Carlos Acosta / Spring Fringe / The Beauty Parade / Tylwyth

Well, obviously, coronavirus panic has called a halt to all theatrical activity for the time being (including a rudimentary project I was working on); but at least I managed to see and review some interesting stuff before the shut-down.

Acosta Danza (photo: Johan Persson)

The most high-profile was legendary Cuban ballet dancer Carlos Acosta’s company delivering a beautifully diverse programme entitled “Acosta Danza Evolution” at the Wales Millennium Centre, culminating in Christopher Bruce’s amusing Rolling Stones-soundtracked “Rooster”. Also celebratory, although in a more sombre fashion was Kaite O’Reilly’s “The Beauty Parade”, in the W.M.C.’s Weston Studio - an aesthetically ambitious, multi-media tribute to female undercover operatives during World War 2.

 

Sophie Stone in "The Beauty Parade" (photo: Jorge Lizalde)

I also caught two shows in the now-truncated Spring Fringe season at The Other Room: the likeably ramshackle “Back To Berlin”, about the beginning of the end of the Cold War; and Katie Greenall’s “Fatty Fat Fat”, a brave but funny look at body image. There was, in addition, a trip to Newport’s Riverfront to see Operasonic’s enchanting “Vehicles”, a small-scale opera for young people, with a science-fiction twist.

 

"Back To Berlin" (photo: Dali Mia Poulsom)

The big hit of the year, however, was shaping up to be “Tylwyth” at the Sherman, Daf James follow-up to “Llwyth”, his pioneering look at the lives of gay men within a Welsh-speaking environment. I was delighted to note that a familiarity with the first play was unnecessary, and while I didn’t get all of the cultural references, sur-titles meant that most of the wit and darkness came across. Sadly, however, like most cultural life in the U.K. and beyond, the Welsh tour has been postponed.

 

"Tylwyth"

"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?

Festive Theatre Round-Up

Through accident or design, the big Christmas show at the Wales Millennium Centre this year is the touring version of West End/Broadway blockbuster “Les Misérables”, which sets the appropriate tone for the festive period. Actually, I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to – the barricade was especially imposing.

"Les Mis" (photo: Helen Maybanks)

A few weeks ago, the season kicked off there with the touring production of “Nativity! The Musical”, Debbie Isitt’s adaptation of her successful film, which was very amusing. The actual Christmas show in the venue’s Weston Studio  is “Red” from Likely Story Theatre – an imaginative, freewheeling, small-scale tale set in the Red Riding Hood universe. The festive show on the Sherman’s main stage  is “The Snow Queen” – as clever and entertaining as is traditional, but it could have done with more magical appearances from the title character.

"The Snow Queen" (photo: Mark Douet)

"Red" (Photo Polly Thomas)

In a non-festive vein, National Theatre Wales collaborated with inclusive theatre company Hijinx for eco-sci-fi extravaganza “Mission Control” at the Principality Stadium: impressive in terms of vision, less so when it came to organisation.

"Mission Control" (photo: Main House)

Last week I attended the latest BBC Writers Room Wales Festival, held at the National Museum. As usual, Russell T Davies was a funny and inspirational speaker; and the evening event involving Rob Brydon and Ruth Jones, and focussing on “Gavin And Stacey” was a joy.

"On Your Feet" / "Hedda Gabler" / "I Wish I Was A Mountain"

As always, my theatre reviewing “career” has thrown up some fascinating juxtapositions. The day after the touring version of “On Your Feet”, the highly accomplished jukebox musical based on the career of the Miami Sound Machine (who were founded, I hadn’t realised, on the songwriting prowess of lead singer Gloria Estefan), at the Wales MillenniumCentre, I saw the Sherman’s production of Ibsen’s epoch-making “Hedda Gabler”, featuring some slightly odd directorial touches, but also some brilliant performances, especially from the women.

