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Dark Tales
by Remote Goat (5 stars) www.remotegoat.co.uk
When one hears of a new writing, many different feelings and thoughts can come up, nervous, uneasy.. excited, a chance to see something new? A new writing which incorporates music and singing.. well I wasn't too sure what to expect.
On entering the theatre, to see all of the cast together on stage certainly took some getting used to, after all it is a cast of twenty. But no ordinary cast of twenty people. In so many productions I find that there always seems to be a good cast with it's shining stars. In this production every member had their own presence and certainly shone brightly, so much so it is difficult to name any cast member without the other.
Having been written by and directed by the same people, Pat Whymark and Julian Harries, certainly had it's advantages but also set the bar if any other companies were to use this script. Cleverly written for adults but simple and fun enough for the children in the audience to understand made this show wonderful 'all round' piece of theatre to keep everyone happy.
We follow four characters making their way to the city and along the way their journey is interrupted by various vivacious characters each telling their own 'demonic' story from across the world including Poland, Africa and influences from Greece. The inclusion from different cultures legends and tales made this so much more than a musical but almost a fun education. The music complimented the show well and had the audience moving with sheer joy to it. The narration split between various characters kept this piece alive, whereas having one sole narrator would have probably kept the audience alienated.
The characters were a treat, the songs a real foot tapper and the comedy and dialogue something to inspire. This show is suitable for the bizarrely dull to the excitable OAP.
Eleni Young for Remote Goat, 06/10/09
See the article at its original location:
http://www.remotegoat.co.uk/review_view.php?uid=4309
Gallows Song
by Remote Goat (5 stars) www.remotegoat.co.uk
Common Ground Theatre is a brand new youth theatre programme based in Ipswich who had one afternoon show at the Bridewell Theatre with an original play-with-music called Gallows Song, a piece centred around the execution of young men and women in the 1700s.
Tragic as this subject was, the real tragedy was that this was the final show, following a run in Ipswich. Had the company the resources to stay in London and use the theatre for just a week, I could have recommended it to anyone, so broad was its appeal.
A lot of real effort went into the development of this work, including the use of actual documented cases of young adults, barely more than children, sent to the gallows on the flimsiest of circumstances. The plot revolved around the young Will Mayhew (Nick Bradley), morbidly fascinated with the hangings until eventually, events unfold that lead HIM to the jail, and the shadow of the noose.
It's an astonishingly tense tale for young actors to put on, and the stylised nature of the staging and the collective musical and dancing talent made it all the better.
Pat Whymark and Julian Harries wrote the piece and directed it along with Neena Sims and Lynn Whitehead. Pat Whymark also composed and arranged the original music, and did a phenomenal job. I'm a sucker for the right kind of music with the right kind of scene, and there were no contrived moments of song. The music had a raw, rustic folk fuelled charm and had me tapping my feet from the buzz of the cast (despite the songs being about children being hanged.)
The show opened with Nancy Barnes as Abolitionist Harriet Burgess, who had a most amazing voice and immediately set the scene. Nick Bradley as Will carried a lot of the show, and did it very well, ably assisted by (to name a couple) Christopher Yarnell as his rogue brother, Alfie Harries - playing a scoundrel and jumping from the band to the stage with a bewildering ease, and Megan Le Grice as Miranda, his scene stealing pet dog. These, and all the other actors, too numerous to mention, should be extremely proud.
Of the adult actors (three, plus the principle musician, Ashley Howard), I will say just this: They were great, gave their young co-stars absolute respect, and had no "grown up" ego overshadowing the true stars of the show: The young men and women of Common Ground Theatre.
I wish I could tell my friends to see it. I wish I could see it again myself.
I really want a CD of the music. But unfortunately, that's all until next year. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for these guys though.
Andy Marchant for Remote Goat, 07/10/08
See the article at its original location:
http://www.remotegoat.co.uk/review_view.php?uid=2655#reviews
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