Edinburgh Reviews 2012 – Claire Smith – Cheshire's Rural Touring Arts

Chapel St – Young Vic

Wtitten by Luke Barnes

Produced by Scrawl

Underbelly

Brutal honest – from the horses mouth type show. Two Young people narrating to the audience there separate versions of one night out in their home town. Delivered with ferocious pace and vernacular language you can't but be impressed with the skills of this young male and female actors and the quality and honestly of the writing.

It’s exhausting to witness but speaks to all about the reality of that young, chaotic risk taking culture that eventually has consequences.

Would perhaps too obviously be perfect for young people.

It would be hard for regular rtn audiences to take – the language and vulgarity relentless – it would make people very uncomfortable but perhaps that would be a reason for booking it -

Strong Arm – Young Vic

Vicky Graham Productions

Underbelly

A story that doesn't really go anywhere about a fat outsider that gets addicted to exercise and goes a bit mad – not enough depth or skill on show to consider it I am afraid.

SlapDash Galaxy  - Bunk Puppets

Underbelly

Excellent – Canadian puppeteer – Single male performer – looked a bit like the Grinch ! Extraordinarily inventive. Using screens on stage and his hands and feet to make shadow puppets to tell a simple story of brothers going to space and facing danger and coming through it and coming home. Works with the audience a great deal with great skill.

Loved it for that off the wall – Family show experience – would definitely book him if e could get him to tour the UK

Nola  - look Left Look Right

UnderBelly

Verbatim Theatre piece about the BP Oil spill – love Verbatim – could do with programming more of it. Does politics from the human story angle allowing people room to come to their own conclusions. Loved the quality of the edited monologues and the performances were excellent.

I would discuss this with my programming group – but don't think I would book – just a bit static  for my liking – Interesting debate about Verbatim theatre in the bar following the show around the ethics involved in who's story you choose to tell and how you edit what people actually say.

The Fantasist – Theatre Temoin

God love this company – they were working in the smallest of spaces – or maybe just looked like this from the back where I was sitting. Story unfolds to disclose that the main protagonist character is mentally ill and her dream increasing nightmarish world is played out using extraordinary animation so inventive that it was really refreshing. The oversized male Puppet that comes out of the wardrobe that is both the woman protagonist’s lover and demon had an extraordinary presence and the kite made from masking tape made me hold my breathe.

Would definitely like to try and book this show. 

Alex Horne and his Orchestra

Bit of a one for me this – heard a lot about Alex Horne but not seen him – So this was a treat – and suggs ( Madness ) guest stared and sung It Must Be Love !

A Thousand Shards of Glass

Jane Packman Company

Northern Stage

One incredibly talented woman actor encircled in a mesh of wires defining her acting space and audience sitting around – She speaks to us all as we come in and includes individuals at times in the show to hold torches or she refers to audience members as characters in the story. The dialogue is poetic but so disjointed that I struggled to make meaning and as a result ended up disengaged. Obviously a well produced piece of work but I am afraid I couldn't find anything in it that engaged any of my senses or my intellect – talking of which - sorry don't think I was bright enough to get what this piece was asking of its audience.

Met mother of director in bar – she was lovely

 

Rash Dash  -The Ugly Sisters

Northern Stage

Wow – what a tour de force – Punk rock panto !! Anarchic at times – powerful contemporary dance at times. Comic and  sensational – We just couldn't do this justice would be my feeling – needs a bigger better equipped space than we could offer – would be interesting to see what others think

Oh The  Humanity and Other Good Intentions

Northern Stage in association with Soho Theatre

Northern Stage

Monologues delivered to the audience – painfully honest 'Talking Heads' – superbly acted and directed – very classy – beautifully produced and staged – incredibly simple almost clinical in its design. Given the line up – I am sure this would not be available for Rural Touring  and not sure I would programme it as I felt very bleak after I had seen it – however had to miss last monologue so maybe there was retribution at the end. ????