 

Heledd Gwynn as Hedda Gabler (Photo: Mark Douet)

A week or so later came Toby Thompson’s “I Wish I Was A Mountain” at the Centre’s Weston Studio – a show for children with an unusually philosophical bent based, as it is, on a story by Herman Hesse; its several pleasing aspects included the jazz-inflected score.

Toby Thompson (Photo: Jack Offord)

"Gods & Kings" / "The Story" / "Grease" / "The Invisible Woman" / Roathbud

Another startlingly diverse couple of weeks of theatre reviewing. Starting in Newport with the mental health themed monologue “Gods & Kings”, cleverly staged as a duet between actor Robert Bowman and sign-language interpreter Sami Thorpe; then came Tess Berry-Hart’s clever and pointed political allegory “The Story” at The Other Room, the latest in their Violence Series. In stark contrast was a large-scale touring production of 1950s-set, 1970s-written “Grease” at the Wales Millennium Centre, beautifully performed by a largely youthful cast, if not entirely coherent plot-wise; and, in the same building, “The Invisible Woman”, a lively piece about a disregarded middle-aged woman which kicked off their Performances For The Curious season.

Hannah McPake and Siwan Morris in "The Story" (Photo: Kirsten McTernan)

There’s no Made In Roath arts festival this year, but there was a Roathbud film event last night, at which my Delia Derbyshire / John Peel film had its first public screening, along with several other intriguing pieces.

"Once Upon A Time In... Hollywood" / "Annie" / "Club Tropicana"

Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon A Time In… Hollywood” is a meticulously assembled love letter to a vintage Hollywood on the brink of change in the late 1960s. It tells the tale of a few days in the real and professional lives of an almost-washed-up action star, Rick Dalton – brilliantly played by Leo DiCaprio - and Cliff Booth, his even more obsolescent stuntman (Brad Pitt), whose lives intersect (eventually) with those of fresh-faced, optimistic Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie), and the sinister faux-hippies of Manson family. It is leisurely, almost meditative in tone, at least until the violent, history-rewriting climax. Beautifully done.

Most local theatre-makers appear to have disappeared off to Edinburgh; thus, the only work I’ve got to see in recent weeks are large-scale touring musicals at the Wales Millennium Centre. Most recently was the 1930s-set Broadway classic “Annie”,  which I found quite cheering; a little less so was 1980’s pop-fest “Club Tropicana” – a somewhat more cynical confection.

Craig Revel Horwood in "Annie" (photo: Paul Coltas)

"Kinky Boots" / "Grit"

Still running, as I write, at the Wales Millennium Centre is “Kinky Boots”, the Broadway/West End hit stopping off as part of an extensive U.K tour. This tale of a struggling Northampton shoe-making factory which saves itself by starting to cater to the drag queen market features a dazzling central performance from Kayi Ushe as Lola (aka Simon), and a mercifully non-musical-theatre-esque song score by Cyndi Lauper. And without getting bogged down in debate, Harvey Fierstein’s script provokes discussion about the nature of masculinity.

Kayi Ushe in "Kinky Boots" (Photo: Helen Maybanks)

The night after seeing this, I went to a preview of a show at the opposite end of the spectrum in terms of scale – a one-man play on a post-apocalyptic theme, which is being taken to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe by the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. “Grit”, written and performed by Benjamin McCann, is a highly accomplished production – it will be interesting to see how the Edinburgh run goes.

"Calendar Girls" / "Crave" / David Nash etc

The latest big touring show that I’ve been able to see at the Wales Millennium Centre was the musical adaptation of nude-posing-housewives comedy-drama “Calendar Girls” featuring a starry cast and not-quite-stellar tunes from Take That’s Gary Barlow. Suitably amusing and moving, it went down very well with the overwhelmingly female audience.

Also on were two largely devised pieces: “Shooting Rabbits” from Powderhouse at the Sherman was a vaguely hallucinogenic depiction of the experience of Welshmen volunteering to fight in the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s, featuring an excellent live score from Sam Humphreys; and “When It Clicks”, from graduate company Golden Sock in the basement of Little Man Coffee Company – a well-acted but dramatically unsatisfying take on Stockholm Syndrome.

