#edfringe2016: Theatre Témoin - The Marked ★★★★

The Marked caught me off guard. I knew it was a puppets show, but it was only until after I saw it that I realised that it had a special message about child abuse and alcoholism. Theatre Témoin has worked together with Everyday Theatre Cheltenham to raise social issues in an inventively raw way.  Its masks, designed by Grafted Cede Theatre, may be grotesque, yet their eyes and expressions are completely human.
  
Set in London’s groggy back streets and alleyways, Jack sleeps rough and sees demons whenever there’s a bottle of alcohol in front of his eyes. Theatre Témoin creates dramatic imagery of Jack’s horrific past through a puppet-made mother with blood flowing through her eyes and long spider-like arms whenever she takes to the drink.

There’s loud noises (you might want to cover your ears), and strobe lights in violent domestic scenes shown through neat and sharp puppetry work. The most unsettling scene is seeing Jack’s mother break a bottle and stab Jack, the little puppet boy, on the neck. Yet there’s a tiny bit of humour with talking Pigeon puppets, some that come in human-size as Jack’s company on the lonely streets. 

Not everything seems to make sense in The Marked, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The moral of the story is clear - drink responsibly, especially if you have children, but also remember that children soak things up fast from a very young age, which eventually creeps up with them later on in their adult life. 

Director Aillin Conant gives us a lesson worth remembering, and its cast shake and move on the stage with energy and dynamism. Extraordinary performances are worth naming here. Dorie Kinnear plays the pregnant girlfriend who hides away  in squatting areas with her abusive boyfriend, played by Tom Stacy. Bradley Thompson is a vital force performing the role of abused victim Jack. His character is much to sympathise with, and he cleverly captures the soul of a boy seeking his mother’s love. 

In The Marked, the imagination is there to raise these issues to a broader audience. For topics that can often be difficult to discuss, Theatre Témoin breaks the foil and allows its audiences to have a larger debate about it. 

This show has ended at the Edinburgh Fringe. More information about Theatre Témoin can be found here. They are showing The Marked in London, Cheltenham and throughout the UK until Spring 2017. Click here for more information. 

#edfringe2016: Manual Cinema - Ada/Ava ★★★★

 Lizi Breit (Ava) and Julia Vaarsdale Miller (Ada)

Ada/Ava by Manual Cinema is a quirky presentation of shadow puppetry and emotional sentimentality, and there’s no hiding from its creators; they reveal the creative process live to the audience as it happens. Manual Cinema takes you on a surreal journey of two elderly twins, close as best friends, ever since childhood, until one of the sisters dies.

It is the sad realisation that Ada and Ava are no longer together, which devastates and resonates the most with this show, which Manual Cinema captures beautifully through its touching narrative and unique artistry. 

Directors Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Vanarsdale Miller (who also performs as Ada) and Kyle Vegter have been successful in North America and won an award in 2014 at the Tehran International Festival. They made their European debut at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe at the Underbelly, which had many audience members give the theatre company a standing ovation on the day I attended. 

The craftsmanship takes place on simple projectors with ready-made images for projecting onto a large white screen. Below Lizi Breit (Ava) and Julia Vaarsdale Miller (Ada) mill around, creating the story of the sisters with various masks, hair buns and old granny clothes to match. 

Ready-to-use cut-outs and stencils are carefully placed to show the audience an animated tale of life, death, and memory. Flying back to their youth, the twins are shown playing fondly together in the sea, watching their feet catch the splashes of waves, yet melancholy arises when the dead sister becomes a skeleton - a fear the other sister doesn’t want to accept. 

Musicians Maren Celest, Michael Hilger, Kyle Vegter and Alex Ellsworth play a huge part of the show by creating the solemn, atmospheric music with a guitar, Rhodes piano, cello, clarinet, synthesizer and live sound effects. This emotional tale can be dramatic and deeply philosophical. One may feel the need to call a loved one immediately after seeing this. 

Ada/Ava are not longer showing at the Edinburgh Fringe, but click here for more information about Manual Cinema. 

#edfringe2016: DugOut Theatre - Swanson ★★★★★

Imagine being stuck in the middle of the sea in a pedalo with a bunch of strangers with clashing personalities. The world has ended, there’s no way out of the flood, all you see is endless water and you’re left playing boring games like I spy or never have I ever. Not to mention you’re stuck paddling with a toff, vegan hippy, competitive fitness freak and a, somewhat, know-it-all. Well, imagine no more as Tom Black and Sadie Spencer’s have already written a hilarious play that’s currently showing at the Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33). 

