Theatre Review: Mother Goose, Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh

★★★★★

Fully embracing the tried and trusted panto formula – the knowing recycling of a classic fairytale with a familiar riff on tried and tested jokes giving them momentum – Brunton Theatre may not be reinventing the wheel in 2010 with its staging of Mother Goose, but when something works this well, why change it?

A distinctly Scottish flavour is added to the Mother Goose story, as Prince Jack (Gerry Kielty) looks to revive his crumbling castle with the proceeds made from selling a golden egg. A spanner is thrown into the works when the evil Vainglorious (Edward Cory) decides he wants to marry the bonniest lass in Musselburgh, Jill (Julie Heatherill), resulting in various mishaps and kidnappings involving Jill and the egg.

Helping (or is that hindering?) Jack are Mother Goose aka Gertie Ga Ga (Craig Glover, back for a second year as Dame) and her jester, Muddles (Aaron Usher), as romance blossoms and evil threatens the land.

One-liners, convoluted plot summaries and ludicrous set pieces are the name of the day here, the whole endeavour hanging together thanks to the sheer enthusiasm of the performers and an audience willing them on.

The central pairing of Glover and Usher is the heart of the show, Usher revelling in the corny jokes and banter with the crowd. Now in his tenth Brunton panto, there can’t be a permutation on the role of “daft laddie” that Usher hasn’t covered, yet he’s still fresh as ever, no doubt egged on by Glover’s gloriously OTT performance and even more OTT costumes.

Throw in songs spanning the last five decades, a few nods to reality TV and Doctor Who (even the recent Doctor Who Proms are referenced, proving nothing is too obscure) and more than a few mentions of Musselburgh itself, and this is a show with something for grannies, grandchildren and most family members in between.

The rather abrupt wrapping up of plot threads and hasty ending aside, this is yet another triumph for the Brunton and a reminder that it’s worth braving the snow and ice when the entertainment is as much fun as Mother Goose.

Mother Goose runs until 31 December, details on the Brunton Theatre website.

Theatre Review: Jack and the Beanstalk, King’s Theatre, Edinburgh

★★★★★

As the year draws to a close, and I look back on the last few months of blog posts and realise I’ve spent far too little time at the theatre recently, it’s good to know that a bit of fun has been injected back into Edinburgh with the arrival of panto season.

Last week I went along to Edinburgh’s King’s Theatre to see the new Allan Stewart/Grant Stott production of Jack and the Beanstalk, this time with an added dash of Andy Gray, who returns to the city after three years in Glasgow panto.

Making a stunning entrance as Dame May McTrot, Stewart drops effortlessly back into the role of panto matriarch. It’s one he’s honed to perfection over the years, the actor a safe pair of hands in a production which tries to get bigger and flashier every year but which really just needs a bloke in a dress to work.

Andy Gray is also on fine form as King Crumble, sizing up to Stewart on more than one occasion as the pair try to outdo each other in the fluffed and forgotten lines stakes. It’s hard to know where the ad-libs and improvisation start and end, both of them falling in and out of character as they wait for their next line, but it all adds to the entertainment.

Grant Stott is also on good form as the evil Fleshcreep, doing the work of the evil giant (a semi-successful animatronic prop which dominates the stage for an over loud and overlong period of time), but it’s easy to lost track of quite why the giant is being so evil. There’s some fluff about unpaid taxes requiring the kidnap of Crumble’s daughter, Princes Apricot (Jo Freer), but none of it makes too much sense in all the rush.

Freer makes for a perky princess, most of her scenes taking place opposite romantic lead Andrew Scott-Ramsay, who does well with the pretty thankless role of Jack McTrot. Scott-Ramsay replaces Johnny Mac this year in the role of Stewart’s son, with the 2010 version a more serious portrayal. The part of the bumbling oaf is instead given to Gray, leaving Scott-Ramsay with the occasional one-liner.

References to reality TV and shiny floor shows abound, and if you don’t know your Wagner from your Gillian McKeith you’ll be slightly left in the cold. The appearance of Gray as one half of Stavros Flatley (Britain’s Got Talent) does redeem this situation somewhat, a sketch which proved to be one of the highlights of the evening.

Throw in a few song and dance routines and a bit of business with audience members, plus obligatory references to the Edinburgh trams, and this is a tremendous evening’s entertainment which won’t disappoint.

Jack and the Beanstalk runs until Sunday 23 January 2011. Visit the King’s Theatre website for more information.

