"Sprinkles"/"Constellations"

I finally got a chance to see “Sprinkles” – the first play from actress Katie-Elin Salt – presented as a Dirty Protest rehearsed reading at Chapter. The festive tale of a troubled young woman who gets a job as a department store elf, and is forced to face up to an unhappy past, it manages to be both poignant and scabrously funny. Having been in development for a while, it’s apparently destined to get a full run next year.

A few weeks ago, at The Other Room, I also got the opportunity to experience Nick Payne’s dazzlingly clever multiverse drama, “Constellations”, in what was essentially an amateur production (originating with The Unknown Theatre Company), although a highly accomplished one, with the play’s complexities beautifully realised.

"Constellations" (photo: Walter Hampson)

And it looks as though my first reviewing assignment of 2020 is booked in: “The King And I” at the Wales Millennium Centre. Shall we dance?

Edinburgh Fringe Shows / Homeless World Cup

This is the time of year when all theatrical activity ceases everywhere except in Edinburgh, so I thought I might as well flag up my reviews of those productions I’ve seen in Cardiff which are playing on the Festival Fringe – all of them solo shows, as it happens.

Carys Eleri’s multimedia take on love and loneliness, “Lovecraft” returns, last year’s run having been curtailed due to a bereavement; National Theatre Wales are showcasing two of their N.H.S. monologues, including Rachel Trezise’s abortion-themed “Cotton Fingers”; Dirty Protest are offering Sian Owen’s Newport odyssey “How To Be Brave”; Jonny Cotsen muses on his experience of a lifetime of deafness in “Louder Is Not Always Clearer”; and the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama are bringing Benjamin McCann’s apocalyptic “Grit”. There’s also a non-Welsh show which played at The Other Room: “Laurie Black – Space Cadette”.

 

Carys Eleri (Photo - Kirsten McTernan)

Meanwhile, in Cardiff, the Homeless World Cup, backed spiritual and financially by Welsh actor Michael Sheen has been happening, which was well worth popping down to see in the city’s Bute Park, whether to check out the four-a-side sporting action, or other events, including musical entertainment in the evening. On Thursday, I managed to see the much-acclaimed relative indie newcomers Mellt, who were very impressive; as well as one of the finest bands ever to come out of Wales, The Joy Formidable, led by charismatic guitar heroine Ritzy, who mentioned that they were marking their tenth anniversary. Some very powerful, emotional songs, anchored by some jazz-tinged bass-playing; with the genial mood enhanced by the rabble-rousing drummer. Lovely stuff.

The Joy Formidable (with Michael Sheen side of stage)

Pepperland / Young Artists Festival / Dirty Protest

Last week I got the opportunity to experience, for the first time, the work of legendary American choreographer Mark Morris, as “Pepperland”, his and composer Ethan Iverson's tribute to the Beatles' "Sgt Pepper" album played at the Wales Millennium Centre as part of his group's U.K. tour. Wonderful stuff - very colourful and witty, and a much-needed reminder of late 1960s idealism and optimism.

 

"Pepperland" (photo: Mat Hayward)

Last week also saw the 5th annual Young Artists Festival at The Other Room. I got to see the final night of three, on which short plays by Isley Lynn, Brad Birch, Roger Williams, Lisa Parry, Nerida Bradley and Owen Thomas were performed by a cohort of young actors. As always, a selection of pieces which ran the gamut from darkly experimental to broadly comic; as always, an impressive set of performances.

There were more short plays the following evening. I managed to get to a hastily arranged evening of Dirty Protest pieces at local vegetarian cafe Milgi which was where the project started, in 2007, and which was due to close its doors for the final time. The yurt out back has hosted work by dozens of writers (myself included), and been graced by the presence of some remarkable actors (including, on one memorable occasion, a pre-fame Arthur Darvill and Phoebe Waller-Bridge). This celebratory event saw some of DP's greatest hits, from Kit Lambert, Tracy Harris, Alan Harris, Rhiannon Boyle and Roger Williams (again) performed by Siwan Morris (who took part in the very first Dirty Protest), Matthew Bulgo, Gareth Pierce and Rhian Blythe. All very jolly, and this time, I managed to get a seat.

