THEATRE | Previews
MUSICAL THEATRE GUYS AND DOLLS King’s Theatre, Glasgow, Tue 7–Sat 11 Jun ●●●●● CLOWN CABARET CLOWNING ABOUT: THE RETURN OF THE RED-NOSE The Tron Theatre, Glasgow, Thu 29 Sep–Sun 1 Oct
There are few songs in musical theatre that hit the back of the net quite like ‘Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat’, a classic example of an ‘11o’clock’ number – that is, a song late in the second act that lends a burst of energy to a show before it moves towards the finale. The rise and fall of the tempo, the swell of the chorus, and the perfectly-timed choreography which usually accompanies it all conspire to whip audiences into an almost evangelical frenzy. Unsurprisingly, this particular production of Guys and Dolls milks the song for all it’s worth, giving it a belting reprise in response to a crowd that’s clapping like it’s the end of the show.
But then, if there’s one thing this 1950 musical does well, it’s big showy numbers. Yet oddly, despite choreographic input by dance legend Carlos Acosta, and its lively story of downtown hustling, this new production from Chichester Festival Theatre feels a little lacklustre. In truth, it’s the acting that shines, with Maxwell Caulfield as Nathan Detroit and Louise Dearman as Miss Adelaide (pictured) scooping the performance crowns. Perhaps it’s the low-key set; perhaps it’s the lack of truly strong voices (Jack Edwards as Nicely-Nicely Johnson aside, who is a vocal powerhouse); but the expected energy is absent for much of the show. It’s not until Dearman and Anna O’Byrne as Sarah Brown belt out penultimate number ‘Marry the Man Today’ that the goosebumps finally arrive. (Kelly Apter)
Despite its British association with big-top circus, clowning is recognised across the world as a serious, if often hilarious, strand of physical theatre. In Edinburgh, a group of dedicated clowns, including Tim Licata (Plutot La Vie) and Melanie Jordan (CloWnStePPinG), have banded together. From the familiar, vulnerable comic to the aggressive bouffon, their scratch cabaret nights showcase technical brilliance and imagination.
Traditional clown theatre often emphasises the absurdity of human ambition: a clown is vulnerable, exaggerating familiar foibles yet evoking sympathy. Even when clowns attack, they are relatively gentle and deliver the truth with a smile. The format of the cabaret – short, concise sketches – presents the wide range of styles currently working across Scotland.
Previous cabaret nights have seen a wide range of clowns: while Ruxy Cantir’s Gregor is grotesque and provocative – he even engages in fights and romance with the audience – Melanie Jordan’s clowning captures the tension between love and duty. Lewis Hetherington adapts Kate Bush’s famous ‘Wuthering Heights’ dance to parody masculinity and notions of fame and nostalgia. These brief vignettes argue not only for the vitality of Scotland’s clowning scene, but also for the medium’s ability to engage, critique and explore all areas of human experience. (Gareth K Vile)
PHYSICAL THEATRE MEMORIES OF A LULLABY Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh, Wed 15 & Thu 16 Jun; CCA, Glasgow, Sun 19 Jun
Part of the Refugee Festival, Saras Feijoo’s Memories of a Lullaby is a personal, one-woman show that revisits the writer and performer’s childhood. ‘I could no longer hold the pain inside myself created by the terror I experienced in Venezuela,’ she explains. ‘There was the sound of gunshots I heard, the corruption I witnessed, the ever-present fear that death was around the corner, alongside the beauty of the land, my family, my friends and the constant sun!’
Feijoo has become a familiar presence within Scotland’s resurgent clowning scene, founding CloWnStePPinG, ‘a hub dedicated to the understanding of theatre clowning as an art’. While British clowning is associated with big-top circus, Memories of a Lullaby revels in the form’s rich storytelling. Her first experience of a clowning show inspired a change in career – she has been a clothes designer and student of philosophy – as she recognised its immediate emotional power: ‘I loved the depth, beauty, honesty, transparency and playfulness of the piece.’
Assembling a team that includes director Yael Karavan,
musicians Gavin Taylor and Luis Perez Valero, and feminist philosopher Marelis Loreto Amoretti, Feijoo’s ambitions take advantage of the genre’s flexibility and accessibility. She wants the audience to feel hope and ‘to be able to appreciate a reality that many in the world experience daily and, yet, continue to move forward’.
The tensions within Memories of a Lullaby promise a show that considers the contradictions within Venezuelan society and demonstrates the potential of theatre to straddle personal experience and wider philosophical questions. (Gareth K Vile)
94 THE LIST 2 Jun–1 Sep 2016