Friday, April 26

Tag: Jo Emery

Boiling Frog – Camden Fringe Online
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Boiling Frog – Camden Fringe Online

Before logging on to watch Boiling Frog, part of Camden Fringe 2022, I did some research and unearthed the following: “Urban myth has it that if you put a frog in a pot of boiling water it will instantly leap out. But if you put it in a pot filled with pleasantly tepid water and gradually heat it, the frog will remain in the water until it boils to death.” The production opens with scenes of burning forest fires, then four actors each share their experiences of how the Australian bush fires of 2019/2020 affected their lives. There is a fifth actor, Jordan (Tom Stevenson), but more of him later. Only one of the four, teenager Bella (Olivia Maiden), actually witnessed the fires first-hand, but it’s the impact the disaster had on her that affects the rest of her family - her gran Susan...
King Lear – Scenesaver Online
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King Lear – Scenesaver Online

Jo Emery's modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s play starts off with Lear as a CEO of a property development empire who is in the process of stepping down from his leading role and is dividing the business up between his three daughters. Before he does this though, he sets them a challenge to see how they can express their love for him. The two elder daughters give extremely flattering answers in praise of their father, but the youngest daughter, who actually loves him the most, remains silent as she cannot put into words the depth of feeling she has for her father. This greatly angers the king, and he banishes the youngest daughter and divides the business between the two eldest daughters. As the narrative develops, we are introduced to more characters whose individual stories are woven...