Catherine Bennett resumes the weekly look at the performing arts world, with the sad end of Jerusalem, the luck of a cabbie, and French revolt. Do you hear the people sing?
Adam Alcock reviews Nigel Kennedy playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons and his own Four Elements at York Opera House.
Catherine Bennett highlights the trends in the performing arts world today.
Jonathan Cridford reviews 'Ghosts', one of the Freshers' plays for this year.
The weather was perfect for Student Action’s performance of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’, which saw Vanbrugh Bowl transformed into a desert island and the audience able to sit back and enjoy the performance all for charity.
The plot begins with a shipwreck, which sees a party of Italian nobles stranded on an island where it soon becomes apparent that all is not as it seems.
The audience learns that the Tempest that caused the shipwreck was conjured by the enigmatic Prospero and his spirit Ariel. Prospero (played by Matthew Rounds) gave a commanding performance throughout the play. As the puppet master of all the events taking place on the Island he seeks to avenge the wrongdoing he suffered twelve years ago by his scheming brother Anthonio. He is aided throughout by his sprite Ariel, skilfully played by Lauren Whitehead, who energetically conveyed the playful nature of the mischievous spirit.
Together the two weave a complex plot, which sees the King of Naples (played by Marie Thouaille) separated from his son Ferdinand (Richard Biggs) who whilst imprisoned by Prospero falls in love with his innocent daughter Miranda (Ginny Hartmann)
Meanwhile Anthonio (Pippa Caddick), Prospero’s villainous brother, along with his accomplice Sebastian (Betty Yarwood- Smith) believing Ferdinand to be dead, seek to kill the King of Naples and his aged friend Gonzalo (Damien Freddi) to take the crown. Anthonio and Sebastian made a great villainous duo, with really strong performances from both actresses, mixing comedy with their more sinister intentions. The aged Gonzalo was also very well played, turning out to be the character with the most moral fibre.
A side plot follows the drunken antics of Trinculo (Michael Appleton) and Stephano (Richard Barker) who separated from the rest of those shipwrecked encounter Caliban (Michael Wilkins) a savage native to the island who enslaved by Prospero harbours a deep resentment towards him. Trinculo and Stephano’s comedic performances were highly appreciated by the audience with Stephano delivering a particularly amusing performance, which even saw him impressively do the splits! Caliban was also excellently portrayed by Wilkins, who successfully portrayed the savage nature of the sub-human character and also provided amusement when slightly inebriated chose to worship the ridiculous Stephano and kiss his feet.
Overall the performance was highly successful in bringing the magic of the Tempest to life, with effective costumes and music played on a flute adding an ethereal atmosphere. Despite being disturbed by a loud rehearsal in the music department the mood was not broken and the audience remained engaged with the play until the very end, which saw justice served and balance and harmony restored.
The direction made good use of the outdoor space and relied on only limited set, which worked surprisingly well and proved the talent and energy of the cast. Hopefully the hugely successful performances and the enjoyment of the audience will mean that plenty of money was raised for charity!
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