Cairns Can Do No Wrong
10 May 2012 3 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: James Cairns, Taryn Bennett, The Kalk Bay Theatre
It’s official: I’ll see anything James Cairns is in. The man is astoundingly talented and I can’t say enough good things about his performances. With Sie Weiss Alles, I can add his writing to the mix too.
Despite being happy to see Cairns even if he were reciting extracts from the OED, it was a particular pleasure to watch him perform Sie Weiss Alles for the second time after seeing it at the Grahamstown National Arts Festival in 2011, where it deservedly won a Silver Ovation Award. It is an absolute gem of a script, being nuanced, multi-layered and very, very clever.
Set at the end of World War Two, the play opens with the intriguing tableau of an intimate scene between an SS Officer and a young German woman. Faced with the certainty of an imminent and brutal death at the hands of the encroaching Russian army, fate has thrown into the captain’s interrogation room a woman from his past, brought in for questioning when her father disappears under suspicious circumstances that smack of American defection. Now, he is faced with an endgame of impossible choices. They both have nothing to lose and everything to play for. And so they begin.
The script is beautifully crafted, working on multiple levels of meaning as the pair pass the time by becoming actors in their own version of Hamlet. This act becomes a complex means of negotiating trust, of sizing up and testing boundaries, as they tread the textual line that spans more than just the physical distance between Denmark and Germany. In the drama of the high stakes games they are engaging in, truth is up for grabs to the best performer.
At once witty, clever and deeply disturbing, the play is a complex, beautifully crafted expression of human need, the meaning of acting a role, the high stakes of trust. A war story with a difference, the two-hander is brought beautifully to life by the tight direction of Tamara Guhrs and riveting performances by the actors.
Cairns will blow you away with his understated desperation, his portrait of a man at the end of his rope. It would be so easy for this piece to sink into melodrama, but he paints with such nuance that one believes the character absolutely. Taryn Bennett carried the action extremely well as a woman dexterously treading the line between truth and desire, safety and honesty.
The play-within-a-play element sees both actors having to act the slow building of meaning in the process of acting and, despite the multiple rehearsal scenes this entailed, I was riveted throughout. It is a testament to their performances that not one beat was missed, the tension never wavered and, despite some technical interference on opening night, the pair effortlessly held the audience in the palm of their hand throughout.
Go and treat yourself to the best piece of new South African writing I’ve seen in a long time. Sie Weiss Alles is a tour de force of local talent.
Classic Cabaret at Kalk Bay
12 Mar 2012 2 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: Godfrey Johnson, Roland Perold, The Kalk Bay Theatre
Coward & Cole has opened to a revamped dinner theatre venue at the Kalk Bay Theatre. Featuring the musical talents of Roland Perold and Cape Town local maestro Godfrey Johnson, the show pays joint tribute to the individual songwriting genius of Noel Coward and Cole Porter.
The duo are slick and the arrangements are exciting – these are gifted musicians as well as seasoned entertainers and, fortunately, their collaboration plays to each others’ strengths. Musically, the show is a satisfying slice of nostalgia, served with a local twist. The performers tread a delicate balance between celebrating the original spirit of the songs and adding modern flair – the accents, for instance, play homage to the over-articulation of the stylised 20s radio host, but lapse, to amusing effect, into plat South African vernacular. Whilst this works surprisingly well for the most part, Perold’s rolling r’s are decidedly more Boerewors Curtain than British clip – an accidentally amusing side note to an otherwise flawless vocal performance.
Personal highlights included an exquisitely moving interpretation of ‘Mad About the Boy’ and a cracking (and seasonally appropriate) “It’s Too Damn Hot.” For those who appreciate a good inside giggle, there’s even a little poke at the local performance industry with a naughty ad lib addition to the rambunctious ‘I Went to a Marvellous Party.’ Both performers look the part in immaculate evening dress, barely ruffling a cuff at even the most taxing virtuoso moments. Johnson particularly has a captivating stage presence – his facial expressions range from the sly sideways glances to stares of such soul searching intensity that each audience member feels pinned to their seats by his eyes alone.
Johnson and Perold have attempted to capture some of the stylised spirit of the era by keeping running banter going between numbers. This didn’t always hit its mark on opening when there were several timing and teething issues, but promises to gain smoothness as the show gels.
With a brand new dinner theatre menu now on offer, Coward & Cole will satisfy both those who long for a little old fashioned entertainment as well as Perold and Johnson’s individual loyal cabaret followings. If you’re looking for mood music, you’ll find yourselves in luck at Kalk Bay Theatre.