Macbeth / Les Miserables / Storm 3 / Bottom / Camp Be Yourself / Motown / How To Be Brave

Last year, my birthday trip was to London to see the National Theatre’s “Macbeth”. Inevitably, less than a year later, it arrived in Cardiff, albeit with an entirely different cast, so I took the opportunity to experience it again at the Wales Millennium Centre. Famously given what might be termed a “chavvy” styling, the touring version seemed a little less barking mad than the original production – but still enjoyable and action-packed.

Michael Nardone as Macbeth (photo: Brinkhoff-Mogenburg)

Talking of barking madness, I was fortunate to be invited to review a preview performance of a Brexit-themed “Les Misérables” from August 012 at Chapter; drawing parallels between the battle of Waterloo and Britain’s relationship with the rest of the European Union – typical organised chaos from director Mathilde Lopez.

"Les Miserables" (photo: Studio Cano)

European identity was also in the subtext of “Storm 3: Together And Alone” from National Theatre Wales in Newport; Mike Brookes’ adaptation of Simone De Beauvoir’s “The Ethics of Ambiguity”; a bit of a hard slog, but a talented young Welsh cast.

"Storm 3" (National Theatre Wales)

More unambiguously entertaining was “Motown The Musical”, back at the Wales Millennium Centre; using the life-story of Berry Gordy Jr as a hook on which to hang some spectacular performances from that remarkable songbook.

"The Supremes" in "Motown The Musical" (photo: Tristram Kenton)

I also enjoyed the final two performances in the Spring Fringe season at The Other Room: “Camp Be Yourself”, an American summer-camp spoof from Box Theatre Company; and Willy Hudson’s “Bottom”, about the contemporary gay experience.

"Camp Be Yourself" (Box Theatre Company)

And, most recently, courtesy of Dirty Protest Theatre, Siân Owen’s “How To Be Brave”, a heartening one-woman play about being supported through tough times, performed in front of a community audience in the heart of Newport, the city which inspired it.

Laura Dalgleish in "How To Be Brave" (photo: Kirsten McTernan)

Dirty, Gifted and Welsh 2016 / "Meet Fred" / "St. Nicholas" / "Hail Caesar"

I attended the latest “Dirty, Gifted and Welsh” event, a festival of new writing put on by Dirty Protest Theatre Company, in collaboration with National Theatre Wales at Cardiff’s Angel Hotel. There were plenty of scratch performances, but I focussed on the panel sessions: one involving the BBC’s Helen Perry on breaking into radio drama; another in which writers Alan Harris, Kath Chandler and Matt Hartley discussed building relationships with theatre companies and the value of play-writing competitions; and visiting dramatist Bryony Lavery discussing her varied career and writing process. All very thought-provoking. Later on, there was a presentation of nine short plays by writers established and new – there was a wide variation in quality, and some editing would not have gone amiss, but it was enjoyable all in all, and it was good to see familiar TV faces like Keiron Self and Siwan Morris involved. There was also a reading of Mark Williams’ “A New Hope”, a family drama based around the set of a “Star Wars” movie, which sounded promising.

My first reviewing assignment of the week was “Meet Fred” from Hijinx at Chapter – a very clever take on disability, using a foul-mouthed puppet to discuss the issue without mentioning the issue. And then there was the latest from The Other Room – “St. Nicholas”, Conor McPherson’s droll take on theatre criticism and vampirism starring the versatile Christian Patterson.

