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Fringe 2008 Reviews (68)
Cracked
SYD
Greenside
*
Hard-hitting anti drugs messages are nothing new to theatre today,
however the message today in the wake of such gems as the highly successful
adaptation Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting, is that a lot more subtlety
and intelligence have to go into the pieces than did in this amateur
piece of teen theatre. Showing the lives of a group of children from
their first day in high school, before leaping forwards as they get
into the drug scene and the havoc and tragedy this wreaks upon their
lives, the play manages to be both condescendingly naive and woefully
out of its depth. As the characters spiral out of control from a low
level marijuana addiction to full blown drug use, this heavy handed
message is more akin to an 80's scare-infomercial than a genuine piece
of thought-provoking theatre.
It became so ludicrously full of pressures and problems that it needed
only self-harm and bulimia to round out the circuit and have everything
that could go wrong happen to the cast. The proclamations of drugs being
bad came thick and thin in a pantomimic series of ridiculous soul-searching
moments, utterly disregarding any need to sympathise with or understand
the issues at hand. All that it required was a Reefer-madness style
voice-over and the play could have crossed over into the realms of parody,
and in fact would have been far more effective and easily more entertaining.
Graeme Strachan
The Adventures of Butt Boy
and Tigger
By Steven Dawson
Out Cast Theatre
Pleasance Dome
****
Can love be found on the Internet? Is it possible for two people who
have never met, to really reach a level of intimacy and understanding
that could survive into real life? The Adventures of Butt Boy and
Tigger, whilst having the best name of any play I've seen this year,
manages to capture the fragile balance walked by two men who meet online
and embark on a series of sexual fantasies, which are then acted out
centre stage.
What has been done elsewhere this Festival with a certain cack-handedness,
is made both funny and intelligent through Steven Dawson's brilliant
script and the brilliant acting of Felix Allsop and Angus Brown. Contrasting
well between the shy and virginal Butt Boy and the real affection he
feels for the older, more cynical Tigger, the play leads us to genuinely
care about the pair and understand the difficulties inherent in such
a pairing. Whilst the meat of the action takes place with the roleplayed
cyber-sex sessions which will likely either induce guffaws of laughter
or make you shrink into your seat in embarrassment, the thing that will
remain in the memory far longer are the genuinely affecting looks of
fear, anger, hope and despair on the actor's faces when typing to each
other from the keyboards set at either side of the stage. It's for this
reason that the production works as a heart-felt piece not an exploitative
string of provocateurism.
Graeme Strachan
Osaka 1837
Akagumi
C
****
(In Japanese)
In 1837 the Meiji Period of Japan was drawing to a close amid rebellions,
power struggles, government corruption and food shortages. In Osaka,
the most important of Japan's merchant cities during that time, Heihachiro
Oshio, a rebel leader, philosopher and ex-government official, has gone
into hiding in Yaba, among the denizens of the pleasure district. The
play is set among the women working in Yaba, the prostitutes and managers
of establishments. There are cheerful and optimistic, tough and resilient.
Besides the rebel, there are other arrivals, an orphan girl obliged
to work there, a samurai sent to find the rebel leader, a villain who
stumbles across his ex-wife and a burglar who is looking for the lost
spoils of his trade. They all come together in a 24-hour period which
makes for drama and a lively illustration of the period.
Akagumi was established in order to provide a unique experience with
the audience. They aim to give one an experience of omotenashi
(hospitality). Their work focuses on period style drama, but forefronts
women, merchants and other community members of the period, rather than
the samurai who usually dominate the genre. They aim to create a special
interaction with audiences and they have a fine ensemble spirit.
At the entrance we are all given a fan, and as the show starts a group
of charming Japanese actresses in beautiful kimonos demonstrate the
movements of a fan dance in which we are encouraged to join. Led by
Satomi Furuta, whose smile would melt glaciers, the dance of simple
but graceful gestures is delightful and simple enough for us to mimic
the fan movements.
The performance itself is in Japanese, and there are no translations.
Nonetheless, we have the plot synopsis in the programme and the action
is clear enough. One realises how little words matter when the physical,
vocal and gestural skills of the actors are of such high quality.
In spite of the language barrier, this is ensemble acting at its very
best from a cast of very skilful and engaging actors. Thanks to their
outstanding physicalizations and voice skills, the characterisations
are clear and one feels immediately drawn into the various personalities:
Yuu the proprietress, charming and tough, Akebi, who likes a tipple,
Anzu the orphan, Kikyou, who is overly fond of bright kimonos and the
masterless samurai Fubuki, and Jun the feeble noodle seller who miraculously
saves the day. It is a large cast and impossible to name them all, but
one identifies them quickly.
The kimonos are an aesthetic treat and altogether this is a fine introduction
to Japanese theatre. At the end, two of the cast played Auld Lang Syne
on bamboo flutes as a tribute to their Scottish hosts.
Jackie Fletcher
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