Caroline Horton's Mess

Traverse

A woman's story about her relationship with Anorexia. I found this extraordinarily moving. More so because  of the style adopted to tell the autobiographical story was very 'comic book' – almost Chitty Chitty Bang Bang delivery and humour . Fabulous performances -difficult content – fascinating style of interpretation. Mad musician/keyboard player that doesn't do as he is told  and a massive white mountain on stage which represents the anorexia.

Would book this

Once in a House on Fire

Monkeywood Theatre

Northern Stage

It was quite refreshing to watch a show that reverted to classic theatre conventions. Well drawn characters delivering dialogue to each other and music of the era to mask scene changes

Moving story of dysfunctional mother bringing up two sisters in Manchester – an adaptation of an autobiographical novel – I was engaged with this show. I story of triumph out of adversity. In fact it was a bit of light relief despite the harrowing nature of the story. Wouldn't book it however as this story can be seen played out every night on the tele  but liked the quality of two of the actors particularly.

 

Waiting for Stanley - Finger in the Pie

Zoo Roxy

oooh Wow this was my highlight for 'potential booking' purposes – one woman mime show around a story of a woman waiting for the father of her child to come home from war. The one woman performer had a warmth and humour and gentleness/ vulnerability that communicated vividly with the audience. Breathe takingly inventive.

Definitely book

MayDay MayDay – Theatre Damfino -Tristan Sturrock

Pleasance Dome

One person show – narrated directly to the audience – of an autobiographical tale of how this actor fell off a wall in Padstow and broke his back and the story follows his recovery.

No ordinary actor though – KneeHigh veteran actor Thurrock keeps his audience entertained and engaged through out. He uses the stage well and the one prop/piece furniture becomes many things efficiently in a manner which isn't contrived. He doesn't indulge in pity. The story is his therapeutic retelling in theatrical language of his extraordinary journey. There is a great deal of humour and the actor’s charisma and warmth is evident and is infectious. Great direction – Katy Carmichael

Would book  

Bitch Boxer – Young Vic

Underbelly

One woman show narrated directly to the audience – lovely show well written and performed. Topical because of Woman's Boxing and the Olympics. A portrayal of a strong charismatic determined young woman. Tells a very human moving story of her relationship to her Dad and Boxing and what happens when she loses her Dad and discovers she is more venerable than she thought.

Possible – would have to find the right audience for it     

Amusements - Sleepwalk Collective

Summer Hall

Audience in lecture theatre with Earphones – woman’s voice and sound scape comes through earphones whilst a woman who is saying the same words is on stage bathed in a red light. Very sensual- I felt cocooned /isolated but aware of others around me – It was almost like listening to a meditation tape. Really liked the experience but felt they needed to have someone to slap you round the face when you came out of the space to bring you back to reality !

Would love to try this idea of audience in headphones

Songs of The Goat – Songs of Lear

Summer Hall

This was a bit like being bathed in warm water – 10 singers and a musician – context set for each song by director – each song depicted an aspect of the story/themes of King Lear.

Polish company intense and extremely committed and talented > The Harmonies soared and were exquisite

Would love to think we could book this

Luke Wright

Underbelly

Young contemporary performance poet with a political edge. Beautifully observed and a really likable character.

Would definitely book

Grit – Tortoise in a Nutshell

Bedlam

Seemed to me a bit like a work in progress – lots of intriguing ideas – moving interpretation of a universal horror of child soldiers using animation – doesn’t seem to go anywhere though.

Inheritance Blues

Bedlam

No info in programme about this – It was brilliant – Band with 6 performers – very skilfully performed – Band are involved in the telling of the story as characters . A group of brothers meet at the wake of their recently deceased father in a remote rural pub.

I think this was a student production – but need to investigate further

Would definitely book

Peep  - Natural Shocks

Pleasance Courtyard

Intriguing and skin creeping at same time – sat in a booth with a window into a square enclosed performance space – I couldn’t see others. Lasted 20mins – was a series of statements about sex and how sexual activity and relationships change at different times of your life.

Monkey Bars – Chris Goode

Traverse

Adults speaking children’s words. Children had been interviewed on numerous subjects and the actors spoke their words verbatim. The craft of this piece I felt was the way the conversations had been edited and the decision to have the adults in very grown up costume and situations – loved it – but most likely not rural touring