DugOut Theatre’s Swansong is a bizarre concoction of a cappella singing, swan impersonations and cutting comedy. Watch as these four characters argue, sing and giggle over their post-apocalyptic mess. After carnivorously killing a passing swan, of which the vegan hippy enjoyed devouring, they decide to become new world warriors in hope of rebuilding the next generation. It’s a comical response to first world problems. 

They use a notebook as a place to list things they miss, such as chips and mayo, Provence and moon cups, and write down stories for the new generation. Sadly, the last page is limited down to either Bruce Willis or a poem about plums in your icebox.

Throughout the performance, the foursome sings calming ritual songs with the lyrics ‘Serene swan, beautiful swan…’ which only enhances the founders of the new world story. Ed Macarthur, Tom Black, Nina Shenkman and Charlotte Merriam are remarkable performers, and really know how to add extra punch to Black and Spencer’s words. George Chilcott's direction makes this an original and authentic show, totally worth running to see on the last days of the Edinburgh Fringe festival. 

Swansong runs at the Pleasance Theatre at 5pm until 29 August (not 16). Click here to purchase tickets. Click here for more information about DugOut Theatre. 

The Pianist of Willesden Lane at St James Theatre ☆ ☆ ☆☆

 Currently showing at the St James Theatre is a heart-breaking musical feast that takes the audience back in time, demonstrating how far we have come since WWII. The Pianist of Willesden Lane is a one-woman show, originally written from the book The Memoir of Music, Love and Survival by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen. 
 

Reliving the past is Golabek herself who gives an up close and personal account of the most intimate details of her family’s traumatic and shocking life.  The writer and musician takes us into her personal space, speaking heroically about her mother Lisa Jura, whilst playing various piano pieces effortlessly including Scriabin’s Etude in D Minor, Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight’ Sonata and Debussy’s Clair de Lune. 

Lisa is a young Jewish girl who loves to play the piano; even in silence she loves to place her fingers over the piano keys. One day, as she made her usual way to visit her piano teacher in Vienna, in preparation of playing Grieg’s Piano Concert in A Minor at the Musikverein Concert Call in the future, her life changed as soon as she arrived at his door.

This change came from the regime's decision to make it illegal to teach Jewish children, so he told her it was best to leave immediately, and that was the last time she ever saw her teacher.

Towards the end of 1938, the Nazi’s military power grew stronger and enforced the slaughter and persecution of the Jewish population – Kristalnacht – which was prevalent throughout the Third Reich. Yet by luck, Lisa's father managed to get a golden ticket for her to take the Kindertransport to England. 

Golabek gives a remarkable rendition of her courageous mother through touching and tender moments. These segments included Lisa saying goodbye to her family before boarding the train, to finding a place to sleep during the London’s Blitz and, by chance, getting a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music.

Adapted by Hershey Felder, this visceral play steals the hearts of the audience including those new to classical music. The production has black and white footage, which provide visual context and emotional language to Golabek’s voice. These visual projections are formed by Andrew Wilder’s gold edged frames that act as a way into Lisa’s world, alongside a large Steinway grand piano for Golabek to play breathtaking variations by the great composers.

In light of current affairs, where today’s UK government is considering taking 3000 unaccompanied children from Syria, this 90 minute play is not only a history lesson but a musical story filled with love, pathos and sweeping tension. 

Showing until 27th February. Please here for my information and to book tickets. https://www.stjamestheatre.co.uk/theatre/the-pianist-of-willesden-lane/

Excellent programme &exquisite performances by Mona Golabek on the keys #ThePianistOfWillesdenLane @St_JamesTheatre pic.twitter.com/MMQ42JeXRz

— Mary Grace Nguyen (@MaryGNguyen) January 22, 2016

Coverage: Music into Words

Swing by Around 8 Review

Review: Met Opera's Live in HD: Pearl Fishers

Swing by Around 8: Ghost Light Theater Group ☆ ☆ ☆

It’s not like every day that you get a production that hones in on the mysteries of an orgy party. In society, it’s (not really!) a taboo, so here’s a bit of an insight into how unsexy, disorganised, confusing and stressful it is to pull off. Yet somehow a torn couple, Katherine (Elizabeth Lloyd Raynes) and Matt (Donncha Kearney), figure that it’s the only way they can salvage their dying relationship – by getting it on with other people (at the same time!), - though it ends up being a bit of a disaster with too much wine and silly innuendoes that all go tits up.