The undoubted highlight of the week was Sarah Kane’s “Crave”, produced under the Professional Pathways scheme at The Other Room, and featuring a talented cast of drama students. The play has no real narrative, and it’s a deeply pessimistic insight into its unhappy author’s frame of mind, but it’s a powerfully cathartic experience, akin to listening to a suite of sad songs (R.I.P. Scott Walker).

"Crave" Poster

And only today, I went to the recently opened and impressively extensive exhibition of largely tree-based sculptures by legendary North Wales-based artist David Nash at the National Museum of Wales. A beautiful evocation of the possibilities which open up when Man develops a creative rather than destructive relationship with the natural world. And it even has a wholesome odour about it.

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.

"Duckie" / Theatrical Highlights of 2018

My last theatrical experience of 2018 was “Duckie” at the Wales Millennium Stadium’s Weston Studio; a charming children’s show by Le Gateau Chocolat, the well-known cross-dressing Anglo-Nigerian baritone. It is a take on “The Ugly Duckling” which it is easy to imagine contained autobiographical elements, since the themes were outsider-dom, and making the most of one’s talents and awkward differences.

 

Le Gateau Chocolat (photo: Manuel Vason)

I wrote up my personal highlights of the year as part of the annual, UK-wide review from the British Theatre Guide; I sincerely hope that 2019 will see some of my own projects coming to fruition.

"The Last Five Years" / "Saturday Night Fever" / "Cheer" / "Frankenstein"

The big cultural news at the moment, locally, is the cancellation, through a bizarre set of circumstances, of the Wales Theatre Awards, about which it would be unwise to pontificate in public. This, added to continuing criticism of National Theatre Wales (I was lucky enough to be one of a group of writers who met with the Arts Council of Wales to discuss this very issue a few weeks ago), seems to paint a picture of a toxic atmosphere. There does seem, however, to be a great deal of solidarity amongst artists, which can only be a good sign in terms of future developments.

In terms of actual theatre-going, I’ve seen two musicals set in New York at the Wales Millennium Centre in the past few weeks: firstly, Leeway Productions’ bold reinvention of Jason Robert Brown’s off-Broadway doomed-relationship drama “The Last Five Years” as a piece inclusive of deaf performers (and audiences), exploiting the theme of mis-communication; and a lavish touring version of “Saturday Night Fever”, with all the grit of the original film, but the Bee Gees music intact.

"Saturday Night Fever" (photo: Pamela Raith)

My first festive show of the season was “Cheer”, from Big Loop at The Other Room – a clever, Orwellian take on Christmas. Then came Cascade Dance Theatre’s “Frankenstein” at Chapter – an exploration of the themes of Mary Shelley’s original, boasting some startling imagery and an excellent, largely electronic score played live.

"Cheers" (photo: Tess Seymour)

October 2018 etc

Again, much theatre-going in the past few weeks – largely themed around female talent, as it happened. There was Alan Harris’ “This Incredible Life” at Chapter, starring Welsh legend Sharon Morgan as a feisty former journalist afflicted by dementia; two touring productions at The Other Room – Isley Lynn’s startlingly frank, vaginismus-oriented “Skin A Cat”, and “Lands”, from Antler Theatre, a friendship-themed comedy-drama with a clever trampoline motif; “Street” and “Izzy’s Manifestos” a double-bill of monologues by Susan Monkton and Kevin Jones at A.J.’s Coffee House; and, on a somewhat more epic scale, the all-female version Nigel Williams’ adaptation of William Golding’s “Lord Of The Flies” at the Sherman.

"Lord Of The Flies" (photo: Sam Taylor)

Added to this, there was Alun Saunders’ “Tuck”, a musical drama about mental health issues amongst the drag-queen community, which kicked off the latest Performances For The Curious season at the Wales Millennium Centre; plus, again at the The Other Room another Kevin Jones play, the darkly nostalgic (well, 1990s) “Cardiff Boy”, which is turning out to be one of the most-praised productions of the year. Then there was National Dance Company Wales’ “Roots” at the W.M.C.’s Dance House – three short pieces intended to provide a painless introduction to contemporary ballet.

