Sunday, December 22

Author: Kathleen Mansfield

After this Plane has Landed – The Space @ Surgeons Hall
Scotland

After this Plane has Landed – The Space @ Surgeons Hall

I had to see this musical out of guilt. John McCarthy was incarcerated in Beirut while I was mourning my mother’s passing. His capture wasn’t even a teardrop amid my grief. Five years later, I gave birth to my first born. A friend sent a message excitedly proclaiming it is the day that John McCarthy is released. Who? Nothing compared to the miracle of ten tiny toes and ten little fingers. A real human being who’d lodged in my womb for nine dark months had finally escaped. Then, just 32 years later, almost to the day, this play appears. I can now pay attention. Exit Productions “After This Plane Has Landed” provides a one-hour precis of The Friends of John McCarthy, Jill Morrell’s quest to free her then boyfriend, and the pressure upon their relationship once they are reunited. ...
RENT – Paradise in Augustine’s
Scotland

RENT – Paradise in Augustine’s

Theatre joins us together in a shared experience to marvel at talent, commitment, application and teamwork. And to ponder the writer’s message. Edinburgh-based Bare Productions drew a rowdy standing ovation for this 1990s tale of fear and solidarity in AIDS riddled Bohemian Manhattan.  My neighbour for the evening, a transgender Dane called Daniel, informed me that RENT is very popular in the queer community. He enjoyed the show, saying he likes slice-of-life style theatre and that, while this particular musical is no longer contemporary, having been created before he was born, it is still very relevant. Appreciating and understanding the social history of the queer community is important. That’s the magic of Edinburgh Fringe: sharing views and exchanging human warmth with someon...
Coffee Kid – Underbelly Cowgate
Scotland

Coffee Kid – Underbelly Cowgate

If you have a free afternoon this Fringe ditch the overpriced coffee and indulge in Coffee Kid. Nominated for Best Performer and the Spirit of Wit award at the Dublin Fringe Festival 2022, Coffee Kid is a one-woman play exploring the absurd character Beanie Clooney (Síomha McQuinn) the love child of George Clooney and a Nespresso machine. The show was unsurprisingly whacky but also relatable: the familiar coming-of-age themes of identity, love and belonging were revitalised by the originality of the protagonist. It also brought together classic Fringe comedy and new ideas in a refreshing way: satirical jokes towards Womanhood, Hollywood and patriarchy were complimented by more niche puns about the unique character and plot. Despite moments of depth the storyline was kept light-hearted ...
Pibroch – Scottish Storytelling Centre
Scotland

Pibroch – Scottish Storytelling Centre

Pibroch is a multimedia theatre production exploring parallels between the 1988 Piper Alpha disaster and our current climate crisis. Bolland’s lyrical spoken word show deplores the sanitisation of traumatic events and the tragedy of disabled self-direction as, sheep-like, we follow the rules and meekly meet our death. The Piper Alpha tragedy caused 165 deaths because safety measures on paper did not translate to reality, just as in the Bhopal gas tragedy in 1984, and the Grenfell Tower in 2017: emergency services were tardy, safety standards were jeopardised and human flesh was sacrificed to balance the books and up the profit margin.  Public Inquiries simply create a sanitised record and a statistical translation of guttural human anguish and suffering - wretchedness which impa...
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh 
Scotland

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh 

The stage adaptation of this popular film is a gentle immersion into a foreign world where a group of retired Brits take a leap of faith and look for a cost-effective and adventurous way to eek out their days. I relaxed so much I forgot I was reviewing! The acting is spot on, and the fun is sprinkled evenly throughout. This cast received whoops and hollers of appreciation at the end from a less than full auditorium, indicating the niche appeal of a drama about oldies. Deborah Moggach’s 2004 novel, These Foolish Things, and the 2011 film version, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, transfers well to the stage where Colin Richmond’s multi-levelled set gives the whole a sense of space and potential for what lies behind. The flip from hotel to call centre is done with effective simplicity. Both...
Quines Cast Podcast Season Two Launch: RIOT – Traverse Theatre
Scotland

