To Blog or Not to Blog…
Continuing a recent spate of highly-rated reviews, our current touring production The Taming of the Shrew has received five stars in today’s Birmingham Mail…
As the review concludes, the show finishes its residency at Birmingham’s Botanical Gardens tonight, then moves to Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens on Saturday, and, in a new destination for the tour, to St. Nicolas Place next Tuesday and Wednesday.
With the weather changing like a Shrew’s disposition, it’s sometimes hard to believe that the theatre’s ever-popular outdoor Summer tour starts tonight. The ever-expanding cast’s fun-filled efforts of the last few months took to the verdant stage for the first time last night, as Birmingham’s Botanical Gardens played host to The Taming of the Shrew dress rehearsal.
However, somewhat like an England cricket match, rain delayed play - as cats and dogs plummeted, and thunder roared (almost as loudly as our Petruchio). Team Shrew huddled under the venue’s bandstand and could only look on as numerous puddles began to take centre-stage.
The umpires conferred, checked their light meters, and plans were made to retreat to the theatre’s rehearsal room, where at least we could run lines and continue getting used to wearing our splendid costumes.
But just as the prospect of having to drive in pantaloons looked like becoming a dreadful reality, the sky lifted - and the green light from a coruscating rainbow gave us the go-ahead. Despite soggy bread rolls having to be abandoned and boots being donned, Team Shrew quickly hit the stage and proceeded to vie for attention with the Gardens’ strutting peacock.
Strutting our own stuff for the next two hours was fun. Despite the dampness, the comedy that emanates from the show was largely intact, and the only problems we saw were due to the extended entrances that the Gardens’ layout necessitates. Having taken a mere couple of steps to enter a scene in the rehearsal room, we’re now having to traverse about 50 yards to take our places(!)
By the end of the evening, lines, entrances, false beards and peacock had been firmly put in their places. And now, thoughts return to that most predictable of subjects - the weather.
The prospect of the tour invites visions of sun-swept evenings, of strolling players performing to an audience that stretches out before them (like their shadows). Picnics, blankets, the popping of corks (and copping of pork pies, in my case) are all part of what the tour is able to offer. However, the only thing more English than Shakespeare is rain, so the combination of the two has in the past drawn scenes more decorated with umbrellas, anoraks and even tents. But last night seemed to rid us of all the rain - surely there can’t be any left?
So, the turfed stage is set. There’s a lot to enjoy in our production of “Shrew”, some unforgettable performances and much fun to be had. It’s one of Shakespeare’s lighter plays, and a certain strand of humour has been injected throughout, which keeps things lively and makes the central theme somewhat more appropriate for a modern audience.
We hope you’ll come along and join in. We’ll make sure that it’s not just the sky, but also the play that reigns…
Anna has asked me to post this as a view of how it feels to play Fay.
When we began rehearsing IRON, I was a little troubled by my character Fay (and that’s putting it mildly). I wondered if I would ever understand her or find any redeemable qualities in a character that seemed so flawed. Our director Thom advised us to steer clear of labels such as good, bad and evil. That was good advice and it allowed me to start the journey that all actors need to take when playing any character, but especially one that is the anti-heroine. I am now in a place where not only do I empathize with Fay but I am also quite fond of her. Underneath Fays destructive and institutionalized demeanor lays a living feeling person just like you and me…she is a gift to play.
We had our first run through on Sunday, minus one actor, although our director stood in admirably. Not difficult for him really as I suspect he recites the lines in his sleep he knows the play so well!
Anyway, on Sunday, Robert, the Arts Manager and Graeme who was taking rehearsal shots for us were present. The first time we have had an audience - and the first Act had moments that were good and moments that need polishing shall we say! However, the second Act , when Robert and Graeme were no longer with us, has one of the most electrifying scenes I think I have ever been priviledged to see close up. I tried to stay in character but kept slipping into audience mode, and I found it hard not to cry.
If you are at all intrigued about this play, trust me, that scene in the second Act will be worth the price of the ticket alone.
These are interesting times for the cast of Iron, and I suspect Kiss of the Spiderwoman too. Rehearsing a play that has most of the “action” confined to a small space, whether that be a cell, the visiting room or the garden is a challenging prospect. The rehearsals started with the director being completely clear that on no occasion should we “label” our characters i.e. Fay as “evil”, or guard 1 as “nice”, and this has opened up the very very interesting process of questioning whether anyone is ever solely good or bad, or whether circumstsances lead us to act in specific ways. Obviously I don’t plan to give the game away but I do suggest that you come and see it, and decide for yourself whether you could have it in you too to commit murder……
Take two strongly opposing characters: Molina (gay, submissive) and Valentin (revolutionary, macho). Place them in a cramped and de-humanising prison cell. Throw in a little storytelling for flavouring. And stir. Just one of the many topics that Manuel Puig’s Kiss of the Spider Woman explores is the transforming effect that people can have on each other simply by spending time together – even when enforced.
