REVIEWS Archives - Page 51 of 548

11Aug

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Fibonacci Quartet – The Queen’s Hall

I arrive early at Queen’s Hall, buzzing for the International Festival debut of the Fibonacci Quartet. Two of their members, Kryštof Kohout and Findlay Spence, were here last year as part of the Rising Stars programme. Now they return with the full ensemble, joined by Luna de Mol and Elliot Kempton, for a morning programme that mixes Scottish contemporary writing with Czech emotional candour.Before the music starts, the announcer tells us about the Young Musicians Pass scheme, which has given 2,500 young people tickets to the festival this year. Fifty of them are here today, dotted through the audience, and you can feel the ripple of energy they bring to the room.The Queen’s Hall, once a Georgian church, is now one of Edinburgh’s most diverse and beloved live music venues. Its conversion h...

Drawing From Life – The Studio at theSpace Triplex

11Aug

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

Drawing From Life – The Studio at theSpace Triplex

Devised by Alice Connolly and facilitated by Eve Connolly, Drawing From Life sees Alice Connolly posing as the life model, while the audience is provided with drawing materials to sketch her various poses. As the class progresses, things begin to unravel—we begin to hear the inner thoughts of both the audience members and Alice herself. Slowly, the intense focus required to draw begins to waver, as we start to humanise our otherwise silent model. Audience members are handed stuffed dolls, which are later retrieved and manipulated by Eve, who bends and contorts them into different shapes. Alice mirrors these movements, seemingly controlled, as if under the influence of a voodoo doll. This element of the performance was both engaging and intriguing, showcasing the Connollys’ strong dr...

11Aug

By Saira KunjuvalappilNo Comments

Scotland

Dance People – Old College Quad

A Call to Connection at the Edinburgh International Festival In the open quadrangle of Old College Quad, Dance People is performed in an unexpected performance space. A simple red ribbon separates performers and watchers, with no seating—merely open air and stone environment. Physical openness is a prelude to the questions of the evening about connection, community, and shared humanity. The play begins with an evocative stage with projected messages: "Who are you? ", "Are we alone? ", "We have so many people with us… people we've seen on the bus, who walk alongside us, but whom we've never noticed." At one point, the audience is invited to turn around and actually notice the people around them—a simple yet powerful gesture. The barrier is then literally broken with the ribbon ...

11Aug

By Saira KunjuvalappilNo Comments

Scotland

360 Allstars – Assembly Hall

High-Energy, High-Skill, All Thrills 360 Allstars is the genuine across-the-board, full-on entertainment package of urban arts and sports. With its headlining company of world champions and record-setters, the show brings together BMX stunts, basketball freestyle, breakdancing, beatboxing, acrobatics, and drumming into one adrenaline-fueled package. The moment the artists arrived on the stage, the atmosphere was charged. The announcements of each performer over a pulsating background of hip hop beats automatically created the tone for the show's street life. One after another, the array of players showcased their respective talents—each one more stunning than the last. The BMX routines broke with gravity, with spins, flips, and balance manoeuvres that sent the audience gasping...

Tales of a Jane Austen Spinster – Courtyard Theatre

10Aug

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

Tales of a Jane Austen Spinster – Courtyard Theatre

What’s a girl to do? When you’ve been on the shelf — the literal bookshelf, that is — for more than 200 years, this question becomes ever more pressing. Should Liliana, a neglected heroine from an unfinished scrap of Jane Austen’s writing, remain a wallflower for all eternity, awaiting the extended hand of a mysterious gentleman to pluck her from her obscure perch and carry her away to freedom and fulfillment? The play wouldn’t be very fun if she did. Fortunately for all involved, this is not the fate playwright and performer Alexandra Jorgensen has mapped out for her. Her Liliana, an earnest young woman with that blend of self-righteousness and self-consciousness that has come to characterize Austenian adaptation, is out to seize control of the narrative. Jorgensen, operating he...

