list.co.uk/festival Festival TheatreReviews at a Glance
Are You There? ●●●●● A dingy apartment is the setting for this paranormal tale of a fraught couple’s enforced cohabitation with a sinister presence. Adapter/director Charlie Ward has done a cracking job with Javier Daulte’s original work and the young cast of two rise admirably to the challenge of the by-turns frightening, comic and sad narrative of grief, loss and the realities of human love. Some questions are left unanswered, and there are occasional swerves into histrionics, but overall a fine example of above- average student drama. (Siân Hickson) Zoo Roxy, 662 6892, until 30 Aug (not 25) 5pm, £8 (£5). At Home with Mrs Moneypenny ●●●●● Mrs Moneypenny is a former investment banker who writes a column for the Financial Times. She is a staunch defender of bonuses for the likes of Fred Goodwin, an attitude that will appeal to some tastes and not to others. Whether you find that sweet or sour, however, there’s no getting away from the fact that Mrs M is smart and funny, as her cookery-cum-self-promotional show staged in the AGA shop (here doubling for her Oxfordshire kitchen) demonstrates. The champagne and blinis that come with it are tasty, too. (Miles Fielder) Assembly @ AGA Showroom, 623 3030, until 29 Aug (not 23), 12.30pm & 4.30pm, £12. Bare ●●●●● Gritty, violent theatre set in the world of bare-knuckle boxing from BareBack Theatre. The sharp writing and fantastically choreographed fight scenes wouldn’t have half the impact without the strong central performances, from writer/director Renny Krupinski as slippery agent/promoter Arden and Paul Michael Giblin as fighter Skinner ‘The Killer’, who gets sucked into this murky world of blood and gambling. Hard hitting drama. (Henry Northmore) theSpaces on the Mile @ The Radisson, 0845 557 0844, until 28 Aug, 5.20pm, £9 (£7). Burst ●●●●● This tale of a Sudanese girl forced into an arranged marriage in the wake of colonial independence sadly fails to sparkle. The plot is unnecessarily and clunkingly intercut with a rushed account of her uncle’s fatal foray into 1920s London, which is patchy and lacks proper characterisation. It’s atmospheric as a whole, but the script lacks polish: they’d have been better sticking to the far more compelling main narrative. Some talented performers here, but ultimately not enough to salvage a woolly and half- baked story. (Siân Hickson) The Zoo, 662 6892, until 21 Aug, 8.15pm, £8 (£6). The Call of Cthulhu ●●●●● HP Lovecraft’s most famous work is brought to the stage in this one-man show from Michael Sabbaton. Lovecraft’s tales of horror were always about unknown evils lurking in the shadows, tendrils of madness creeping into the consciousness of his protagonists, and Sabbaton perfectly captures this descent into insanity as he switches between characters, hinting at great and hideous wickedness as elder gods rise from the depths. (Henry Northmore) Hill Street Theatre, 226 6522, until 30 Aug (not 24), 1.30pm (until 22) 7.30pm (23–30), £9 (£7). The Caucasian Chalk Circle ●●●●● 3BUGS Fringe Theatre’s
entertaining production of this Brechtian classic is a witty and raggedly stylish take on the epic theatre idiom. What could in less assured hands be taken as signs of a poorly thought out production – the odd mish-mash of accents, eras and costumes, and the silver top-hatted narrator’s fluctuation between ringmaster and pop idol – here seem to be elements of a playful kind of Verfremdung. (Laura Ennor) The Zoo, 662 6892, until 30 Aug, 6.30pm, £7.50 (£6.50). Cirque de Legume ●●●●● The most impressive feat achieved in this send-up of circus performance is training the audience, Pavlov-style, to applaud whenever the phrase ‘How ‘bout that?’ is uttered – whether it follows a ‘levitating’ radish or an onion ‘striptease’. The two red-nosed clowns commit so fully to gross-out, chewed-food spectacle and clumsy sleight of hand that they must be aiming to be ‘so bad it’s good’. Unfortunately they aren’t quite that bad. (Matt Boothman) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 30 Aug, 2.30pm, £9–£10 (£7–£8). Dead ●●●●● Famous artist