Theatre Review: Sunshine on Leith, 12 October 2010, Edinburgh Festival Theatre

★★★★★

In the midst of TV schedules filled with broadcasters’ attempts at spoon-feeding viewers with Z-list celebrity reality shows, while supermarket shelves buckle under the weight of countless Jennifer Aniston DVDs, it’s easy to dismiss populist entertainment as a Very Bad Thing, a wasteland where “entertainers” are only as good as their current marketing mix.

One place where populist isn’t a four letter word is in musical theatre, the demand for larger-than-life spectacle as strong as ever. This was evidenced last night by the large crowd who turned up at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre to see the latest Dundee Rep production of Sunshine on Leith, the musical based on the songs of The Proclaimers, as it rolled into town.

Within seconds of the curtain going up we’re introduced to Davy (Billy Boyd) and Ally (Michael Moreland), two soldiers fresh out of the army and back on the streets of Edinburgh (sorry, Leith) as they look to rebuild their lives.

Safe in the bosom of their families, the lads are soon fully paid up members of the rat race, women, jobs and football replacing the harsh realities of the desert. As the pair try to follow the path their parents took, looking to settle down and raise families, it becomes clear that even thirty years of marriage isn’t without its traumas.

Writer Stephen Greenhorn may pepper his heavily-colloquialised dialogue with such hits as I’m On My Way (as Davy and Ally make their way down an alternate universe Leith Walk, one inhabited by dancing grannies and drunks hanging out of wheelie bins (actually, that last bit might well be fact)) and Life With You (as various men explain how they want to spend their lives with their women), but this highly literal odyssey manages to avoid tying itself up in knots just to get to the next well-staged dance routine.

Theatre Review: What We Know, 19 February, Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Grant Gillies reviews the Traverse theatre’s latest production.

4 out of 5 stars

The Traverse continue to push at the boundaries of cutting edge theatre with their latest fulfilling offering, What We Know, written and directed by Pamela Carter.

The play is split into three distinct parts: Life before death; the ensuing chaos that surrounds the removal of a loved one; and the return to integration as normality falls as fragile as snow.

On entering the theatre, the picture portrayed is one of blissful interaction, smells and dialogue blending together in a natural flow.  Normality and mundane tasks such as preparing a meal accentuate the love between the two characters of Lucy (Kate Dickie) and Jo (Paul Thomas Hickey).

The writing perfectly captured the strength of love between the two, right up until Jo was quickly removed from the scene, when everything changed. One minute he was there and the next he was gone. Normal to abnormal. Life to death.

In the midst of this grey storm of confusion, as Lucy struggles to come to terms with Jo simply disappearing from her life, the arrival of a young stranger, played by Lorn McDonald, was unexpected and slightly absurd. It worked, just.

Theatre Review: Spymonkey’s Moby Dick, 10 February, Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

4 out of 5 stars

Shamelessly swiping elements of amateur Christmas pantomime, silent slapstick sketches and those Morcambe and Wise plays which always ended in disaster, Spymonkey add enough of their own exuberance to the Moby Dick legend to ensure it feels as fresh as a sea breeze.

Introduced as being a production of the Compagnie Toby Parks, a motley crew of actors seemingly culled from the offcuts of regional rep companies, this version of Herman Melville’s (no relation) novel is one for our recession hit times.

Parks, a luvvie of the highest order, is intent on giving his audience the best show possible, even if it means the ship much of the play is set on and around is a slightly rickety effort.

Narrated by Ishmael (Aitor Basauri) in a strong Spanish accent (he’s difficult to understand so that the audience will pay attention more), we’re then introduced to the cast of four: Toby Park, Petra Massey and Stephan Kreiss.

Continuing the low budget theme, pub signs double as table tops, a metal pole becomes a mast and the quartet of actors don various iffy costumes to portray a number of characters.

Theatre Review: Promises, Promises, 3 February, Tron Theatre, Glasgow

4 out of 5 Stars

Impeccable choreography and a note-perfect performance from actress Joanna Tope help grip the audience throughout a 90-minute monologue in Douglas Maxwell’s new play.

Teacher Maggie Brodie (Tope) has seen and done it all, her 35 years in the classroom the only constant in a life full of learning about what it means to be a woman first and educator second.

Although effectively retired from the classroom, Maggie’s close proximity to a local school means that when a teacher goes off sick it’s her the headteacher decides to come running to for help, even if he is aware of a couple of “situations” from her past.

As Maggie settles into her new routine, she’s introduced to Rosie, a six-year-old Somalian girl who won’t speak but whom the older woman feels a connection to. As religion enters the classroom and Maggie reflects on how she arrived here, the past appears to catch up with her in more ways than one.