10Aug

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

Bombshell – theSpace @ Triplex

Following a successful run in New York last year, Cross the Pond Theatre presents us with their new, original musical, Bombshell. Written by Madison Mayer, who stars as Scarlett, our climate-conscious main character, we explore three girls’ mission to spread climate awareness by performing raunchy cabaret numbers with a political message. With songs composed by Cumbernauld local Aila Swan, who plays Jane, Bombshell delivers a kooky and amusing story, with pizzazz and high energy. Emory Kemph directs and features as Eliza, perfectly capturing the sarky and satirical feel of Mayer’s writing, eliciting a great reaction from the audience with laughs aplenty. Each number flies by, with well-choreographed routines and strong harmonies—the trio are fabulous performers, strong in all aspect...

Picnic at Hanging Rock – Hope Street Theatre

10Aug

By Ann Marie JamesNo Comments

North West

Picnic at Hanging Rock – Hope Street Theatre

A performance which portrayed excellent acting ability, variety and characterisation. The performers (Hosanna Starkey, Juliette Collins, Lucie Rose, Lucy Hickman-Germon and Holly Lawless) certainly gave passion and energy to this production and provided us with excellent physical theatre and voice work. They were able to glide smoothly between character transitions. The set was very minimal and used mainly props and media to change scenes. The symbolism of the shoes being left on stage when the girls went missing was a clever incorporation. However, personally, I found the production quite difficult to follow, as yes, the performers switched characters and demonstrated their acting abilities well, but sometimes it was hard to ascertain who was who. Also, there was some confusion amon...

Up Late with Alabaster DePlume – The Hub

10Aug

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Up Late with Alabaster DePlume – The Hub

It is one of those nights at The Hub that I will not quite shake off, in both the best and the slightly sourest sense of the word. Alabaster DePlume, Angus Fairbairn, mid-forties Mancunian jazz poet supreme, takes to the stage in Palisadeau colours. ‘Genocide’, he gives it a name, and then he mentions that one of the festival’s backers also supports the regime in Israel. That the Festival by association supports the regime. A couple of audience members stand up and quietly leave. The tension is immediate, and it ripples through the room. It does not need to go there, but maybe it was always inevitable, he has, after all, never been capable of separating his politics from his performing.But, politics aside, back to the music. The saxophone work is exceptional, rich with tone, breath, and at...

10Aug

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Bach and Bartok – Usher Hall

The Edinburgh International Festival treats me to a musical triptych tonight at the Usher Hall, a concert in three sharply contrasting acts, delivered with precision and flair by the Budapest Festival Orchestra under Iván Fischer. Fischer, now in his mid-70’s and one of Europe’s most admired conductors, has the air of a man who knows exactly what he’s doing and, perhaps, is savouring these final years at the helm. Co-founder of the orchestra back in 1983 with Zoltán Kocsis, he’s built a reputation not only for musical excellence but also for a willingness to experiment, from autism-friendly “Cocoa Concerts” to informal beanbag performances. There’s an ease and playfulness in his direction, the sort of confidence that comes from a career well cemented in the history books, but still curious...

#CHARLOTTESVILLE – The Play That Trump Does Not Want You to See! – Pleasance Courtyard

10Aug

By Tom ScottNo Comments

Scotland

#CHARLOTTESVILLE – The Play That Trump Does Not Want You to See! – Pleasance Courtyard

In August 2017 white supremacists held a ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which erupted into violence resulting in more than 30 people being injured in clashes between the so-called Alt Right and counter-protesters. The next day a white supremacist deliberately drove his car into a crowd of counter protesters, injuring 35 people and killing Heather Heyer, a 32-year-old paralegal who provided legal help to people at risk of repossessions and evictions. Priyanka Shetty, who was at the time a student in Charlottesville, has written and performs this meticulously researched one person play. It’s a powerful production, directed by Yury Urnov, which lambasts the violent racism of the white supremacists, but also contends that what happened at Charlottesville was not an an...