Pauric returns to Ireland for the first time since achieving artistic fame, with young wife Adele in tow. However, a number of shady characters from his past are less than happy to see him. The play seems like an unintentional parody of bad plays: pretentious scripting, over/under-acting, fluffed lines, abruptly cut music cues; after ten minutes, you want it to end, but there’s another 80 to go. (Niki Boyle) theSpaces on the Mile @ The Radisson, 0845 508 8316, until 28 Aug, 9.20pm, £10 (£7). Elsie and Mairi Go to War ●●●●● This well-acted tale follows two heroines of WWI dispatched to Belgium as ambulance drivers. Using extracts from the women’s diaries and contemporary press interviews, the play is adapted from a book by Diane Atkinson, who here ill-advisedly narrates large sections from the wings, instead of letting two clearly skilled actors play it out themselves, leaving us high on initial interest but short on the requisite drama. (Anna Millar) Dovecot, 226 0000, until 20 Aug, 4pm, £8 (£6). The Flat ●●●●● The typical domestic dysfunction endured by a group of young people sharing a flat in London explodes into something altogether more disturbing with the arrival of a new flatmate, an apparently shy Goth girl who has some serious anger management issues. Her problems, however, merely boil to the surface those of her cohabitants: selfishness, unrequited love and repressed sexuality among them. Although this spirited if amateurish production has a serious edge, it’s largely played for laughs. (Miles Fielder) Laughing Horse @ The Hive, 556 0004, until 29 Aug, 2.30pm, free (non-ticketed). Flor de Muerto ●●●●● Gabriel is an orphan who’d rather not celebrate the Day of the Dead for obvious reasons, but three ghosts and an alluring neighbour won’t leave him be. The ghosts are a neat narrative device: their enhanced powers during the Day of the Dead allow them to operate puppets, re-set the stage and address the audience at will. The only niggle is the lack of authentic Hispanic actors – this is Mexico City via Cambridge. (Niki Boyle) Bedlam Theatre, 225 9873, until 28 Aug (not 22), 5.30pm, £8 (£6). Gutted. A Revenger’s Musical ●●●●● Orphaned Sorrow has finally married her parents’ murderer, step one in her elaborate but strangely poorly thought-out revenge. Early on her resolve fluctuates for the sake of making her redeemable, instead making her a ditherer: an even less sympathetic quality than irredeemability. The book is mostly prosaic and uninspired, but not offensively so, and the production isn’t without a certain boisterous, admirably carefree charm. (Matt Boothman) Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 29 Aug (not 24), 11.15pm, £15 (£14). The Harbour ●●●●● Peter, a fisherman, falls for a selkie (a seal- woman) he finds in his nets. Peter is at sea a lot, not to mention underdeveloped as a character, so the focus falls on the strained relationship between ‘Sally’ the selkie and Peter’s mother Betty. Sally is an enigma, Betty a caricature, but the original folk tale’s inherent poignancy still manages to show through, aided by stirring live cello and vocal accompaniment. (Matt Boothman) The Zoo, 662 6892, until 30 Aug (not 24), 4.45pm, £8–£9 (£6–£7). The Lonesome Foxtrot ●●●●● Adapted from the Russian story ‘Fro’ by Andrei Platonov, a young wife pines for her husband who has travelled to the far east to help create a new world, and devises a plan to bring him back. This 1930s-styled production relies heavily on symbolic movement, which, while imaginative, lacks precision. Occasionally muffled dialogue makes details of the narrative hard to follow and, despite an enthusiastic interpretation, the overall effect is somewhat fragmented. (Amy Russell) New Town Theatre, 0844 477 1000, until 29 Aug, 8.30pm, £11–£12 (£9–£10). The Man Who Was Thursday ●●●●● This young, enthusiastic company injects some far-fetched fun into a light-hearted romp about the war on terror, in a noughties reimagining of the original novel by GK Chesterton. A cheeky wink to the left-not-knowing- what-the-right-hand’s doing is played out to decent comedy effect as our do-gooder hero