Crab Tragedy: A Greek Myth told Sideways – Capstone Theatre

A special adaptation for families of their previous ‘Sirens, Men and Crabs’, Teatro Pomodoro’s Crab Tragedy is an hour-long surreal comedy that turns Ancient Greece upside down with this performance pre-empting a soon to follow national tour.

A cast of three take on the fishy tale of Ulysses (Simone Tani) and the Siren (Carmen Arquelladas) but it’s all about the Crab (Miwa Nagai) thrown in for good measure with the cast taking on other characters to keep the story sailing on to its inevitable albeit unexpected conclusion.

There’s a low-budget atmosphere reminiscent of The Play That Goes Wrong but here the money has been spent wisely with thoughtful and considered staging and expertly adapted props that aid and support strong performances: don’t be fooled, the creative skill and artistic ability of this cast is priceless in this laugh out loud production.

There is great demonstration of theatrical techniques from slapstick to mime, puppetry to perfect comic lines, and a hilarious take on rock-paper-scissors that will have you in stitches, but it is only one moment of many hilariously staged gags that litter this tale from a highly skilled, international, clowning team whose technical expertise is second to none.

There is a great rapport with the audience including some sensitively handled engagement from a very disarming cast, ensuring an all-round enjoyable experience for all involved. Were a couple of jokes played out a little too long? Maybe, but you couldn’t stop laughing either way and there is a strong element of ad-lib that enables the cast to respond to the audience, who, as I always say, is the best overall judge and the front row of young children fully entered into the spirit of proceedings and it was as much a pleasure to hear their laughter throughout the evening. It would be a tragedy if more people didn’t get to revel in the magic of this production.

Teatro Pomodoro is an award-winning international theatre company made up of performers and creators from 5 different countries (Canada, Italy, Japan, Spain and UK), brought together in Paris at Ecole Philippe Gaulier and now based in Liverpool. Specialising in an electrifying blend of clowning, bouffon, music, comedy and dance Teatro Pomodoro uses the experience of artists who have performed all around Europe, Asia and North America. Further information https://www.teatropomodoro.com/

Tonight’s production was brought together in association with Theatre Porto, Unity Theatre, and supported by Big Imaginations. It also launched Liverpool Hope University’s Angel Field Festival 2024, further details https://capstone.hope.ac.uk/angelfieldfestival/

Reviewer: Mark Davoren

Reviewed: 6^th March 2024

North West End UK Rating: