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.
Shed was written and directed by Tom Crowley and produced by Meg Henry. Having his deepest roots in Comedy and Pant Soc you could be forgiven for expecting Crowley’s writing to be light hearted and comedic. Shed surpasses such expectations. The atmosphere of the play is nostalgic (with a good measure of comedy) but there are moments of shocking intensity, deep sadness and pure action. The play is set entirely inside a shed in a patch of untamed woodland. Everyone who goes there thinks the space was discovered by them, a private sanctuary with deep significance; although they all believe the owner to be a spidery old man (wonderfully portrayed by Tom Stokes). Hearing of the death of his old teacher, Mrs Grist, Nev Crane (Luke Malkin) returns home for the first time in ten years. Going straight to his childhood sanctuary Nev finds that others have since claimed his hideaway and the friends he abandoned still return there. The importance of place to individuals and the powerful memories they hold are prominent within Shed.
The strong ensemble cast are key to this production’s success. Malkin’s Nev is the catalyst for the action, but no main character could be picked from him, Very (Mariel Stringer-Fehlow), Sally (Rebecca Darmody), Ben (Lewis Chandler) and the Gunman (Bengee Gibson) who all give strong, well rounded performances. Darmody and Chandler have more comedy moments then the rest but contrast this fantastically with more delicate scenes, although Chandler didn’t always take these differences as far as he could. Darmody shone in her first scene alone with Nev, with her lines and emotions erratically contradicting and changing in tone in an all too familiar way. Gibson’s rage and fear were some of the most startling moments and, while sometimes remaining shouty for longer than needed, were excellently delivered to great effect; his was possibly the hardest part; admirably done. Malkin carried some very difficult physical acting and leant a universal likability to what could have been a less likable character. This made Nev far more interesting, however on occasion it felt more Malkin then Nev. The stand out performance however was Stringer-Fehlow’s Very. She handled the challenges of the part superbly and was always fully committed to every emotional twist thrown her way. She changed from being the most vulnerable to most powerful presence. The Little Boy and Girl (Scott Skelton and Emma Cooke) were charmingly performed; both rising to the challenge of playing such young characters, conveying all the necessary innocence and enthusiasm perfectly. There was no weak link in this cast and their relationships onstage were skilfully nuanced.
The audience make up three walls of the Shed so the directing did sometimes leave you watching someone’s back, but this was never for too long. This simple set, raised on pallets with full back wall and a hanging light bulb, was beautifully simple, creating a great intimacy. The lighting complimented the set and made excellent use of the skylight. The flickering light bulb particularly added a sense of romanticism to some drunken dancing.
The music, all composed by Odinn Hilmarsson (except one cover), added hauntingly to the nostalgia of the piece. It also highlighted other emotions at key points, the work of Hilmarsson is worthy of great merit and added such a unique element to this production. You can even buy the soundtrack after in V-Bar.
While some scenes are longer then needed the planning that went into the script is evident. The plot is expertly crafted; covering a wide spectrum of emotions but always returning to nostalgia for home and old friendships. How we affect others through our actions is obvious, but addressing how our absence can affect those we leave behind is a different matter entirely. It is unsurprising that this should strike a chord with students. The relationships with friends from home changes significantly when you come to university; and those looking to leave York this summer will be given food for thought on how this will impact on their current nearest and dearest. Shed is well worth catching and may well leave you thinking about those from home you always thought you’d know forever.
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