"Cardiff Boy" (photo: Kirsten McTernan)

The biennial Artes Mundi Prize has returned to the National Museum of Wales. This time round, it comprises two video installations (Bouchra Khalili’s take on Jean Genet’s supportive visit to see the Black Panthers in 1970; a fairly static piece by Apichatpong Weerasethakul; two 3D installations (Anna Boghiguian’s reflections on the steel industry; a tapestry twinned with a circular metal construction from Otobong Nkanga), and what I found the most immediately appealing exhibit – Trevor Paglen’s photography which finds ironic beauty in defence/aerospace technology.

The Made in Roath Festival was also taking place – I was lucky enough to be part of a well-attended Roathbud screening of short films, with “The Good Girl”.

"The Good Girl" by Lucy Logsdon from OTHNIEL SMITH on Vimeo.

There have also been a couple of visits to the cinema. I was impressed and moved by the latest remake of “A Star Is Born”, Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut (he also co-wrote the screenplay and some of the songs, and stars, of course). The style is quite cine-verité, and he and Lady Gaga are both highly convincing as Jackson, the alcoholic country-rock star on the skids, and Ally, the struggling, insecure club singer with whom he hooks up. There are some excellent supporting turns, especially from Sam Elliot as Jackson’s much older half-brother. The musical performances are believable as well, with Jackson’s rootsy “authenticity” cleverly contrasted with Ally’s shift from earnestness into choreographed commercial pop. Inevitably, there are few surprises in terms of narrative, but it still hits home, emotionally.

I also went to see Steve McQueen’s “Widows”, his adaptation of the 1980s’ TV series which I never saw) about the wives of slain robbers carrying out a heist. Stylishly done, if a little slow to begin with, with a script which deftly (but unsubtly) links organised crime with urban power politics. Some excellent performances, too, led by powerhouse Viola Davis, but with Elizabeth Debicki luminous as an abused woman finally finding herself, and Daniel Kaluuya as an extremely unpleasant bad guy.

"And Suddenly I Disappear" / "35 Times" / "The Awkward Years" / "Vincent River" / "Let's Talk About Death, Baby" / "La Traviata" / NTW Letter

Another amusing month of theatre-reviewing, starting with Kaite O’Reilly’s “And Suddenly I Disappear” at Chapter, a multimedia disquisition on attitudes towards disability, taking in both the U.K and Singapore; a trip to Newport to see the touring revival of Mercury Theatre Wales’ “35 Times”, taking on marital abuse; Matthew Bulgo’s “The Awkward Years” at The Other Room, featuring an excellent solo performance from Lauren O’Leary as a young woman on the verge of self-destruction; the unfamiliar location of Jacobs Antiques Market to catch Philip Ridley’s surprisingly conventional tale of homophobic violence, “Vincent River”; back to Chapter for “Dick Johns – Let’s Talk About Death, Baby”, the sort-of sequel to his “What Mid-Life Crisis” show from 2016; and most spectacularly, the Welsh National Opera’s re-staging of their first ever show at the Wales Millennium Centre, Verdi’s “La Traviata” – a rare chance to see a popular classical opera in a period setting.

"The Awkward Years" (photo: Kirsten McTernan)

Added to this, I was one of the signatories of an open letter to National Theatre Wales, questioning their work-rate and artistic policies, which turned out to be somewhat newsworthy, and may actually have some impact, hopefully positive.

My Eisteddfod Diary

I managed to pay my first ever visits to a National Eisteddfod this week – being held in Cardiff for the first time since 2008. Unprecedentedly, since this celebration of Welsh language and culture has been taking place at Mermaid Quay in the Bay, there’s no charge to get onto the site itself, and take in the stands, stalls and tents (some cultural, some commercial); although the big events, of course (gigs, contests, plays etc), charge admission.