Set against the backdrop of her primary school classroom, slats in the back wall rotating at various points to depict a cloakroom or toilets, Promises, Promises is a play of many strands, all converging on the ageing, proud and stately figure of Miss Brodie, now slightly past her prime.

Theatre Review: The Price, until 13 February, Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

Image by Tim Morozzo

*****

Continuing their run of Arthur Miller plays (this is the fourth in five years), Edinburgh’s Royal Lyceum brings director John Dove’s latest adaptation to the stage in the shape of The Price, 1968′s investigation of family and society in early 20th century America.

Returning to his late fathers soon-to-be-demolished apartment to sell what remains of his furniture collection, police sergeant Victor Franz (Greg Powrie) discusses his upcoming retirement with wife Esther (Sally Edwards) as antique dealer Solomon (James Hayes) arrives.

As Victor and Solomon work on a deal for the complete collection, Victor’s older brother Walter (Aden Gillett) turns up, prompting memories of the past to resurface in both brothers as the spectre of their father hangs over them.

As with many Miller scripts, family, loyalty and memory are crucial elements of The Price. From the opening moments, as Victor stalks the room where he and his father spent so much time eking out a living after the 1929 Wall Street Crash, we’re can see the past colliding with the present.

The furniture piled high around the set and the music on the gramophone reinforces Victor’s memories of his youth, the arrival of Walter and his remembrance of the past yet another blow to Victor’s somewhat fragile grasp on his own recollections.

Theatre Review: Peter Pan, until 3 January, Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

Opening in a highly stylised version of the bedroom of Darling children Wendy, Michael and John, their oversized bed taking up most of the available space as they prepare to drift off to sleep, the Lyceum’s latest Christmas production appears to be standard Victorian-era fayre, at least until a certain young boy flies through the window.

The appearance of Peter Pan (Scott Fletcher) and Tinker Bell (Samuel Dutton), the latter clad in a tutu and flight helmet, leads to the start of an adventure which will take the pair and their new friends away from their parents – Irene MacDougall and Stuart Bowman – and off to the distant Never Land.

As the band of travellers set up home in Peter’s underground lair, Wendy (Kim Gerard) becoming “mother” to a group of Lost Boys along the way, there’s danger in the shape of the nefarious Captain Hook (Bowman again, seemingly channelling the late, great Iain Cuthbertson in his performance) and his crew of pirates, a man desperate to end Peter’s fun once and for all.

Taking centre stage for most of the production are Fletcher and Lyceum-regular Gerard, the pair hitting their stride early on as Wendy attempts to sew Peter’s shadow back on.

Theatre Review: Robinson Crusoe and the Caribbean Pirates, until Sunday 17 January 2010, King’s Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

They’re back: Allan Stewart and Grant Stott return to the stage of Edinburgh’s King’s Theatre for their annual barrage of topical jokes, cross-dressing and audience interaction wrapped up under the banner of Robinson Crusoe and the Caribbean Pirates.

The plot, what little there is, revolves around the search for buried treasure on the faraway Mango Island, Mrs Crusoe (Stewart) and her son Robinson (Johnny Mac) forced to leave the safety of Edinburgh while being chased by the evil Donald “Blackheart” McTrump.

Along the way they’re helped by the Mermaid Mrs McTrump (Jo Freer), The Captain (Charlie Cairoli) and Girl Friday (Moyo Omoniyi) as McTrump gets ever nearer.

The sheer variety of gags and one-liners on offer here means there’s little chance that anyone will be left wanting, the odd song and dance routine from the likes of Beyonce, Susan Brown and Alesha Dixon (or a close approximation from Allan Stewart in drag) helping to keep things bouncing along for most of the show.

Theatre Review: Corstorphine Road Nativity,until 13 December, Festival Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

With many pantomimes happy to recycle well-known characters and situations, giving them a local twist and references, it’s a canny move on the part of Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre to adapt a successful ITV programme for a local audience in the shape of Corstorphine Road Nativity, a well known area of the city.

Originally based in the generic (and decidedly English) Flint Street, the play opens in Corstorphine Road Primary School as a class of schoolchildren prepare to perform the Christmas Nativity in front of their assembled parents.

Soon, backstabbing, jealousy and love triangles rear the heads as the kids try to remember their lines and navigate the scenery, all the while directed by the unseen Miss Mochrie and watched by their families.

