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Fringe 2006 Reviews (38)
Nooky, Man in the Matchbox
Péter Molnár Kálloy
St Marks artSpace
*
This could well be a good play and a good performance. But there is
absolutely no way that I can judge. Peter Molnar, "Hungarian film
star" performs Nooky entirely in Hungarian with a Powerpoint
slide show providing English text translated by someone with only the
most rudimentary knowledge of English. So the audience cannot watch
the performance because we are trying to read and decypher the English
translation projected on a screen on the other side of the playing space.
To compound this problem, the character is the ramblings of someone
mentally retarded. Sadly, all nuances are lost. And Mr. Molnar is confined
to performing in one static spot. And the performance is in a church
which means pews with poor sightlines. If you speak Hungarian fluently
and sit in the front pew, this might be a performance worth seeing.
I abandoned the text to watch the performance and therefore I give it
one star as I think that the actor is probably quite talented.
Catherine Lamm
Taylor Mac
Baby Belly
*****
I won’t go so far as to say that a prophet in drag has fluttered,
whirlwind, onto the Fringe. But one should not be distracted by the
glittery blue lipstick and five inch platform boots and miss the razor-edge
observations of love, society and self. This would be as powerful without
the drag.
He uses his own vunerability and naïveté to open the door
for us. There is a toothy message delivered by this strange creature.
Mr. Mac is obviously a longtime denizen of the New York nightlife.
He and his message are probably not Broadway material but perfect for
the underground advanced guard, mix the method and message, post-therapy,
give me camp with a brain, entertainment seekers. Mr. Mac is striking
and tall, even without platforms, bald beneath the wig, and has a surprisingly
sweet voice that he mixes with queenly shrieks.
Mr. Mac is so comfortable with his audience that, as during his testament
to love called “I loved him”, (wait for it...) he knows just
when the audience is ready for the next line. This from a performer
whose rapid-fire songs only pause long enough for the audience to catch
up or, more frequently, stop laughing. (Breathe) With observations like
“nothing is as beautiful as the truth” and “nothing is
worth doing if it doesn’t make you nervous” (how true) and
“the revolution will not be masculinized”, he’s way past
the clichéd and trite.
Most of the material is in song a capella or self-accompanied
on the ukulele. His beautiful and frightening encore “There’s
nothing to fear but fear itself” took my breath away. ("I'm
afraid of politicians and all religions.") There’s been a
life lived here.
It's a must see, but not for the tame. Taylor Mac is entertaining and
touching. He’s fierce!
Catherine Lamm
Insomnobabble
By Robert Fraquhar
Big Wow in association with Richard Jordan Productions
Underbelly
****
It is unfortunate that Insomnobabble should arrive in Edinburgh
at the same time as Anthony Neilson's Realism, as both are based
on the same premise.
Keith cannot get to sleep and we spend a night in his company, as he
dreams of sleeping or sleeps in his dreams.
The company use every theatrical trick imaginable to explore Keith's
life through his dreams and are often extremely funny, particularly
the minutiae of the working day. This owes a lot to Matt Rutter playing
Keith and the John Cleese-like Tim Lynskey playing Everybody Else, as
his name badge makes clear.
Anarchic and zany are the words for this comedy that for 45 minutes
is irrepressibly funny but then become rather wearing as the same techniques
are repeated several times too often.
Philip Fisher
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