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The
Edinburgh Fringe
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Fringe 2004 Reviews (3)Shakespeare for Breakfast As the first show of a day at the Fringe, the last thing on the minds of most causal theatre-goers is Shakespeare. But in Shakespeare for Breakfast, a new spin is put on the bard's works as a company rehearses for a performance based on the lost musicals by the "greatest playwright ever." Once the audience has received a caffeine and pastry hit (the choice is between coffee and tea, with a plain croissant waiting on the seats inside the C+3 venue), the show kicks off with a Fosse-esque number which includes croissant-shaped maracas. The cast of five play a large number of characters, but in some cases it's not immediately clear when they make their transitions - most of the time the shifts are signified by costume changes, but there were several times when it wasn't obvious that a change had taken place. Clever lyrics ("So long I'm wavin' to Stratford-upon-Avon") get laughs from the audience, when they're audible above the background music. The big bases are covered with medleys from Othello and Macbeth, so there's no need for a degree in English Literature to understand what's going on, but Shakespeare buffs will find plenty of clever "in-jokes" to entertain them. Shakespeare for Breakfast may not be an incredibly challenging piece of theatre, but it's definitely an enjoyable one - and if you're up to see plays at ten in the morning, that's probably exactly what you're looking for. Rachel Lynn Brody Political Assassinator In Political Assassinator, dancer Yoram Mosenzon makes use of a wide variety of techniques and media to drive home the point that one cannot conquer violence in society without first taking the time to understand how violence springs from individuals who don't take the time to care about the world around them. This fine piece of political movement theatre begins with Mosenzon's entrance, dressed in a suit with a briefcase. He takes on various identies throughout the piece: Hitler, Stalin, Bin Laden, and an Israeli-soldier-cum-student in the Jewish University of Jerusalem are just a few of them. This piece successfully blends precise bodily control, flashy acrobatics, violent outbursts, and politically-minded manifesto, making for a half hour which although at times difficult to penetrate is both intellectually relevant and emotionally moving. The timing of both lighting and sound cues are excellent, and in particular the choice of accompanying sound is well-fitted to the content of Mosenzon's performance. While the focus strays a bit in the middle of the piece, the end is strong, but whether Mosenzon's piece will have an impact on how audience members relate to other people or change how those exposed to his work see the wider political context (rather than just the aesthetic event that takes place before them in the theatre) remains to be seen. Rachel Lynn Brody I Didn't Vote for George W. I Didn't Vote for George W is a lesson in successful title selection. Punters who figure they're in for an hour or so of sharp, anti-Bush humour will be disappointed, however, as the the show barely dwells on Bush's politics - or indeed, any politics. Although there are one or two points where humorist Brian Longwell provokes laughter from the audience, the show is ultimately not as funny as it could be. The show is presented as a college lecture, with Longwell in the role of the professor who thinks he's a bit more intellectual and amusing than he actually is. Ostensibly trained in Electrical Engineering, his presentation does bear a resemblance to an undergraduate science lecture at an American state university. While he touches on the construction of the American governmental system and the way in which Americans are encouraged to 'vote with their feet' (i.e. when something isn't working, instead of trying to fix it, one should just get up and leave), and offers a few perfunctory solutions to America's foreign affairs issues, I Didn't Vote for George W doesn't offer any real criticism of American politics. The funniest parts of Longwell's show are the hand-drawn overhead projections, which are worth a giggle in several occasions, and his opening - though he insisted several times that he was merely talking about the show at that point in the evening, and hadn't actually begun it yet. Some of the best political humour is based on having solid ideas about what's wrong with a situation and offering solutions - however absurd they might be - that stretch the boundaries of what would normally be considered reasonable. Unlike the best political humour, however, I Didn't Vote for George W barely makes the effort to do so. Also, unlike the models of political humour, television evangelism, and motivational speaking which Longwell professes to have studied, audiences for I Didn't Vote for George W have handed their money over before they get to experience his performance. Of the opportunities for jokes which Longwell missed, perhaps that one is the funniest. Rachel Lynn Brody |
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