K C A L B E L S E L
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Theatre
PREVIEW ADAPTATION CASABLANCA: THE GIN JOINT CUT Tron Theatre, Glasgow, Thu 7–Sat 23 Jul
It’s nothing new of course, but the Oran Mor has been incubating many a theatrical hit in its lunchtime theatre slot of late, and the latest to make the jump into the evening hours and bigger stages is Morag Fullarton’s Casablanca: The Gin Joint Cut. At the Tron this month and heading for the Fringe this August, the show
broke the mould by being the first in Oran Mor’s Classic Cuts series to take a film rather than another play as the starting point for creating a piece of theatre so succinct that it can fit into a lunchbreak, with time left over for a pie and a pint to boot.
‘My plan was to obviously try and keep the best bits of the movie, but also have a lot of fun with the staging of it,’ says writer and director
Fullarton, clearly revelling in being at the helm of such a fun project once again. ‘We weren’t trying to put, as it were, the film on stage, we were turning it into a theatrical event.’ A great success with audiences on its first outing, the show treads a line
between homage and gentle spoof, with three actors chopping and changing through a plethora of roles (including some pretty iconic portrayals — ‘there is a bow to Humphrey Bogart, definitely,’ notes Fullarton) at top speed, with a playful element of the shambolic as they barrel through plot twists and lines so well they’re familiar even to those few who haven’t seen the film.
Fullarton was cautious, however, about losing the roundedness of the piece in the editing process. ‘I think you’ve got to watch that you don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater . . . the idea was not only to have fun with it but to keep the moral heart of the piece, as well as those classic noir lines.’ (Laura Ennor)
L L E R R A F W E R D
PREVIEW CROSS-ARTFORM DANCE SIOBHAN DAVIES DANCE: ROTOR Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh, Tue 12–Sat 16 Jul PREVIEW PUPPET MUSICAL AVENUE Q Theatre Royal, Glasgow, Tue 28 June–Sat 2 Jul
‘I hate the word inspiration,’ says Siobhan Davies. Which may seem ironic, given how inspirational she has been to dancers and choreographers over the years. But for Davies, inspiration implies a light bulb moment – rather then the deep artistic investigation that typifies her work. So when it comes to talking about ROTOR, an ensemble of installations and live works created by Davies and nine commissioned artists, she prefers to use the word ‘trigger’. Having choreographed a new dance piece, and filmed it from above, Davies looked for artists working in a range of mediums to respond to the work. ‘What I didn’t want was for them to translate or
interpret what they saw,’ explains Davies. ‘I wanted them to use the dance as a trigger, as something that could scratch them in a way they hadn’t been scratched before, and that they could then take off in whatever direction they wanted.’ The resulting collaboration has had successful outings in London and Manchester, and is now heading for Edinburgh’s Dovecot Studios. Joining Davies are Turner Prize shortlisted artist Angela de la Cruz, playwright EV Crowe and poet Alice Oswald, all of whom Davies describes as ‘phenomenal’. (Kelly Apter)
106 THE LIST 23 Jun–21 Jul 2011
Don’t judge a book by its cover – and in the case of Avenue Q, don’t judge a musical by its poster. This Tony Award-winning show may look like a toddler’s dream date, but Muppet-style puppets aside, it’s adult content all the way. ‘We deal with issues on the show that you
wouldn’t see on Sesame Street,’ says performer Chris Thatcher, who plays the internet porn obsessed Trekkie Monster. ‘Subjects like racism, sexual identity and political correctness. The script is really funny and edgy, and by using puppets we can say things you couldn’t really say as a human.’ Featuring live actors and hand-held puppets,
Avenue Q takes place on a down at heel New York street filled with colourful characters. Songs like ‘If you were gay’ and ‘Everybody’s a little bit racist’ have gained almost cult status since the show opened off-Broadway in 2002. ‘People have a nostalgia for the Muppets,’ says Thatcher. ‘So when this musical came out, which has that Jim Henson style, people thought it’s OK, I can go and see a puppet show without feeling like a child, because it tackles things that adults think about.’ (Kelly Apter)
REVIEW REVIVAL KNIVES IN HENS Currently touring throughout Scotland. Seen at Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Tue 7 Jun ●●●●●
Lies Pauwels’ revival of David Harrower’s 1995 play is the very definition of ‘marmite’ theatre. From its opening moments, in which Susan Vidler as the Ploughman’s Wife, and Vicki Manderson as her alter- ego rampage around, flashing their knickers to the strains of Lulu’s ‘Boom Bang-a-Bang’, this NTS production gleefully confounds expectations. Hats off to the Belgian director for such an irreverent take on Harrower’s spare, lyrical three- hander (four here), which traces a woman’s sexual awakening and transition to literacy in a pre- industrialised landscape. Chloe Lamford’s set transports the action to a stylised carnival, the cast are painted clowns and lines are delivered through microphones. Some of Pauwels’ conclusions about the eroticised sexuality of the emancipated woman are admittedly rather depressing, and aspects of the production make for uncomfortable viewing. It’s not all grotesque cavorting, though: the scene in which Vidler and the Miller (Owen Whitelaw) first explore their mutual attraction is very moving, while Duncan Anderson’s turn as the inarticulate Ploughman is heartbreaking. (Allan Radcliffe)