As Molina spins a web of fantasy to create a refuge for himself and Valentin in a world beyond the reality of their cell, the B-movie that he relates introduces the theme of metamorphosis. Irena, the heroine of the movie, is irresistibly drawn to the black panther prowling in its cage at NYC zoo. But Irena, like Molina, is hiding a dark secret. No, all is not as it seems in the Villa Devoto prison in Buenos Aires. Love is not the only thing in the rancid air of the cell. Everything is in a state of flux and as the characters start to mirror each other’s traits, mutation abounds. Woman becomes wildcat, macho turns metro and camp meets Castro; all accompanied by that lesser known miracle of turning porridge into poo. Intrigued? We hope so. Rehearsals continue apace (with some stellar performances, I hasten to add) and it’s all coming to a stage near you in a little under three weeks time (preview performance on Saturday, July 4th at 2:45). So why not come along and see if it changes your ideas too? The web is already being spun…
Fortunately, it’s not quite as sinister as it sounds. The cast of Kiss of the Spider Woman and Iron took a recent opportunity to visit the prison cells at Steelhouse Lane Police Station in Birmingham city centre. As both plays, running in repertory at The Crescent from July 3rd to July 11th, are set in prison, it was a great chance to sample the atmosphere and feel the sense of confinement of a prison environment. The cells at Steelhouse Lane were built in Victorian times and resemble a prison wing with three floors of cells – something reminiscent of a scene from the prison in Porridge (without the laughs!). The casts had an opportunity to run a few lines inside a cell and the chance for some atmospheric publicity photographs wasn’t wasted. I’m not sure that I’m allowed to name the custody officer who arranged the visit but we would like to extend our thanks to him and his colleagues for their hospitality during our ‘incarceration’.
Meanwhile, rehearsals for Kiss of the Spider Woman are progressing very well. With just two actors, who are on stage constantly throughout the play, the roles of Valentin and Molina are both demanding and intense. But the rehearsals have not been without their lighter moments. Trying to fit two 6ft-plus grown men into a single bed being one such instance. There are plenty of technical challenges as well, such as Molina’s domestic chores – boiling water, making tea – while Valentin has to deal with a lot of eating – porridge, chicken legs and digestives with marmalade! July is approaching fast but everyone is working hard to ensure a successful production.
Just to confirm what a great week it’s been at the theatre this week, here’s John Slim’s 5 star review in The Birmingham Mail of the other show in The Crescent Theatre’s double bill.
There are only a few performances left so boogie on down!
Still alarmingly haunted by Rosie’s song By the Bog of Cats, it has taken me a couple of days to write this. I wasn’t sure what to expect prior to seeing the play and walking in to the dimly lit studio, I still wasn’t sure. Against a backdrop of tatty old caravan, a line of children’s clothing drying in the bleak wind and a knackered set of garden furniture, the atmosphere was haunting, spooky and poignantly sad. Automatically you knew this was going to be a dark play with sorrow and tragedy from the outset. Before even a word was said, Sarah and I were in tears. The opening song was truly beautiful.
Katie who played Hester Swaine was marvellous. As a deeply troubled young woman trying to do right by her daughter, the audience was overcome with understanding for her plight and sympathy for her heartbreak. And Rosie who played Josie, Hester’s daughter, was beyond talented. I was bowled over by how real her innocence was, she was magnificent. For a young girl working with such difficult subject matter, you might imagine her resolve to falter somewhat but no, she made you believe, she enveloped you in her childlike innocence and eagerness to please. She was truly captivating. This of course made the ending so much harder to bear and so much more real.
However there was some light relief ever so periodically with the wonderfully played Granny Kilbride. The speech delivered at The Wedding was superbly executed and wonderfully funny. It offered the much needed respite from the rest of this deeply distressing play. Norman’s portrayal of the sozzled priest again provided some gentle comic relief and made for such a great Wedding scene.
Each character, from Caroline to Simon, the ghost to Catwoman, Josie to the deadBlack Wing made for a truly excellent play full of deep sorrow, conflict and misery. If I can stomach more emotion, I shall see it again but for all of those who haven’t seen it, make sure you do but take some tissues…
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