One of these was Hwn yw fy Mrawd (“This is my Brother”) – a tribute to the legendary African-American singer Paul Robeson, at the Wales Millennium Centre, from the almost as legendary Sir Bryn Terfel, which I had the chance to review. A history lesson/musical, outlining Robeson’s personal and political struggles and his links with Wales (including an appearance at the Eisteddfod in Ebbw Vale exactly 60 years ago), there was probably not enough of either Terfel or Robeson on offer for it to be entirely satisfying, but there were many other talented people involved.

Later in the week, I went back to check out some visual art. Firstly there was the display by the Contemporary Arts Society of Wales, in the Pierhead Building, of some historic works by the likes of Ceri Richards and Siani Rhys James. Then I braved the lengthy security queue at the Senedd (the Welsh Assembly Building) to experience the exhibition of new pieces selected for the Eisteddfod; some beautiful stuff, with some striking sculpture, photography and video, but I felt most drawn to the paintings – hazy portraits by Casper White, and James Moore’s work, redolent of surreal film stills.

"Eczema" / Edinburgh

My most recent theatre reviewing experience provided my first opportunity to experience the acoustics at the B.B.C.’s Hoddinott Hall at the Wales Millennium Centre. This was “Eczema!” –  part of National Theatre Wales season celebrating 70 years of the National Health Service, and a rare Cardiff appearance by the company. A clever collaboration between writer Maria Fusco and composer John Harris, performed by popular actor Rhodri Meilir.

Rhodri Meilir (Photo: National Theatre Wales)

As ever, I won’t be going to the Edinburgh Festival, but at least I’ve managed to see Cardiff productions of a few shows from Wales which will be running on the Fringe, namely “The Flop”, “Tremor” and “Lovecraft”. I will be monitoring reviews with great interest.

"War Horse" / Theatre Uncut

The National Theatre’s 10^th anniversary tour of their massively successful adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s World War 1 novel “War Horse” has just arrived for a month-long residency at the Wales Millennium Centre, and I was glad to get to review it. Not entirely flawless, narrative-wise, but it is a technical marvel – and, of course, the horse puppetry is every bit as remarkable as advertised.

"War Horse" (pic: Wales Millennium Centre)

Every year, London company Theatre Uncut commissions a number of short, politically-oriented plays to be put on, worldwide, rights-free, as part of fundraising and consciousness-raising events. The 2018 batch, entitled “Power Plays”, are all written by women, and were performed for two nights at The Other Room in Cardiff. I went along purely out of curiosity, but the experience prompted me to suggest a short piece for the Wales Arts Review, which, fortunately, they saw fit to publish.

Elvis Costello / "Macbeth" / "Good Time Girl" / "The Wolf Tattoo"

I was delighted to get a late call to review the gig by Elvis Costello and the Imposters, which was the final show of the Festival of Voice at the Wales Millennium Centre, having been a fan for many years, but unable to afford a ticket. In the event, the show was a triumph – both epic and intimate, with Elvis on excellent form, and well aware of the esteem in which he is held. A rousing and emotional start to my birthday week.

This culminated in a trip to London to catch the final matinee performance of “Macbeth” at the National Theatre, on a Travelex deal. Due to bus troubles, I only made it to the South Bank with half an hour to spare, but managed to relax in time to take in Rufus Norris’ spectacle, featuring powerful performances from Rory Kinnear and Anne-Marie Duff. The tone was frenzied, and the look grimy, but the universality of the narrative shone through, and the large, diverse cast delivered the poetry with naturalistic potency.

Other theatrical experiences of the past few weeks were Georgia Coles-Riley’s “Good Time Girl”, part of the Cardiff Fringe Theatre Festival, a very involving one-woman play themed around Body Dysmorphic Disorder; and Lucy Gough’s “The Wolf Tattoo” from Company of Sirens at Chapter, a surreal and intriguing piece using lycanthropy myths to explore the journey into responsible adulthood.