Hilarious History-onics at the Intimate
28 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: Beren Belknap, Gabriel Marchand, James MacGregor, The Intimate Theatre, The Pink Couch
It’s the final death rattle of the Boer War. Two soldiers are manning the last strategic outpost of Boer command, waiting for final orders to be telegraphed. One is a young Afrikaner soldier with a gruff manner and half a head. The other is a Brit double agent in a pith helmet and wedding dress.
So begins Out of Order – a madcap tale full of pithy narrative and passionate nationalism, not to mention a delicious koeksister cameo. It’s South African history like you’ve never heard it before. Mainly, of course, because it’s all completely fabricated. But still, you know. Still.
Out of Order marks the first collaboration between up-and-coming theatre production companies The Pink Couch and The Space Behind the Couch – as if it wasn’t tricky enough distinguishing between their names. The Pink Couch has an eye for comic book style vignettes (employed by director Tara Notcutt to superb effect in Mafeking Road). The Space Behind the Couch has an ear for quirky narrative (last heard in the zany banter of the undead in director Beren Belknap’s Madame Touxflouwe). Together with original animation from Jeremy Carver, this collaboration brings a wealth of young, creative talent to the local stage.
The two-hander features James MacGregor (Shakespeare’s R+J, Madame Touxflouwe) and Gabriel Marchand (Sadako, I Love You When You’re Breathing). MacGregor plays the (oh-so-)straight guy to Marchand’s chipper jokester. There’s a wonderfully balanced energy between these two – their irreverent approach and deadpan banter brings to mind moments from comedy classics like Monty Python. They are committed and clever with the script. They are, also, hellofa funny.
In what could be a case of ageing eyes and ears, I felt the sound levels needed some fine-tuning at times. I also found the animation lost some effect – and narrative clarity – by being projected in a relatively small area on an uneven background. Aside from these small details, I was sold.
Quick march to the Intimate – the show ends this week. If you do, MacGregor and Marchand will have you in stitches. The good kind.
OFFICEBlock Mixes Business and Pleasure
27 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: FTH:K, Liezl de Kock, Rob Murray, The Intimate Theatre
The school playground and the work pause area have much in common. For all our high-powered posing, working adults are really children at heart: just as silly, just as irreverent and, sometimes, just as brutal.
OfficeBLOCK – the latest offering from the integrated Deaf and hearing physical theatre group FTH:K – explores this idea. A series of snapshots set around a water cooler of ingenious (at times anthropomorphic) design, artistic director Rob Murray takes corporate cool to a whole new level.
The piece is a work-in-progress – a preview of a process that’s going to take FTH:K to Washington to collaborate with another integrated theatre team over the next year. Already, though, it shows much promise, with some inventive sequences and of course Murray’s signature style of exploring dark subject matter through an ostensibly playful physical approach.
Currently, the play takes the form of choreographed movement sequences that tell a tale of insiders and outsiders, of politics and power, of fitting in and speaking out. Featuring the talents of Christopher Beukes, Liezl de Kock, Sinethemba Mgebisa and Marlon Snyders, each vignette has a different title and distinctive feel.
For me, the “Boy’s Club” sequence – featuring the wonderful Liezl de Kock in a look at general gender politics in the office – was particularly powerful. In a scene that begins with a tease and ends with utter degradation, the message hit home like a fist to the face.
OfficeBLOCK is going to go through many changes before it arrives at its final form. As the vignettes develop and coalesce, I think it will come together into a more manageable and satisfying narrative shape. It’s always a privilege to see something develop, though, especially when the process is as enjoyable as this. Watch out for this one – it’s, quite literally, going places.
Race to See Hanekom in ‘Hol’
18 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: Artscape, Nicola Hanekom
I don’t usually review Afrikaans theatre productions – my grasp of die taal is indirectly proportional to my conversational insecurity – but I have to say something small about Nicola Hanekom’s Hol, currently playing in rep with Seashells at the Artscape Arena.
I’ve been a fan of Nicola’s since Betesda and Lot – two of her site-specific hits at various local festivals (though sadly, as yet, not in Cape Town). Despite lacking language confidence, I jump at the – sadly rare – opportunity to see Afrikaans theatre in Cape Town.
Hol is more than just an opportunity to see Afrikaans theatre, though. It is an opportunity to see complexity of script, inventive simplicity of set and utter mastery of breath and movement. It’s a chance to see Nicola Hanekom blow you away with what is one of the hardest-hitting, most powerful performances I’ve seen on stage this year.
One woman. A treadmill. Seventy minutes (or, as Hanekom personally likes to measure it, eight kilometers) of astounding performance detailing one woman’s obsession with her physical and mental limits. It’s hard to simplistically label this piece physical theatre. The work is beautifully – sometimes brutally – physical, yes, but the script is so central, the words so elegant and densely packed with layers of meaning that is that rare play that proves just as cerebral as it is visual.