"Meet Fred"

And then there is the small matter of the latest film from Joel and Ethan Coen. “Hail Caesar” tells the story of a day or so in the busy life of fictionalised Hollywood production executive Eddie Mannix (played by Josh Brolin), whose job it is to clean up the various messes into which his stars get themselves. Set in the early 1950s, at the same studio at which their “Barton Fink” was situated, the plot focusses on the kidnapping of George Clooney’s pompous leading man by a gang of Communist screenwriters; but the unwelcome pregnancy of Scarlett Johanssen’s baby-faced aquatic starlet, and the dubious acting skills of Alden Ehrenreich’s not-quite-as-dumb-as-he-appears singing cowboy (the “Would that it were” scene will always be funny) also figure. Looking magnificent (courtesy of cinematographer Roger Deakins), scripted and assembled with the Coens’ customary meticulousness, and with a wonderful cast (Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton and Channing Tatum are especially impressive), there are moments at which the film looks as though it will turn out to be nothing more than a sequence of witty set-pieces; the plot does knit together cleverly towards the end, however. Consistently amusing, “Hail Caesar” is an only slightly satirical love-letter to classical Hollywood story-telling.

"Real Human Being" / "Parallel Lines"

I’ve had a couple of contrasting but equally intriguing theatrical experiences over the past couple of days.

First up was “Real Human Being”, from Taking Flight Theatre Company which specialises in inclusive theatre. Written by Matthew Bulgo, this is a play intended to raise awareness of disability hate crime. Designed to be presented as part of a day-long programme of workshops etc. in secondary schools, it was but shown in concentrated form to interested parties at Cardiff’s Llanover Hall Arts Centre. Cleverly done and, frankly, quite stressful.

"Parallel Lines" (photo by Kirsten McTernan)

The following evening saw a revival of the award-winning “Parallel Lines” from Dirty Protest at Chapter. I was initially reluctant to review it again, having seen it on its initial run two years ago, but it turns out to have been radically reconceptualised by director Catherine Paskell and writer Katherine Chandler, for a Welsh tour. Centring on an accusation of sexual misconduct made by a bright female pupil against a male teacher, it is more of a lament about adult failings in general than a “torn from the headlines” drama. The new, stripped down aesthetic is bold, with the witty script and powerful performances combining to mitigate the play’s pessimism. 

Y Tŵr / Dirty Protest vs Artes Mundi

I got the rare opportunity to experience some classic Welsh-language theatre this week on behalf of the British Theatre Guide. This was courtesy of Invertigo Theatre Company, and their touring production of Gwenlyn Parry’s “Y Tŵr”. A very interesting piece, partly naturalistic and partly allegorical, with a couple experiencing a lifetime of small-town crises whilst intermittently ascending the titular, symbolic tower. The English translation was projected on a video-screen to the side of the stage at Chapter, for the benefit of non-Welsh-speakers, who seemed to be very much in the minority in a packed auditorium.

And last night there was another Dirty Protest night of rehearsed play-readings, this time at the redeveloped Abacus building near Cardiff Bus station. Playwrights Richard Redman, Tracy Harris, Neil Bebber, Kelly Jones (winner of the 2014 Wales Drama Award), Owen Thomas and Paul Jenkins were tasked with coming up with ten-minute pieces inspired by the exhibits which were up for the Artes Mundi Prize. References to Renzo Martens’ chocolate sculptures cropped up in at least three of the pieces; dysfunctional relationships were a recurring theme, as well as the egotism of the artist. Entertaining and stimulating as ever with a fine cast – Gareth Pierce, Gwawr Loader, Neal McWilliams and Melangell Dolma, plus special guest Sharon Morgan. 

"Last Christmas" / "The Spirit Of Christmas" / "Get On Up"

Finally, a year after its initial production, I managed to catch Matthew Bulgo’s one-person play “Last Christmas”, from Dirty Protest, in Cardiff’s Porter’s Bar. This follows on from a very well-reviewed Edinburgh Fringe run, and precedes a brief Welsh tour and a fortnight at London’s Soho Theatre. Sion Pritchard is Tom, a London-based office-worker and would-be filmmaker, who makes the traumatic trip home to Swansea on Christmas Eve. It boasts a witty script, see-sawing between the acidic and the sentimental, and a fine performance. And it also served as an unofficial preview of what productions might look like when The Other Room, director Kate Wasserberg’s pub theatre venture, opens at that same venue in the New Year.

