 |
Manchester International Festival - Monday 11th July
‘And Another Thing’ blazed its way into Albert Square and into a pavilion under the curious gaze of John Bright. Written by and starring Kevin Eldon, Johnny Vegas and Emma Fryer, we were promised a “creative experiment that combines both theatre and live television” .
Bryan Chadwick (Vegas) and Lindsay Gibson (Fryer) are the ‘Richard and Judy’ of the shopping channel whilst their long suffering Stage Manager Andy (Eldon) sees to their every whim. During the off air segments, the veneer begins to dull as their personal lives unravel. Bryan is a well presented and confident figure who appears to be the patriarch of the show. With the holy grail of record breaking sales figures looming, Bryan is consumed with the passion of the commerce.
Vegas gave a wonderful yet strangely understated performance at times allowing the dazzling presence of Fryer to come through as the almost tragic figure of a young women desperate to be loved, yet does not love herself. During their time off camera, Lindsay is preoccupied with (what she believes) is the ungainly length of her arms and the size of her hands whilst Bryan bolsters his own fading star by feeding her insecurities. As all parents know, the nest has to be fled at sometime. As Stage Manager Andy surreptitiously lets Lindsay’s the secret slip we see Bryan act out the five stages of grief culminating in a hilarious bargaining/acceptance sketch where we see a fine figure of a man reduced to modeling support knickers.
For sixty minutes, the audience laughed, sympathised and witnessed the slipping masks and how the game face belies real hurt and insecurity. Then for fifteen minutes we held our breath whilst the outside world intruded into our space and comedy gave way to commerce.
From a writer’s perspective, this shows how collaboration, experimentation and perspiration can pay off. I was particularly impressed with the direction of Kevin Eldon. From the minute the lights dimmed, everyone knew where they should be and what they should be doing which is testament to Eldon’s immense acting experience, comic timing and genius which shone through.
This play is no gimmick; for both sides of the story go and see this at the Pavilion, Albert Square until 17th July - it’s a real treat. However, for one side of the story tune into the Ideal World channels: Sky 644, Freeview 22, Virgin 747 or Freesat 812 at around 10pm each night until the end of the run.
We Are Not Part Of Mini-Reviews
Thursday 7th July
Eighteen by Mike Heath
I really like leaving a play with more questions than answers and Eighteen by Mike Heath has done just that. It means I’ve paid attention, been engaged and an hour of my time has just flown by whilst I’ve been immersed in someone else’s world.
Straight away the disembodied voice of the highly strung Caroline is giving us a Location, Location, Location running commentary of Al’s house as she arrives for a reunion weekend. Caroline bombards us with a manic stream of words as she tries to make light of digestive issues and nerves. The equally nervous Al provides a quieter parry by trying to diffuse the tension with tea despite Caroline’s heavy sugar dependency.
It is soon established that we are witnessing the reunion of two people who were once a couple and have met up for the first time in 18 years. To a backdrop of dramatic and a mature music tracks, Al reveals his sexuality yet holds back on more serious issues in his life. What is refreshing is the absence of being told what is happening; hints are made and the subtext undulates whilst the audience has to work with the play to grasp the deeper matters at hand.
This is a great play that does not take a predicable route in terms of point making, it’s up to the audience to decide that afterwards.
Performances at Studio Salford on Sunday 10th July at 4.00pm, Monday 11th July at 9.00pm, Tuesday 12th July at 7.00pm, Thursday 14th July at 9.00pm and Friday 15th July at 4.00pm.
blacKbird by Lucia Cox
Having been told not to enter the studio space until the last minute was made clear within the first sixty seconds of the play- but you’ll have to go and see this if you want to know why. Whilst the world outside finished lunch and rushed back to the office, I was whisked into a child’s world with very sinister undertones and captivated by this very talented actor and writer.
Within minutes you know that something is very wrong. With a simple, yet effective use of lighting we are privy to a memory, a shocking secret that was acknowledged by a few audible gasps in the audience. It is difficult in theatre to present a play based on the past but Lucia Cox manages to glide, stomp and dance around the stage invoking clear images of places we have never been, and dragging these memories into the dank living space that is now her home. Lucia’s story telling skills are engaging and clever, slipping in and out of different character observations gives the audience the illusion of other performers sharing the stage.
Jayne's Review of
The Crypt Project
Presented by Happystorm Theatre Company
Directed by Sarah Meadows
I can’t recall ever seeing a play that has made me ‘itch’ but The Crypt Project certainly brought me out in hives. Set in the bowels of St Philip with St Stephen’s crypt, the audience is split into small groups and assigned a guide, who equipped with a torch, leads us into the fractured lives of four disparate souls who lives are rotting away due to various forms of addiction.
This is close up and personal theatre where even the shadows won’t allow you, or the cast to hide. In the reflection area we sit waiting or in a waiting room, watching the cast weave in and out of sanity as they try to make sense of their issues. We then set off to watch the lives of a workaholic, obsessive, alcoholic and self-harmer dissolve into a madness soup that trickles around your feet as you wade through their neglect, self-loathing and despair.
This piece is cleverly directed by the sensitive hand of Sarah Meadows in what must have been a logistical challenge. The dingy spaces are used with interesting effect to create a claustrophobic imagining of troubled minds. We witness Denise Kennedy’s decline from smart business woman to the giggling vulnerable little girl confused by the loss of her mother and her father’s neglect. We warm to Susi Wrenshaw’s innocence and grieve with her during the heart wrenching plea to be held again by her mother. We are haunted by Stuart Wolfenden’s sincere and semi-violent conversations with his imaginary friend – or foe? We see Matt Ganley’s self-imprisonment as he obsesses over someone he can’t have and disappears into a world of Henry the Hedgehog whilst gurning in the mirror. His fast paced diatribe keeps the piece intense and interesting.
The Crypt Project is what exciting theatre is all about; use of space and presenting the ordinary as extraordinary. We are offered no solution or tidy conclusion as the audience is left in the reflection area. There is no applause, only the chance to absorb the images and cogitate on the words.
If you want unusual, uncomfortable and innovative theatre, then book a ticket now:
www.happystormtheatre.co.uk