Swing by Around 8 is a short new play that made an impact at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe, and Ghost Light Theatre Group has taken the work, written by Jessica Bray, and brought it to London. Directed by designer and educator David Gasperetti, Swing by around 8 is showing at the pocket sized pub theatre of Bread and Roses theatre. There’s music by the late David Bowie, playing in the background, accompanied by a dinner table and an open-legged chicken with some chocolate mousse and one less plate of beige food.

Amelia, the well-spoken lady who can’t handle her drink, (Laura Mckee) brings along her philanderer partner Elliott (Jonathan McGarrity), the nurse. Dinner seems to be going so well until one of them feels uncomfortable and their other half begins to enjoy the sexual flirtation a little too much. Then, a host of domestic problems and tetchy issues hit the fan.

Raynes is a tour de force with her performance as the control freak and over-paranoid girlfriend, while Kearney, and his cute Irish accent, give a smooth performance as the insecure boyfriend on the tipping point of throwing in the towel on his relationship with Katherine. Mckee and McGarrity are also a talented duo as professional swingers in Bray’s intriguing work. But it’s just a shame that it ends so soon. Although Sam Blake has a small role in the piece as the policeman, you’re pretty convinced he could have been in on the foreplay as well.

It’s easy to get drawn into these character’s little worlds. As the play goes on you get a deeper understanding of them, though it would have been enlightening to have understood why both couples had relationship problems and what they were about. Yet seriousness aside, this play is warm and funny, and had me chuckling throughout. There’s a lot of material for a sequel. Hint, Hint!

Gasperetti has brought together a convincing cast of new performers and dealt with an interesting issue that many are curious about. It’s a poignant piece especially during a time when online dating and sexual experimentation is on a high.

Only showing until the 6th Feb. Click here for more information. 

Check them out on social media: Facebook:  GhostLightTheatreGroup

Twitter:  @GhostLightTG
Nearest station: Clapham North tube 

Now to see @GhostLightTG! @BreadandRosesTC
Ching, ching! pic.twitter.com/9GNfS4NHFk

— Mary Grace Nguyen (@MaryGNguyen) February 3, 2016

Piaf at the Charing Cross Theatre ★★★★

Cameron Leigh as Piaf ©Gabriel Szalontai 

This year marks the century of the iconic French chanteuse Edith Piaf. To celebrate, Charing Cross theatre unleashes Pam Gem's play, Piaf, directed by Jari Laakso, which was first staged in 1978. The play is quite an eye opener. It pulls away the glamour of Piaf's singing career for the part of Piaf’s life that we are not so familiar with.

As much as she was the Carnegie Hall super star, the play describes Piaf's earlier poverty-stricken life, as potty-mouthed Édith Giovanna Gassion, brought up by prostitutes, and addicted to alcohol and drugs. 

Piaf (Leigh) with husband, Marcel (Zac Hamilton) ©Gabriel Szalontai 

The script is clear-cut. The scenes move from episode to episode of her traumatic life. They are neatly interlinked with her record-breaking songs including Padam, Padam and La Vie en Rose. It’s what keep the play musically alive alongside Cameron Leigh’s perfect performance of the international cabaret star.

The talented performer-musicians are also strong forces on stage, playing several roles in Piaf’s tragic journey. Stephanie Prior is impressive as Marlene Dietrich as well as Piaf's nurse. Samatha Spurgin is brilliant as Piaf's old time friend from the brothel, Toine. 

Leigh with Brian Gilligan, Mal Hall, Zac Hamilton, Philip Murray Warson and Kit Smith ©Gabriel Szalontai 

Brian Gilligan, Mal Hall, Zac Hamilton, Philip Murray Warson and Kit Smith add dashes of humour and electricity to the production, performing a variety of male roles that ruled Piaf's life including German soldiers in WWII, doctors, Louis Leplée (the club owner who discovered Piaf), Theo (her last husband) and police detectives who suspected her of murder. 


