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The
Edinburgh Fringe
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Fringe 2004 Reviews (26)Rumble Renegade Theatre from Germany has a hit on its hands. Very loosely based on Romeo and Juliet, it is much more about the dance, hiphop, interplay between the dancers and the music. Not a weak link in this production. Catherine Lamm The Gospel of Matthew If there is (apart from Guy Masterson's Animal Farm which only plays one performance, another one-man show on the Fringe which demands more of an actor than this, I would be very surprised. In an hour and a half George Dillon performs the entire Gospel of Matthew from the begats at the beginning to the resurrection. I use the word "performs" advisedly, because that is exactly what he does. It is far from being a simple reading and very far from being "churchy". Dillon uses all his acting skills - and they are many: the strong and flexible voice and physical expressiveness which have gained him many awards. In both you can clearly see the influences of his early years with Steven Berkoff, further developed by the work he has done to develop his own style. The production values are excellent: a subtle soundscape (all one track, so the performance has to be exact, video and text (in English, Greek and Hebrew) projected onto the back wall, and a very effective lighting plot. In spite of what some critics have said, this is not an evangelical piece, although at the performance I saw the Christian element of the audience was very vocally enthusiastic. Dillon, in fact, sees it as political, and so it is, in the sense that the Jesus portrayed here is not the "gentle Jesus meek and mild" of popular iconography, and the whole interpretation is very different from that other theatrical version of the same Gospel, Godspell. It is an impressive performance, but - fan though I am of Dillon's work - I still wonder "why?" He has, it is true, found the theatricality of something that is inherently non-theatrical and it has much to recommend it theatrically and (dare I use the word?) theologically, but ultimately it is not really a piece of theatre. Peter Lathan Party Time Splinter Group have brought three Pinter Shorts to Edinburgh. Perhaps the most amazing aspect of Party Time is the ability to squeeze a cast of 15 into a space that looks tight for a two-hander. Party Time sees Pinter in very sinister mode. While a group of the great and the good enjoy flowing champagne, all is not well out in the real world. To ask questions, even of your husband, is dangerous and suppression of undesirables like the Winston Smith clone, Jimmy, is taking place on the streets. The contrast between the happy partygoers and the disturbed country is as thought-provoking today as it was in 1992 when the play was written, even if the location of totalitarian regimes may, in some cases, have moved. The acting is generally good with nobody having a large part. The Pinteresque repetition is there but the tempo seems too fast, as the trademark pauses are missing. The consequence is that the feeling of threat and discomfort is somewhat diminished in what is otherwise a good production. Philip Fisher |
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