘x a ltititax} ol‘ control oxer \\ hat lidxxard Said \xouldKe called the ()rientalixed ‘othet". Here the potenc} ol' the genie and the po\\ er
ol‘ the limpcror x_\mholixe hoth xe.\ual and political threatx to the colonixer. and \VllL‘lllL‘l' good prex'ailx lx up to the \xatchcr. Belore _\ou accuxe me ol' heing a hit \Vidoix \Vanlx}. l'd hettet' lea\e it there. httt _\ou can xee \erxions ol' the tale at hoth the lx'ing‘x. lidinhurgh lxxith the xplendid .-\nd} (ira) and Allan Stenartl and the iron. (ilaxgim (where you can xee a hip \\'egie \erxion. il _\ott can imagine xuch a thing l. But ax ii" to men tliingx up l‘rom the more recent anti—.\luxlim xentiment ol‘ the aho\e. )ou can alxo xee a “mic old-laxltiollcd \arict} ol' racixm in St'l'flltg’t' al (iilmourehill. Yex. l)iclxenx‘ piece ol relentlexx anti— Semitixm. ahout an old dude who doexn't celehrate
('lirixtmax t\\h_\ xhould he. hch itth getting o\er
('hanukah) and ix. according to itx l‘)th centur) Britixh originx. incredihl} tight-lixtcd. ix once again a\ailahle to _\ou. Sa) hello to Nick (iril‘lin l‘or me on the opening night.
Mainly though. pantox are ahout xex and ritex ol‘
paxxage. xo the heanxtalk grou ing ol‘ .lack needx little c\planation. ll' _\ou do need a more graphic demonxtration. no douht the l’aVilion. \xliich ix hardl} noted tor xuhtlet} in itx innuendoex. can pro\ide _\ou \xith one thix war. You can alxo xee the quext lor l‘ertilit} lroni liileen (‘ Smith land gixen thix lad-xx
litigiouxttexx. l'd hettcr lea\e it at that) in .tlui/u'r
(imm' at the Kiiig'x. (ilaxgou. But the real challenge might he a xtor} ol‘ lox'e unrequited and xacrilice in HM [ill/c .llcrnmltl. \xliiclt endx. in itx original \titli lo\c unt‘ullilled hemeen the mermaid and her prince. death. and the promixe ol redemption. 'l'hix laxxie doexn‘t exen get to he llapp} until xhe diex. l’erhapx the .-\rchex. (ilaxgou. \erxion \\ ill let ux doxxn gently.
See listings for details of a panto or Christmas show near you.
Theatre >l<
Hit
THE BEST THEATRE & DANCE
* Rain The vastly theatrical French Canadian alternative circus. Cirque Eloize. visits Edinburgh with a rare combination of physical skills. Clowning. acrobatics. trapeze and a whole range of circus thrills are available in a moving story of childhood with a spectacular finale.
Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Tue 23—Sat 27 Nov.
* Riddance Acclaimed Scottish actor Neil McKinven makes his directorial debut with this first major revival of Linda McLean's 1999 Fringe hit. In it, three old friends meet up at a time of stress, and revelations about their shared past bring both pain and redemption. The much underrated Paul Cunningham leads a strong cast in a production of great potential. Tramway, Glasgow, until Sat 20 Nov, then toun'ng. 3|: The Swansong It's one night only, but this production, from young director Lucy Jameson, presents the rare chance to see David Greig's script. originally produced for radio. on stage. The surreal and dark romantic comedy presents the meeting of a girl considering suicide and a talking swan. a used car salesman in a previous life. Will love bloom. or does death beckon? Find out. Tron, Glasgow, Thu 78 Nov.
II! Othello You can still see Mark Thomson’s astute and very engaging production of this great tragedy, which is not often seen in Scotland. Featuring a towering performance by Liam Brennan as Iago. it’s a strong night of entertainment. Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, until Sat 20 Nov.
-'- THE LIST 103