Leigh is the tour de force of the show. She nails the title role vocally, characteristically and physically. If you ever wanted to know what Piaf was like in real life, Leigh is your best bet. She can re-enact her every emotion effortless. Seeing her perform Non, je ne regrette rien is a gut-wrenching experience. Many members of the audience had tears in their eyes. However, one wonders if she really was as coarse as Gem depicts her - with an East London cockney accent but, just, the French version.

Scenes where Piaf discovers her husband, Marcel Cerdan had died in a plane crash or suffers from a car crash in 1951, with broken arm and ribs, are convincingly performed by Leigh. The audience pity Piaf's hard life.

If you’re a fan of Piaf, get a ticket now. Cameron Leigh's performance is simply mind-blowing.

Piaf (Leigh) with Toine (Samantha Spurgin)

Currently showing at the www.charingcrosstheatre.co.uk until January 2nd. Click on the link to purchase tickets. 
Director: Jari Laakso; Musical Arrangement and Supervision: Isaac McCullough; Movement Director: Katya Bourvis; Designer: Philippa Batt; Lighting Designer: Chris Randall.
Piaf is produced by Gillian Tan, Blackwinged Creatives, Steven M. Levy and Sean Sweeney.
For more theatre reviews on Trend Fem, click here. 
Dress rehearsal of Cavalleria Rusticana / Pagliacci at the Royal Opera House (Dec 2015)

Hapgood, Tom Stoppard, Hampstead Theatre (Dec 2015)

Henry V, The Royal Shakespeare Company, the Barbican (Nov 2015)

Harold Pinter's The Homecoming, Trafalgar Studio (November 2015)

Completely blown away by Cameron Leigh who sings the lead role of Edith #Piaf. @CharingCrossThr @PiafLondon pic.twitter.com/5qM6222jA8

— Mary Grace Nguyen (@MaryGNguyen) December 12, 2015

⭐⭐⭐ National Theatre Live: Eyre at the Gate Picture House (Notting Hill)

Charlotte Bronte's eponymous novel of the life of Jane Eyre is considered avant-garde, ahead of its time, dabbling with gender roles, sexuality and religion during the 19th century. Yet through Bronte, Eyre was given an individual voice that went against social whims, and was arguably one of the first examples of proto-feminism, of the century.

Now, still, showing at the National Theatre is Sally Cookson's ensemble adaptation, which was first shown last year at the Bristol Old Vic, as part of a hugely successful two-part show. Presented as a single show, this 210-minute drama begins with Jane (Madeleine Worrall) crying like a first born child, with atmospheric music performed by a impassioned band who prepares the audience for the psychological ordeals that this would-be child later endures. With Cookson, however, it's abundantly clear that she studies Eyre's cruel and desperate upbringing, rather than hone in, so much, at the troublesome and confusing relationship she develops with Rochester. 

Stage designer, Michael Vale offers a rustic, wooden maze of ladders and platforms for the complex characters to dance, run and hide away.  The jazz ensemble (piano, drums and brass) is stationed centre stage throughout; either they are singing and banging to the beat of Eyre's feet, or buzzing to a stagecoach charade, running on the spot to signify Eyre's journey to a new country estate or the draconian Thornfield Hall School.

Cookson's play instills the neglect and abandonment of various family members in Eyre's life, from her parents, her kindly uncle and best friend, Helen Burns (Laura Elphinstone), who were lost to the widespread diseases of the time. This follows her hardship under the verbally abusive Aunt Reed (Maggie Tagney) and over-zealous Mr Brocklehurst (Craig Edwards). Aideen Malone's exquisite display of light and Benji Bower's howling score represent the fragility of Thornfield Hall and the chilling depression of Lowood.

Worrall's sensitive and tender portrayal of Eyre has crafty nuances of childishness, which appeals to Felix Hayes's aggressive and Byronic Rochester. Hayes retains an assured and bold Rochester whose overt superiority exudes rough-around-the-edges masculinity. Craig Edwards animatedly performs as his giddy and curious dog, Pilot and Melanie Marshall gives a gracious and heart-felt performance singing as Rochester's insane wife, Bertha.

This original production puts a musical twang to Bronte’s 19th century tale and brings to life the internal voices that haunted Eyre. The performance is visceral and the music is, almost, unforgettable. 

For more information on Jane Eyre, please click here.

Click here for NT Live's performance of A View from the Bridge with Mark Strong. 

NT Live Review of Everyman, click here.

Click here for NT Live Review of Tom Stoppard's The Hard Problem.

