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.
Written by Tom Crowley
Based on a source text which blends a Joan Collins-esque stand-up set with transsexual rock opera in the setting of a small-time punk gig, any production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch is predestined to be striking at the very least. But Will Tribble’s Drama Barn production went beyond such basic praise, taking striking to its most palpably literal extreme.
Before Ed Lewis-Smith’s brazenly unconvincing, yet nonetheless dedicated, transvestite protagonist takes the stage, the audience is treated to the immersive idling of the star’s band, The Angry Inch, fidgeting with their instruments as they wait for the show to start. The Barn is transformed into a homely (in all senses of the word) York city-centre tea-shop, while the band themselves are a rich tapestry of late-20th Century rock chic, from biker-metal to Sergeant Pepper bombast. Immediately the audience is given a sympathetic and relatable tableau of a dedicated band of rockers relegated to two-bit gigs incapable of containing their heart, soul and enthusiasm. These qualities are implicit at first, but are finally given a face and a powerful voice, once the safety announcements have been reeled off, in the band’s frontperson: Hedwig.
Written by Adam Massingberd-Mundy
Clever use of projection was utilised throughout the performance, helping magnificently to highlight the meaning behind the play’s many song numbers. The wide jumble of hand illustrated cartoons and stuttering video footage provided a pleasing contrast to the fairly static nature of the actual acting, the band being locked in position for the entire piece.
Hedwig is a production that raises many questions, the ending being fraught with revelations that are only partly explained, leaving many of the audiences' questions unanswered. Whilst the music and projections seemed to imply some sort of centring of Hedwig’s personality (personalities?) the action on stage seemed otherwise, the audience still faced with a confused protagonist. Any overall message that the play attempted to display was obscured by contrasts such as these and the furious, yet exhilarating crescendo of pace in the final chapters.
The delightful mix of music, performance, cinematography ensured Hedvig never dragged, providing a stunning night of entertainment…if a confusing one.
Written by Dan Wood
Hedwig is not what I would necessarily call a great musical. However, this particular production combined innovative and interesting direction with strong performances to create an immensely enjoyable theatrical experience. The presence of the poker faced band from the word go set the tone and the musicians all turned out strong performances, both instrumentally and when entering the piece in the form of quirky cameos. Nicola Carter too was perfect as Yitzhak, Hedwig’s troubled partner. Her superb grasp of the character was immediately evident and she managed to move the audience whilst keeping them laughing. The fact that she did this with so few lines, many of which were monosyllabic or profane, illustrates once again what a talented performer Carter is. If this is her Drama Barn swan song then in it is a fitting one.
As brilliant as the rest of the cast were, this is a show that belongs to Hedwig. Ed Lewis-Smith excelled in the central role, giving a sublime performance. From the second he teetered onto the stage he had the audience hooked on his mix of cheeky humour, stunning characterisation and, of course, a fabulous singing voice. Certainly, his was one of the finest performances I have seen in the Barn this year.
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