Theatre
HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE Understanding child abuse 00..
socrety. It's an exploratron of the relatronshrp between t 'rl Brt. growrng up rn lvlaryland rn the (30s wrth her closely knrt lower rnrddle class farnrly and her Uncle Peck. Whrle never condonrng hrs actions. Vogel offers rnsrght rnto a complex bond, where sexual abuse rs subtlety rrrasked by love and frrendshrp.
The play's trtle refers to the (lr'r‘.|ttg lessons l_'r| Brt received from her uncle. As the story Jumps back and forth over ten years of memorres. she looks back. as a grown ‘.'.'oman. and recalls happy and painful rncrdents. t lr/abeth Donnelly eprtomrses the young grrl's rnnocence. expressrng the confzrsrng rnrx of loye. respect and fear she feels tonaards her uncle. as he txler (Daffallr battles wrth hrs desrres. the rest of the cast play the irrrarrous famrlt, and the
Sporlt for choice when It comes to shows about paedophrlra’? I hrghly recommend yOu prck thrs one. Paula Vogel's comrc and cornpellrng drama arms to enrrch our ur'tderstandrng of
one of the greatest taboos rn modern chorus. who r'ttrotluce (tl‘tl cerrtrrrertt
GUARDIANS Bondage, discipline and tabloids 0000
“Who will guard the guardians themselves?” the nature and dynamic of this question, which occurs at a crucial moment in Peter Morris’ new play, will give you the idea that there’s nothing particularly new in the nature of this interrogation of authority in a contemporary, divided world. But what makes it interesting is its remarkable intensity, with a kind of savage anger haunting the text, which wonders, very like My Pyramids at the Traverse, who, precisely, the villains of the Abu Ghraib affair are.
In it, two entirely separate monologues interweave, forming, eventually, a coherently oppositional view of the violence of the current geopolitical adventurism we’re witnessing in the world. Firstly, we meet a sleazy tabloid hack (Hywel John) of a familiar variety. He’s a gay S&M fancier, but more importantly, a representative of a class elite, without the noblesse oblige of his forebears, and with instead a ferocious individualist vision. At the other end of the class scale, there’s a young woman in the Lynndie England role (MyAnna Buring), uncomprehending of the charges of abuse levelled against her, nor even of the form of abuse imposed on her consciousness by the mass media. The sadistic journalist schemes at his promotion with fake photos of the kind that brought Piers Morgan's tenure at The Mirror to an end. Meanwhile, the young woman suffers abandonment by all but her grandfather, a war veteran who understands that for the rest of us, this barbarism is a spectator sport.
The text is not perfect; it’s hard to understand why a materialistic journalist at a tabloid would want to work for the lower paid broadsheets, and at times the message is generally a bit direct. Nevertheless, the raw intensity of the play has much to say for it, and Michael Longhurst’s production creates a good deal of subversive metaphor, finding ways in which sexuality and power are a latent aspect of mainstream media political discourse. Most of all, there are a couple of really compelling performances from the actors. Buring, in particular, creates a masterpiece of nuanced authenticity in her white trash soldier, as sexually exploited as she is exploitative. We are left with a cold, angry vision of the end logic of Neitsche; a beleaguered moral universe without affirmation. But the text asks us if we deserve or want this to occur, and begs some interesting answers. (Steve Cramer)
I P/easance Courtyard. (3:36 ($5.60. unfr/QQ/lug. 3.30pm. 3‘9 :7 l0 9‘» S‘éu‘.f>()r_
106 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 1/": Aug; *3 See J? r.
on the eprsodes. these famrly scenes. whrle proyrdrrrg a humorous release. are the most drffrcult to belrexe: the youthful actors are never \xrholly conyrrrcrng as elderly relatrx'es. A slrght drag rn the rnrddle rs compensated later. as mrssrng memorres frt rnto place and the full extent of emotronal and psychologrcal effect rs realrsed. Thrs one lingers rn your thoughts long after rt's oner. rClarre Prelal
I (I (Serif/at 08/0 f0] :3 I05). unt/l 25) Aug. rtfr‘flprrr. 58:3047150,.
AISLE 1 6: POETRY BOYBAND Satirising the rubbish stuff 0000
All poets are '.'.‘ankc-rs. Drspeirrrtg thrs myth. Arsle tr") address us as rf’ ‘.'.-:;-'rc- ‘.'.'a'rr‘abe Mr: t-;:c'ra{rers and deconstnrct tl‘e rreterrtrousness of
satire. As ever tdrnbtrv'gl‘. thrs month. a shox'.‘ about '.'./anky
poetr,
.'.':Z'r s'r‘arr I, ftp..."
luxxres krss clieem; arr
artrsts Is ix“ irarrtl', rcr‘;::.