Quay Players's Sister Act: The Musical

We are familiar with Whoopi Goldberg and her nunnery antics in the 1992 film comedy, Sister Act. The movie was such a hit with international audiences that it was turned into a musical for both the West End and Broadway stage ten years later. Whoopi Goldberg even had a hand in its creation! Based on Bill and Cheri Steinkellner’s book, Glenn Slater wrote the lyrics with Alan Menken composing the soulful and jazzy music.

Since 2009, the musical has been performed regularly and has succeeding in giving audiences an entertaining evening. Last night [23rd July] was the first night for The Quay Players, the first amateur dramatics group, to perform the musical at Greenwood Theatre, London Bridge. Queues of up to 250 people were forming outside of the theatre, just minutes before the show began.

A strong hold of, up to, thirty ensemble members kept a keen and excited audience waiting but once the spotlights were on, the silly gags, from night club dancers, show time nuns and ‘gay boys’, made the wait worthwhile. 

Sarah Brand directed the musical, which, more or less, follows the same narrative as the film with Latino honey, Catriona Lowe as our diva, Deloris. Her vocal ability seems effortless alongside  her strong stage presence, which engaged the audience from start to finish.

Caroline Smith performed as Mother Superior who gathered much empathy from the audience even though her character is meant to reflect the authority of Maggie Smith’s Reverend Mother. Convincing and heroic, it was hard to see her as an antagonistic force to Deloris’s pursuit as she gave an astounding performance. Their duet ‘Here within these walls’ was one of the many poignant moments of the show.

The baddies and their camp performing were instilled by, no less than, murdering boyfriend, Oliver Mitchell with Scott Topping, Joseph Samuel Cryan and Tom Scambler as Joey, Pablo and TJ. They provided some bizarre, yet nicely paced choreographed dances created by Emma Mitchell. There were also some stripper-like performing too, proving the camp trio could woo the convent sisters, which may sound cheesy but somehow managed to amuse the audience anyway!

The cop, Sweaty Eddie, is a favourite too, suitably performed by Will Strutt with his solo song, ‘I could be That Guy’. The tune has a similar tone to the musical number ‘Cellophane’ from Chicago, but there’s a positive injection of hope with the ensemble ripping off his clothes, twice! It’s also a great opportunity to hear the versatile score to the piece with the musicians in the pit and musical director, Mark Smith at the helm. 

Catherine Bensley as the weedy-nun-turned-stratospheric vocal singer, and Julianne Palmer Mitchell as the crazy, cartwheeling sister, Mary Lazarus deserve worthy praise for their performances as well. Not forgetting smiley Ryan Govin as the golden dressed priest, Monsignor O'Hara.

Much like the film, there’s a lot to be captivated by from the ‘nun on the run’ musical. There are impressive costumes, ornate set designs and props including intricate church stain glass windows that give a fine finish to the production.

   

It's a local production with a few minor directional and stage-related issues that could have been tightened. But, by the end of it, you’ll be tired from laughing and still buzzing from the catchy songs and electric stage energy. You won't get the stuff of a West End based show, but you'll end the night on a high. 

Featured Dancer... Kelly Boylan

Featured Dancer... Sam Hare

Featured Dancer... Katrina Johnson

Featured Dancer... Shona King

Featured Dancer... Sarah O'Malley

Featured Dancer... Eleanor Strutt

Featured Dancer... Katie Underhill

Ensemble... Anil Aksay

Ensemble... Craig Holmes

Ensemble... Mari Booth Spain

Ensemble... Aine Brown

Ensemble... Susan Chandler

Ensemble... Kenneth Cheung

Ensemble... Mandy Dooley

Ensemble... Janice Edgar

Ensemble... Liz Edwards

Ensemble... Alex Finch

Ensemble... Shirley Hayward

Ensemble... Pip Hodson

Ensemble... Katy Holmes

Ensemble... Sandy Holmes

Ensemble... Kim Hooper

Ensemble... Jeanette Hopper

Ensemble... Fergus Kinnon

Ensemble... Darren Knight

Ensemble... Spencer Mitchell

Ensemble... Barry Pavey

Ensemble... Beccy Reese

Ensemble... Agata Rozpedek

Photos courtesy of Quay Players. 

There are three performances left: Tonight and two showings tomorrow - July 25th.

 Click here to get your tickets today!