Quines Cast Podcast Season Two Launch: RIOT – Traverse Theatre

Disembodied voices snap-chat earnestly. The cast is meritorious. They posit thoughts and summaries upon a serious issue, in this case, RIOT: why riots happen and the impact of rioting. But the disembodied voices are simply sound bites without flesh: skinny starters for discussion rather than a proper, in-depth discourse. If I were one of those bright, energetic, purposeful women who contributed, I’d have shivered to be reduced to a sound bite. But maybe it was ironic? Maybe I missed the point? The voices felt reminiscent of Loose Women: trite opinions aired for entertainment. Having said that, I was won over by Jessica Gaitán Johannesson. She read a piece specifically written for RIOT which was measured, thoughtful, factual and gripping. She embodied all the things that women are per...
Dear Billy – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
Scotland

Dear Billy – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Why is Gary McNair’s ode to master comedian, Billy Connoly, Dear Billy, excellent? It is the authentic voice of Scotland. It has perfect comic timing. Every man and woman portayed is distinct in characterisation. The words are all true - not a single piece of fiction. The idea is brilliantly simple while the execution looks simple, but is, in fact, brilliantly compiled, composed and performed - not simple at all. He makes it funny. I take my hat off to you, Mr McNair, and your team of story-gatherers. This is a fabulously funny, tender, and varied piece of theatre which had me in stitches, and I’m not a die-hard Billy Connolly fan, like some of the audience in this full-house. It is the breadth of commentary/recollections that makes this piece sparkle - stories of...
The Shawshank Redemption – Edinburgh Festival Theatre
Scotland

The Shawshank Redemption – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

Ben Onwuke, playing Ellis ‘Red’ Redding, carries this story beautifully. He tops and tails it with a mellow voice and a story-telling style to captivate. No wonder he has numerous audio books to his credit. However, the first half is a bombardment of aggression with little remission. No doubt, prison is like that, yet, undoubtedly, there is plenty of subtle menace and understated tension simmering. A mood of depression must prevail in some corners - hence the high rate of suicide. Here we find a storm of high-pitched savagery. As a result, the director (David Esbjornson) offers the cast little scope to build tension and create climactic power. A little more ebb and flow, a smidgen of the off button in the volume would help build and release tension. Even in the supposed searing heat,...
Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty – Edinburgh Festival Theatre
Scotland

Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

IMHO the fairy tale tradition meets tattoos meets masks meets humour meets intense physical creativity meets time … is a feast. Matthew Bourne’s recreation of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty is all his Gothic own and yet not. The man himself credits the original dancers with contributing to the exquisite storytelling and, there is no doubt, his long-term collaboration with designer Lez Brotherston is a winning combination. It is a beautiful creation of light and dark. The performers clearly love what they do and their passion bleeds into the auditorium and captures your body and soul. Bourne cares about every detail and he inspires equal attentiveness in his cast and crew. The result is a deeply, deeply satisfying and uplifting narrative. A radical vampiric element is stirred into vari...
Puccini’s Il trittico – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh
Scotland

Puccini’s Il trittico – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh

Puccini’s Il trittico is part of Scottish Opera’s 60th Anniversary programme. The company aims is “to lay the treasures of opera at the feet of the people of Scotland”. It certainly succeeds with this triple treasure of shorts. Death unites this triptych, but the mood of each showcases Puccini’s inventive mind and creative breadth: aching thwarted love (Il Tabarro); misguided penance and cruel inhumanity (Suor Angelica); the delicious absurdity of human relationships (Gianni Schicchi). If one piece doesn’t touch your sensibility, then the others must, surely. This Scottish Opera team is creative. Director, Sir David McVicar, houses Puccini’s music in stunning sets (designers Charles Edwards), costumes to delight (Hannah Clark), perfect lighting (Ben Pickersgill) and a fantastic orche...