What makes this particular production different is that all the children are played by adults, with Robin Hood’s Gordon Kennedy taking on the role of narrator, Ballamory’s Juliet Wilson Nimmo appearing as Mary and Scottish stage regulars Jimmy Chisholm and Steven McNicoll trying to out-act everyone as Innkeepers.

Set against the backdrop of an oversized classroom, Tim Firth’s script has been given a Scottish makeover with references to the ongoing Tramworks (it now seems to be law to mention  Trams in any Edinburgh play) thrown in for good measure alongside the local accents.

Theatre Review: Sinbad and the Little Mermaid, Until 2 January, Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh

Gavin Paul as Sinbad and Julie Heatherhill as Coral

*****

A word of warning to anyone heading to the Brunton Theatre for a performance of Sinbad and the Little Mermaid and expecting a relaxing time: you’ll get more calm and tranquillity in the centre of the M8 during rush-hour than you will during this energetic production.

Taking place in some parallel universe version of Musselburgh, Swishee Swashee (Arron Usher), his brother Sinbad (Gavin Paul) and mother Saucy Nancy (Craig Glover) live together on the good ship Bobbin’ Tide, seemingly unphased by the crowds of children and adults watching them from the stalls each evening.

Nearby, underneath local landmark the Bass Rock, is the lost city of Atlantis, where the evil Crabsclaw (Isabella Jarrett) is searching for the Pearl of Beauty which will restore her looks and make her the fairest of them all once again.

Swimming to safety, young mermaid Coral (Julie Heatherill) encounters Sinbad, enlisting his help to defeat Crabsclaw by going in search of Neptune’s Trident.

Theatre Review: The House of Bernarda Alba, 3 November, King’s Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

Blood, high-heels and heartache form the basis of Rona Munro’s new adaptation of Federico Garcia Lorca’s 1945 play, sun-baked rural Spain swapped for rain-sodden East End Glasgow as a matriarchal family comes to terms with the death of the man in their lives.

Returning home from the funeral of her gangster husband Tony, Bernie (Siobhan Redmond) and her five daughters are given little time to grieve as reporters surround their home and a film crew are given exclusive coverage of the family as they appeal to be left alone.

Aware that she’s unlikely to ever be free from her daughters, all of whom still live with her, there is still some hope that the relationship between Agnes (Julie Wilson Nimmo) and rival family offspring Peter Romanov could save them from financial difficulty if it all goes smoothly.

When youngest daughter Adie (Vanessa Johnson) shares her feelings for Romanov with older sister Marty (Louise Ludgate), who also carries a torch for the man, it looks like Bernie’s stranglehold on her brood might, for once, not be strong enough to stop things from taking a turn for the worse.

By taking the bare bones of Lorca’s play and setting it in present-day Glasgow, Munro has very much put her stamp on the piece, her attempt to make it relevant to a modern audience successful in that its references never appear forced.

Theatre Review: Adolf Hitler – My Part in His Downfall, 10 October, Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

Based on Spike Milligan’s 1971 novel of the same name, Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall comes to the stage full of the absurd wit and tomfoolery one would expect from a one-time Goon.

As Spike (Sholto Morgan) recounts his time in the army and the many ways he and his colleagues try to stave off the boredom – and the horror – of war, the audience are treated to a barrage of jokes and observations fired at will into the stalls.

Taking the form of a show put on for the forces, introduced by a plummy officer (Matt Devereaux), we’re soon in the company of a group of men thrown together to fight the Nazi hordes who’d rather be at home in Blighty with a bag of fish and chips and a pint in the pub.

To ensure they maintain some sort of normality, Spike and co pick up instruments and entertain the troops, and each other, in between fighting and the odd mission, black humour carrying them through the many months of service.

Theatre Review: The Silver Darlings, 6 October, King’s Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

Recalling memories of his own childhood in the far north of Scotland, Neil M Gunn’s 1941 novel comes to the stage with a vigor that belies its age and subject matter.

The play tells of a Highland way of life altered by the Clearances, life on the land replaced by life on the open seas, where fishing for herring, the “silver darlings” of the title, puts at risk the lives of men every day.

Those left behind, women like Catrine (Meg Fraser) abandoned by her husband Tormad who has been press ganged into working aboard a boat, are left to fend for themselves with little money to their name.

As Catrine makes new friends with boat owner Roddie (Tom McGovern) and Kirsty (Anne Louise Ross), her son Finn (Finn Den Hertog) grows into a young man with definite shades of his father, something that threatens to tear them apart.

Though the death, disease and deprivation at the heart of the 600-page novel are present in this new adaptation, the necessary trims made to the adaptation by Peter Arnott ensures that the story rattles along at a decent pace in the first half.

