THEATRE | PREVIEWS
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POLITICAL THEATRE THE JOURNEY Out of the Blue Drill Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 10 & Sun 11 Nov
With a cast that faces an uncertain future in the UK, and a script based on interviews with refugees, Badac’s The Journey is a tough examination of a subject that is too often left to headlines and tabloid controversy. Director Steve Lambert visited refugee camps in the Middle East to see the conditions of people as they try to escape violence and instability, before developing a play that follows the experience of a mother and child as they travel from their devastated homeland to what they hope will be safety. Lambert’s attitude towards theatre is bracingly passionate:
Badac’s remit for politically engaged performance manifests in his intense research and an unflinching honesty. ‘Theatre can’t be effective if it’s tailoring work for the audiences taste and is designed to keep everyone happy and not offend,’ he says. By touring outside of the usual venues, into places where theatre isn’t a regular, and respectable, treat, Lambert wants to push the medium as a vehicle for debate.
‘We’re trying to take it to non-theatre spaces and make the
production as basic as possible. I’m also – and this is a massive part of the project – trying to get in people who disagree with immigration and in helping refugees. No idea if it will work but I think it's worth a punt.’ Influenced by Artaud’s command that performance ought to have the intensity of a plague, Lambert strives towards a theatre that doesn’t just pander, but provokes. Grounded in the life experiences of the refugee, and filtered through Badac’s distinctive raw aesthetic, The Journey refuses to provide easy answers. ‘The vulnerability and honesty of the process,’ Lambert says, ‘does sometimes create an intense, brutal and cruel experience for both actors and audience. Through intimacy and testimony, we can hopefully do that on The Journey.’ (Gareth K Vile)
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VAUDEVILLE SATIRE THE LAST DAYS OF MANKIND FEATURING THE TIGER LILLIES Leith Theatre, Edinburgh, Sat 10–Fri 16 Nov
One of the defining acts of the cabaret revival over the past 20 years, the Tiger Lillies straddle the divide between full-scale theatricality – Shockheaded Peter was a defining moment in the meeting of contemporary theatre and vaudeville – and the gig. Having written ten new songs for a new translation of The Last Days of Mankind by Viennese writer Karl Kraus, the group return to Scotland for a production that heralds the continued rebirth of the Leith Theatre, rescued from disuse by the Hidden Door Festival in the last couple of years. Director John Paul McGroarty sees Karl Kraus’ satire as ‘a docudrama 100
years before anyone had a thought of a docudrama’ and this revival aims to continue the rehabilitation of Leith Theatre as a vibrant venue, 30 years after its last major theatrical production. Last Days’ bleak humour about the horrors of WWI perfectly fits the Tiger Lillies’ distinctive sardonic wit, while representing the collaborative power of artists working across nations as opposed to governments plunging nations into war. With a cast from across Europe, co-director Yuri Birte Anderson comments that ‘Kraus perfectly manages to capture the war discourse of his time – the feverish war craze that seems over the top to us nowadays, but it was real. This will be truly European theatre.’ (Gareth K Vile)
124 THE LIST 1 Nov 2018–31 Jan 2019
RELIGIOUS REFLECTION THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JESUS, QUEEN OF HEAVEN Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Thu 13–Sat 22 Dec
From its earliest performances almost a decade ago, Jesus, Queen of Heaven has been a constantly evolving, challenging and devotional take on Christian theology. Jo Clifford’s vision of Jesus as a trans woman has become an international success, surprising audiences with its sincerity while still capable of provoking violent resistance. ‘I wrote it because I was trying to find an answer as to why I was suffering so
much abuse on the street when I first came out, and to discover and express my pride and self esteem,’ says writer and performer Clifford. Yet over the years, it has come to express both the advances in the rights of trans people and their continued persecution.
‘This is a work of devotion. Of devotion to ourselves and to being present
with one another,’ adds director Susan Worsfold. ‘It is constantly evolving, changing and deepening. To witness this is an ongoing journey and a continuous barometer of where the personal present meets the politics of its time.’
The intimacy and intensity of Clifford’s performance ensures that the piece remains a fascinating interpretation of the Christian message, lending it a softly spoken power somewhere between a passionate sermon on compassion and a bold statement of political intent. Part of the Traverse’s Christmas season, more often a time for playful humour than spiritual meditations, it becomes a reminder of theatre’s potential as a vehicle for change and challenge. (Gareth K Vile)