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MUSICAL
MISS BOLLYWOOD
SECC Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow, Sun 18 8. Mon 19 Nov
Let's be honest. the prognosis isn't good. But we at The List never pre- iudge a show before its arriva; Al: the same. Shilpa Shetty's musical star vehicle. intended. no deubt, to cash in on the storm of publicity that exploded around her after her misfortunes on Big Brother has been given a pretty lukewarm reception by Critics thus far. While there's been praise lOr Shetty's own performance. little enthusiasrii has been mustered for the muSical itself. A certain satisfaction at this seems to have manifested itself in her native India. where a good deal of initial sympathy was squandered by an alleged kiss With Richard Gere. OUIte whether it was the thought of the kiss. or of Richard Gere that caused all the stushie back home is difficult to say.
The story tells of a young and idealistic choreographer whose first tentative steps on the Bollywoood career ladder are hampered by such obstacles as Jealous female stars and lecherous old film personalities. After that. Will love and career success perk things up nicely for the finale? I'm sure
I'd spOII it for the hard-of-thinking ifl j PreVleWS
told. (Steve Cramer) ClASSICS
life; sex, love, death.’
MUSIC THEATRE A SOLDIER’S TALE Tron, Glasgow, Fri 16—Sat 17 Nov
Among what we rather forbiddingly call ‘serious' or ‘classical' music composers. perhaps the most frequently performed over the last century. at least in terms of theatre rather than opera. is StraVinsky. The music itself seemed to have the resourceful theatricality of the stage about it. so it's no Surprise that we've heard a good deal of his music outside the strict confines of opera or dance. At the Tron, the most recent of many examples occurs in this piece. With text by CF Ramuz. a verSion of the Faust myth set during. and written shortly after, the First World War.
But this version of the Faust myth transposed to the trenches sees an unusual departure from the usual form. for instead of using an actor to portray the soldier, miming with violin, this piece. which originated at the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, uses its Violinist as the actor. And in Anthony Marwood. we see an accomplished exponent of both crafts. ‘War is a constant in it, the psychotogical effect of it in particular,‘Marwood explains. ‘He's the product of war, he's been altered and has various burning needs created by the war. It's a question of individual character and the effect that erwironment has on the development of someone.‘
The Faust myth has of course been manifested endlessly in drama. but the character presented here seems quite different from the usuai driven and ambitious version of the figure. perhaps because of the deadly circumstances in which he finds himself. ‘I think the soldier is a very sympathetic character.‘ says Marwood. 'There are things that everyone will identify With in him, althOugh each audience member. l think. will experience it in different ways.’ (Steve Cramerl
THE TRAGEDIE OF MACBETH AND THE TRAGEDIE OF HAMLET Hudson Hotel, Edinburgh, until Mon 17 Dec
Communicating Shakespeare’s contemporary relevance is always contentious. To draw links with modern day society or not, that is the question. Artistic director and actor William Mann, of ishakepeare company, is clear which side of the fence he’s on. ‘People make the mistake of thinking that everyone worries about politics,’ he says. ‘They do, but there are bigger, more important things. If your lover dumps you on the day of the general election you’re not going to go and vote. In our Shakespeare productions I want to concentrate on those essential motivations of human
Inspired by Japanese Noh theatre, Persian mystery
Theatre
plays and Greek tragedy, Mann certainly knows his stuff. He says that “parts of what Shakespeare wrote were drivel', adding that in these productions the focus is the hero. ‘Nobody goes to Macbeth to see the Malcolm scene,’ says Mann. ‘They want to see Macbeth. I want to push the idea of ceremony. We use scarves to delineate character. and the audience can see the actors not acting, just off the carpet. The audience cannot hide behind anything, they have to think, and engage themselves emotionally.’
Performing Hamlet and Macbeth on alternate nights of the week, and with more of the Bard’s tragedies planned for the future, ishakepeare provides a constant Shakespeare fix. ‘The idea is: if you like what you see, come back for more.’ And with a Hamlet that claims to include ‘possibly the greatest moment in the history of theatre’ performed in a basement hotel bar, you’d be as well to take the chance. (Meg Watson)
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