Theatre Review: Bright Black, 18 September, Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

The Traverse One is a dramatic, steeply raked theatre and on entering to watch Bright Black the journey to find a seat at the front vaguely echoes the main character’s potential descent into the underworld.

This, combined with the simple yet incredibly effective set and the mood forming music playing as you enter, meant that from the offset the world outside is left far behind.

The play itself explores grief through three characters: two friends, of whom one, Claire (Meline Danielewicz),  has recently lost her fiancé, and a menacing messenger, Cerberus (Martin McCormick), from the underworld.

The deepness of the love Claire felt for her recently deceased partner is tenderly conveyed through movement and the use of props that remind her of him.

It’s an intense process that sees her lock herself away in her flat and the audience are sucked into the sadness of her world.

Theatre Review: The Beauty Queen of Leenane, 18 September, Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh

*****

Perhaps better known in film circles for his astonishing feature debut, 2008′s comedy-thriller In Bruges, those familiar with Irish playwrite Martin McDonagh’s extensive theatre work are well aware that he’s no one-trick pony.

Originally performed in 1996, The Beauty Queen of Leenane opens in the kitchen of Mag (Carole Dance), a housebound old woman whose daily routine consists of consuming bowls of Complan, drinking tea and watching Australian soaps on TV.

Meg is looked after by daughter Maureen (Alice Selwyn) whose life has taken a distinctly unfortunate turn as she ensures her mother has everything she needs while looking after their rural farm.

When local lad Pato (Paul Boyle) returns to the village to see off some friends, he and Maureen meet, have a one night stand and set in motion a chain of events which will see mother and daughter finally face their feelings once and for all.

Theatre Review: The Beggar’s Opera, 16 September, Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

*****

Launching their new season on an unsuspecting public, Edinburgh’s Royal Lyceum brings a brand new envisioning of John Gay’s 1728 musical play The Beggar’s Opera to the stage, complete with sex, stilettos and a dash of sci-fi: this isn’t your great-great-great-great-grandfather’s Beggar’s Opera.

Gay’s original political and social satire told of the attempts by thief-catcher Peachum to capture arch-criminal Macheath, only to discover that their daughter has married him.

As the pair attempt to capture Macheath with the intention of killing him for his money, they don’t reckon on his coterie of lovers and admirers who will stop at nothing to help him escape…while all the while music and madness reign around them as the band plays on.

Updating the opera for a new generation, director Matthew Lenton has opted to set his version in the future, meaning bizarre costumes, a running commentary from a TV news anchorwoman (the beggar of the original play) and the use of a projected backdrop above the actors.

The basic story at the centre of the spectacle is a relatively straightforward one, a bawdy romp through the lives of various characters which never takes itself too seriously.

Fringe Review: Hugh Hughes in 360

*****

Hugh welcomed his audience at the door on entrance into the Pleasance Two venue. This was an unusual start and one that instantly encouraged a rapport with his audience.

Whilst at the front waiting for everyone to get seated, he then encouraged everyone to greet the person sitting next to them and behind them. Although this sounds cringeworthy (notably for the Scottish reserve) it actually worked well.

Maybe it was the eclectic mix of tourists and hosts.

The Welsh comedian then walked through a not-so-brief-history of his childhood, snagging on details for maybe just a little longer than he should have to sustain the audience.

Fringe Review: The Garden

*****

As part of the Festival at the Traverse, a range of established writers produced work for The World is Too Much, the title based on an extract from a Wordsworth poem.

Unusually, the play began at 9am and breakfast was included in the price of the ticket. It was a rare scene to see Edinburgh’s finest tucking into sausage and egg rolls, an unlikely canapé!

Zinnie Harris is a very successful writer who has written for TV series such as Spooks and worked with a range of theatre companies.

She has crafted a beautiful play where the lives of two people unfold delicately in front of the (still digesting!) audience.

Edinburgh Fringe Review: The Overcoat

*****

Similar to the titular overcoat suspended above the audience of the Pleasance Grand for the duration of the production, you should hang any preconceptions at the door as you settle down to watch Amit Lahav’s impressive retelling of Gogol’s 1842 short story.

With an attention to detail verging on the obsessive, the world of factory clerk Akaky Akakievich, a man residing in an unnamed Russian city who hand copies documents for a living, is presented to the audience as a dark, foreboding place where reality is just an aspect of dreams.

As Akaky moves through this world the audience is soon left to their own devices, the lack of English dialogue combined with a number of dance routines ensuring the plot becomes less important as the play goes on.