is enticed into the world of counter- terrorism, only to discover that the ‘days of the week’ anarchists he’s been sent in to spy on aren’t quite what they seem. (Anna Millar) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 29 Aug, 5.45pm, £9 (£8). Mary & William ●●●●● Actress Mary MacDonald Hamill performs a biographical piece woven together with excerpts from Shakespeare which provide a lyrical commentary to the narrative. Following the story of her life and career from childhood, this intimate rendition is by turns humorous and poignant, carrying both an air of delicious gossip and painful confession. Lengthy but performed with flair, the Shakespeare passages take on a personal interpretation and blend well with Hamill’s own charismatic descriptions of a life on the stage. (Amy Russell) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 622 6552, until 29 Aug, 2.45pm, £8.50–£9.50 (£7.50–£8.50). Poignant ●●●●● The effort that’s gone into creating this multimedia experience is phenomenal considering its brevity. Three Argentinean stories are
narrated consecutively through our headphones as we move through the environments being described, watching the action unfold on film. The combination of media is transportative, and each individual story is engaging enough, but the decision to juxtapose the three seems somewhat arbitrary. (Matt Boothman) The Melting Pot, 226 0000, until 28 Aug (not 22), times vary, £5. Some Gorgeous Accident ●●●●● In this confusing love-rhombus tale, Susie loves Fiddes, Fiddes loves Susie, but also Link; Susie might love Link too. Link loves himself. And Mandy loves anything to cross her path. Essentially, fast-living Link persuades his friends to start living life to the max and then complains when things go horribly wrong. The characters are unlikeable, pretentious and, on occasion, unintelligible as they faff their way through this overlong travesty. (Kirstyn Smith) Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 30 Aug, 12.30pm, £13–£15 (£11–£13). Tales From The Blackjack ●●●●● There’s a moving story to be told about how compulsive gambling ruins people’s lives, but this one-man show, told by the croupier of a casino and following three people’s descent into addiction, isn’t it. Despite a powerhouse (if at times slightly overacted) performance by Alex Moran as the Puckish, amoral man behind the cards, the script naively mistakes bleak nastiness, racism, homophobia and misogyny for black comedy, losing its soul in the process. (Kirstin Innes) C Central, 0845 260 1234, until 30 Aug, 8.30pm, £8.50–£10.50 (£7.50–£9.50). Threshold ●●●●● This three-hour theatre experience begins with a gorgeously shot, if largely inaudible, film which alludes to sexual repression in a menacing manner. A coach trip ensues, during which a soundtrack is played which intercuts classic love songs with a disturbing account of a girl’s loss of virginity. Then, at a vast country house, there’s an eerie entertainment, a cross between The Wicker Man and Rebecca, in which a young bride is brought to meet her new family, an assorted bunch of repressive relics and keyhole-peeping servants. Your story depends on which character you follow around the house. This isn’t profound, but there’s some disturbing examination of ritual and primality involved, and it’s very well performed. There’s a lot of running around outdoors so bring your raincoat and wellies. (Steve Cramer) Zoo Roxy, 662 6892, until 20 Aug, 4.30 pm (film begins 3pm), £15 (£12.50). Wednesday ●●●●● In a grimy Manchester basement, we discover a young woman tied to a bed, and a man bound equally firmly to the floor next to her. They’re victims of a released felon, who wants them to re-enact a sex crime from their shared past. Ian Winterton’s play makes some interesting observations about violence, repression and the shades of grey that are often omitted in our representation of crime in the media. The three young actors perform strongly, but the themes touched upon could have been fleshed out more fully. (Steve Cramer) The Vault, 510 0022, until 30 Aug (not 23), 9.35pm, £9 (£7). 19–26 Aug 2010 THE LIST 75