My most recent reviewing assignment for British Theatre Guide was “The Spirit Of Christmas” in the Weston Studio at the Wales Millennium Centre. This is the now-annual festive offering from inclusive theatre company Hijinx, and their associated community arm, Odyssey. It told the story of a girl’s quest to find out about her grandmother’s roots in Cardiff, but the narrative was of secondary importance; an entertainingly ramshackle, celebratory evening.

I also saw and greatly enjoyed “Get On Up” (full review here), Tate Taylor’s bio-pic of deeply flawed musical genius, James Brown. Its freewheeling structure, courtesy of British screenwriters Jez and John-Henry Butterworth cleverly gives the impression of a rambling, disordered mind, and Chadwick Boseman gives a star-making performance in the lead role. Plaudits must also go to Nelsan Ellis as Bobby Byrd, who provides the soul to Brown’s funk.

"In Time O' Strife" / "Roathbud" etc.

Obviously, the cultural highlight of the past few weeks, and possibly the year, has to be the Johnny Marr gig. But The Cardiff Contemporary art festival (of which my “Inside The Poetry Storehouse” film was a small part), has also been enlivening the city – the excellent John Peel portrait below is part of the co-incident Empty Walls project.

The Made In Roath Festival has been happening, too. I went to the now-annual Roathbud screening at The Globe, which was the usual entertaining mixed bag, including some amusing mini-shorts from comedian Marek Larwood, some likeable no-budget local documentaries, a two-hander starring Boyd Clack and Rhodri Hugh, and a screening of Ryan Andrews’ star-studded “Little Munchkin” (2011). And the allied Cardiff Open exhibition has  been taking place at the former Blockbuster Video store on Albany Road – full of good stuff.

My most recent British Theatre Guide reviewing assignment was National Theatre of Scotland’s revival of Joe Corrie’s miner’s strike drama from the late 1920s “In Time O’ Strife” at Sherman Cymru – enlivened by punk-folk music and angry dancing, but still somewhat downbeat, given the unhappy ending.

I’ve had a go at compiling three recent short plays – including my “Dirty, Gifted and Welsh” piece into a Kindle download. This is the trailer:

“Dirty, Gifted and Welsh” / “Gone Girl”

Due to my on-going facilitator training, I arrived late at “Dirty, Gifted and Welsh”, the day-long writer-centred collaboration between Dirty Protest and National Theatre Wales, held at the Angel Hotel in central Cardiff. I was in time to catch a session on the writing process led by Louise Osborne, a vaguely theatre-oriented pub-style quiz, and an intriguing monologue by Miranda Roszkowski. Things seemed to have quietened down a bit by the time of the evening performances of the Rapid Response plays, one of which, “Effete” was my short comedy about gay marriage. It seemed to go down well, though – plenty of laughs, almost all of them intended. The general impression was of a fulfilling day for all concerned.

I went to see David Fincher’s “Gone Girl”, having read Gillian Flynn’s best-selling novel a few months ago and completely forgotten at least one vitally important plot point; this only served to enhance my enjoyment, however. The screenplay is by Flynn herself, thus the source material’s cynical take on lies and manipulation within relationships remains intact. Ben Affleck, as the man accused of his missing wife’s murder dials down his trademark shiftiness in order to appear genuinely perplexed; and Rosamund Pike is a revelation as the multi-faceted Amy. The film does slightly outstay its welcome once the more sensational elements of the plot have played out, but the performances remain cherishable. 

"Romeo and Juliet", National Theatre Wales, etc

An unusually busy week, which saw me spending a few days up in Bangor, North Wales, as part of my arts facilitator training, observing as National Theatre Wales put together an Assembly, in which a number of poets came up with a performance exploring the democratic process. Highly stimulating (further reading).