Sport "it; squeak; .;éean grrns ari:r' brrglr! .'.':rte smts. the boyband foursome present a serres of rnrcro lectures, rrpprng apart exlenrthrrrg from ned culture to corrsurnerrsrr‘. and translat'ng the galords o" legendary. bards 'rttc Packed '.'."rtl‘ sardonic wrt. poetrc raps are punched out at tongue t‘.'.'rstrng pace to hrtar-orrs effect. thrs slrck
cor‘ternporary slang.
rhythm rs actornpar red by onerheads r.'.'hrc.h flash images rn trme to the talk. the lecture style isn't strrkrngly orrgrnal but the prorectrons. r.'-.rhrlc- occasronally drstractrr‘g. are rntegral to the shows success. l’op art. photography rlragrams and frlrn footage are all (:lt?‘.'(}r‘ly comrc. though the piece has darker moments too. the ‘lecture' on the paedophrle prrme rnrnrster. rapped to (:ltrldr'en's cartoons. ruffles the audrence ‘.'.'hrle brreflr, touchrng on rnedra manrpulatroh and polrtrcal propaganda. But go for the humour: thrs rs one of the frrnnrest thrngs you'll see thrs f rrnge. rClarre Prelar
I l-‘leasance Courtrard. 5x36 ($53330. rurfr/Q’O/lug. -.’.-10pm. .‘V' 5‘815‘53 l‘b‘r.
HOMEMADE Take away drama I...
Amongst the orrgrnators of the growrng trend for“ stay at home entertarnrnent. lrrrrge l rrst \.'.'rnnrng wrrter drrector ()hrrs (3oode's latest show rs srte specrfrr: theatre wrth a drffererrce. lte delr‘yeis lrrs plat. to your door.
Axarlable for rent. Httft‘é,‘l.‘t(ltlt? wrll be dorng the rounds of l (lrnburgh homes for the rest of the l rrnge. wrth the
guarantee that no two performances writ be the same. Tonrght. rn a New town flat a small crowd huddles rn the krtchen watclrrng as Lucy stares forlornly into her (or rather. someone else'sr frrdge. Thrs maudlrn state rs soon rnterrupted by .Jamre. her date for the nrght. who arrrves wrth some rather unusual baggage. Lucy and .Jamre's awkwardly romantrc evenrng provrdes offbeat comedy and a porgnant look at love and loss. whrch rs careful to avord over sentrrnentalrty. A thrrd. unrnvrted. guest allows (Boode's story to further exarnrne the emotrons that so often run rn parallel rather than. srttrng snugly at opposite ends of a spectrum.
As each performance responds to its surroundrngs. the cast are endlessly called upon to rmprovrse and personarrse the show. In dorng so. Homemade opens up an unusual two- way rntrrnacy betn'reen actor and audrence. as therr story takes over your house. rnakrng thrs a great nrght rn. r’Corrre Mrllsr I Various venues. 075) M 625) 8:31. unfr/ 28 Aug. various venues. from {‘80 Itrme and cost by arrange/neon
THE BUTCHER AND THE THIEF
A gory hour with Burke and Hare OOOO
Wrth the lrkes of Jack the Ripper and Harold Shrpman followrng rn therr footsteps. t drnburgh's most prolrfrc serral krllers aren't as scandalous as they once were. But therr legend strll makes for a meaty story. Usrng puppetry. mrrne. masks and plenty of gore rthrs rs not for the sgueamrshl actors Robert Stocks and Tommy
l uther brrng the notorrous twosome to lrfe.
Gruesome re enactments are fed rnto the trral and a chrldlrke vorceover retraces therr hrstory rn Ireland wrth the smart use of shadow puppetry. though drsturbrngly brutal. both butcher Burke) and thref (Hare) are played wrth a degree of humanrty. askrng you to look beneath the surface of what could Just be percerved as an unsrghtly bloodbath. the way masks and puppets are rnanrpulated as \'r<:trrns and suffocated so vrcrously gryes them the faceless anonymrty that the murders persuaded themselves to belrexe rn. A play about Burke and llare rs not the stuff of cuttrng edge l rrnge. But a grrpprng performance of an FdInburgh legend wrll draw you to