Monday, June 16

Tag: Colin Grenfell

Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) – Festival Theatre
Scotland

Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) – Festival Theatre

Accomplished Scottish writer, actor and director, Isobel McArthur, has taken the old adage, while the cats away the mice will play and crafted an absolute winner in Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of). It is hilarious and superbly performed by an ensemble of talented actors. Costume changes happen as if Houdini were channeled (or maybe Derren Brown with his clever psychology and hypnotism). Characters leave the stage and re-enter at the speed of light, transformed into a newly minted persona! It is brilliant! It is funny! It is hugely entertaining and modern. Of course, the occasional black-out and the odd bit of glitter ball dancing all elevate the fun, thanks to the lighting designer, Colin Grenfell. The cast can sing, dance and act their socks off and when this is combined with an...
This is Paradise – Traverse Theatre
Scotland

This is Paradise – Traverse Theatre

Michael John O’Neill’s This is Paradise takes place in 1998 in Belfast, just as the Good Friday Agreement is signed bringing supposed peace to the nation. However, away from the political turmoil, O’Neill’s play explores the life of Kate, swapping countrywide tragedy for that of the personal kind. The one-woman monologue follows Kate, played by Amy Molloy, a woman entering her thirties, who is thrust back into the life of an ex-partner after a phone call regarding concerns for his welfare. O’Neill’s beautifully crafted text allows Kate’s story to unravel, exploring the various relationships that still haunt her. Undertones of the impact of the IRA and Orange Order are subtly placed throughout the story, certainly adding to it but not overshadowing it, instead allowing Kate’s own struggl...