Then, back in Cardiff, two plays to review on successive evenings: “Romeo and Juliet”, Rachel O’Riordan’s debut as director at Sherman Cymru; and Lucy Gough’s adaptation of Dylan Thomas’ “Adventures in the Skin Trade” at Chapter; both innovative, and enjoyable for different reasons.

And this weekend, I have a short play entitled “Effete” on as part of “Dirty, Gifted and Welsh”, the joint venture between National Theatre Wales and Dirty Protest at the Angel Hotel in the middle of Cardiff. Should be a lark.

Not to mention the continuing adventures of my “Inside The Poetry Storehouse” film as part of Outcasting’s contribution to Cardiff Contemporary.

Bare Fiction / Wales Blog Awards

I received the news last week that my ever-growing collection of short bootleg films – The Blakeson Mashup – has been nominated in the Best Multimedia category at the 2014 Wales Blog Awards. Very pleasing, obviously, but up against some worthy competition. Frankly, it’s just nice to be noticed.

One of the films featured on the blog is an adaptation of Byron's poem "When We Two Parted", which was in competition at the recent Reversed Poetry Film Competition held in Amsterdam.

In other news, this weekend I received an advance copy of the second edition of the excellent literary magazine Bare Fiction, which includes a piece of mine:– “The Naked Major” (note the subtle Goya reference), a brief two-hander, which was given a reading by Dirty Protest in 2008. Again, one finds oneself in very good company.

"Salt, Root and Roe"

I went to see Tim Price’s “Salt, Root and Roe”, a Clwyd Theatr Cymru production, playing at Sherman Cymru (not as a British Theatre Guide review assignment, because of a conflict of interest – see below). Its star-studded run at the Trafalgar Studios in 2011 was nominated for an Olivier Award; and it’s always good to see a piece by a Welsh playwright getting that rare second production.  

It is the story of two elderly, widowed twins, Anest (Betsan Llwyd) and Iola (Sara Harries-Davies), facing up to mortality on the West Wales coast, with the intervention of Anest’s tightly-wound daughter, Menna (Catrin Aaron), and local policeman Gareth (Brendan Charleson), both of whom, it emerges, have severe problems of their own. Emotionally wrenching, and highly accomplished on all levels. Ruth Hall’s set is minimal and evocative, and Kate Wasserberg’s sensitive direction manages to foreground the humour even as we sail, inevitably, into the darkness. A heart-warming family tragedy; which seems a uniquely Welsh concept.  

 

The conflict of interest mentioned above comes about because the company which Tim Price co-founded, Dirty Protest, are staging a rehearsed reading of a play of mine, “Songs For Swinging Lovers”, as one of the Picnic Plays at Clwyd Theatr Cymru next week. Should be a useful exercise – if I can manage to find the venue.

Dirty Protest vs Artes Mundi

Having previously blogged about visiting the Artes Mundi Prize exhibition, I seized the opportunity to watch a preview performance of a selection of short Dirty Protest plays allied to it, presented at the National Museum. This was a lunchtime show, prior to the full extravaganza (consisting of seven pieces) taking place later that evening at Porter's Bar, a new venue elsewhere in central Cardiff. It was certainly a clever idea to have the three playlets performed in the rooms in which the artworks which inspired them were situated, and it made for a delightful experience. Miriam Bäckström’s gorgeous crystalline tapestry was a suitably epic backdrop for Katherine Chandler's amusingly sexy anti-rom-com; Tom Wentworth's poignant take on hoarding sat equally well within Sheela Gowda's industrial oil-drum-oriented installation; Teresa Margolles’ prize-winning exhibit, inspired by her experience of the Mexican drug wars provided an effectively clammy context for Lotty Talbutt's chilling tale of hired killers.

There are presumably numerous factors, mostly related to the safety of the items on display, which would render the Museum’s habitual use as a venue for site-specific theatre impractical. I'm sure, though, that most writers would leap at the chance to create work based on and performed in the proximity of pieces from its impressive permanent collection.