The Wolf Tattoo (pic: J. H. Andersen)

"Lovecraft" / "Five Green Bottles"

It’s a busy couple of weeks in Cardiff, for those interested in performance. The biennial Festival of Voice, produced by the Wales Millennium Centre is attracting stars of the magnitude of Elvis Costello, Patti Smith and Laura Marling, but there’s also a lot going on in terms of smaller scale, theatrical events. Thus I went to see “Lovecraft (Not The Sex Shop In Cardiff)”, a poppy musical take on the science of relationships written and performed by Carys Eleri. Great fun, and, one would hope, sure to attract attention when it plays in Edinburgh, come Festival time.

"Lovecraft"

Then, as well as the brilliant Young Artists’ Festival at The Other Room (to which I paid a highly enjoyable visit as a punter this year, having participated as a director last year), there is the Cardiff Fringe Theatre Festival, in which a lot of small companies take over non-traditional venues. So, it was downstairs at the Little Man Coffee bar that I saw “Five Green Bottles”, a new play which started out as a dark take on the 1960s sexual revolution and got still darker; it’s a piece which certainly deserves to be seen again.

"Solo" / "Mydidae" / "Peacekeeping"

Recent reviewing assignments included a double-bill of new short operas in the Ffresh Restaurant at the Wales Millennium Centre, “Peacekeeping” / “The Filmmaker And The Organ Trader”, which made up in musical inventiveness for what they lacked in narrative subtlety. Rather more involving was “Mydidae”, Jack Thorne’s intense drama about a troubled relationship, set entirely in a bathroom, presented by OtherLife, a company working out of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, at The Other Room – traumatic and compelling.

 

"Mydidae" (photo: Jack Willingham)

Being only a lukewarm follower of the “Star Wars” franchise, I went to see “Solo – A Star Wars Story” as a fan of sci-fi cinema generally. It’s the relatively straightforward tale of how Alden Ehrenreich’s young Han Solo develops from low-level thief to a slightly-higher-grade space pirate, picking up a surname, a furry friend, and some romantic cynicism along the way. Director Ron Howard (who replaced the “Lego Movie” team of Lord and Miller) reliably provides high-tech action and humour, and the story benefits from the absence of the mysticism and mythology of the series proper, although the shadow of The Empire is ever-present. As ever, the inevitable shoot-em-up sequences test the attention-span; but the film as a whole is more than entertaining enough.

"Ghost Stories" / "Sirens" / "Tremor"

I didn’t get to see the acclaimed stage production of Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman’s “Ghost Stories”, but reports were that it combined elements of their excellent other work (“The League Of Gentlemen”, Derren Brown) to satisfyingly chilling effect. The film adaptation is perhaps less successful, since the kind of scares which are thrillingly rare on-stage are commonplace in the cinema. The plot sees Nyman’s professional debunker of psychic phenomena challenged to investigate three inexplicable spooky events, giving it a “Dead Of Night”-style portmanteau structure. The acting (Nyman, Marin Freeman, Paul Whitehouse, Alex Lawther) is impeccable, and the visuals are highly atmospheric; but the whole thing is rather slow, and the thinness of the individual plot-lines sets us up for a denouement which is somewhat predictable. Still, it’s more than scary enough to deter night-time viewings.

I attended “Sirens”, one of the events in the Performances For The Curious season at the Wales Millennium Centre. This was a presentation, by Leeway Productions, of new songs developed with participants in their “10-Minute Musicals” scheme, as well as through a recent song-writing workshop with Amy Wadge. Working with a broadly female-positive theme, the songwriters, most of whom also performed, were a varied bunch (e.g. actor Huw Blainey, hip-hop performance poet Rufus Mufasa, 14 year-old Myah Freeman, Elis Walker from the band Mellt), the material ranging from the heartfelt to the humorous; an entertaining and heartening 90 minutes or so.

 

"Tremor" (photo: Mark Douet)

My latest theatre reviewing assignment was Brad Birch’s “Tremor” at the Sherman – about a former couple interrogating the implications of a traumatic incident in their shared past. Well performed, but perhaps not entirely successful in its attempts to drag contemporary politics into a relationship drama.