My greatest regret is that my language skills weren’t up to the test of fully appreciating Hanekom’s wordsmithery. Did this prevent me from being completely blown away? Not in the slightest.
You need to see Hol. It is a profoundly powerful work and Hanekom’s performance is a tour de force.
Tale of Horror a Real Joy
10 Nov 2011 2 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: Beren Belknap, Gabriel Marchand, Merryn Carver, The Arena Theatre
Graduating director Merryn Carver has made her mark with a signature piece of children’s theatre. Tale of Horror is an adaptation for stage of Tove Jansen’s exquisite and beloved Tales From Mooninvalley.
Belknap as the Second-to-Youngest Whomper
Tale of Horror features the professional puppet manipulation expertise of Gabriel Marchand and Beren Belknap (old hands at tweaking life into inanimate objects for companies of the likes of Handspring) as well as the fresh talent of the very charming Joanna Evans. Following the journey of the overlooked and (to him) under-appreciated second-to-youngest Whomper child in his seriously magical adventures at the bottom of the garden, the piece weaves an intricate web of make believe. Carver maintains the story’s delicate balance between gleeful romp and sophisticated narrative, leaving the audience – no matter what their age – transported to a world where we see both the hidden dangers and magic in the everyday.
A particular delight in this witty piece was the sheer visual inventiveness. Belknap and Carver have lovingly reimagined the Whomper world – the multi-functional set and range of puppet styles are a creative triumph. In magnificent cameos, a pair of mismatched Australian Vietnam war veteran sock puppets play alongside some seriously slithery stocking mud snakes. Of particular delight is the mini-human puppet of the Youngest Whomper Child, played to giggling audience approval by a crouching Marchard complete with an ingeniously detachable headless bodypuppet.
In a play with both human and puppet interaction, then, Belknap, Marchand and Evans are called on at various points to be both manipulators and actors. They rise to the occasion admirably and Carver shows excellent direction in focussing the action to either highlight or background their presence depending on the demands of the role.
Tale of Horror is well-crafted with wonderful characterisation and, despite the male narrative lead, a strong feminist message. With this piece, Carver is joining the capable ranks of theatre makers whose work proves that theatre for children does not mean intellectual pandering and that visual play and laughter are gifts that should be enjoyed by all ages. I certainly hope that Tale of Horror finds a life outside of the university environment – it is the kind of quality family theatre that we need to encourage.
This Bosman’s Just Up My Street
28 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: Andrew Laubscher, Mathew Lewis, Tara Notcutt, The Intimate Theatre, The Pink Couch
Tara Notcutt is a director who, since her well-deserved Fleur du Cap award in 2009, has really been making a splash on the local theatre scene with her signature style of startlingly detail-oriented and often richly visual interpretations. With Mafeking Road – a piece that started life as her young directors’ bursary work of choice – things are no different.
With the aid of the ever-talented duo of Mathew Lewis (Lenny and the Wasteland) and Andrew Laubscher (Lovborg’s Women, Is it Because I’m Jack?), Notcutt takes us through the best of Bosman’s short stories from the perspective of that most loved of all South African narrators, Oom Schalk Lourens. Lewis and Laubscher seem to be having as much fun as we do, as they take us on a giddy gallop through the Groot Marico’s biggest social goings on. Whether you’re a longstanding fan of Bosman or a new convert, you’re going to love the ride.
Adapting one short story for the stage is a tough ask. Adapting a series, especially a series as intrinsic to the South African Afrikaaner psyche as Bosman’s, is a near-impossibility. Notcutt has taken some bold stylistic choices here that may have traditionalists somewhat taken aback, but which work a theatrical treat. Lewis and Laubscher work as a narrative team, channelling a music hall style of banter that is all the more humorous for its thick local flavour. Taking turns to play the coveted role of Oom Schalk, they keep up a playful, fast-paced energy that ensures the audience are right there with them in every adventure.
I particularly enjoyed the comic book style of narration where, stripped of any props, the pair play out the action using every ingenious application of physical skill possible: hands become characters, minutely playing out the action on the large-scale ‘set’ of an arm or back and sound effects are gleefully introduced at every turn. If it weren’t for the very adult talent on show, the pair would resemble nothing so much as gleefully overgrown schoolboys having a riotous storybook romp in an idle hour before supper. Mafeking Road is a reminder of how good a cracking tale can be…and why you don’t need big budget sets to win over an audience.
Mafeking Road has already toured to rave reviews at the Voorkamer Festival, the Grahamstown festival and, most recently, to the Groot Marico itself, for the Bosman Literary festival. You don’t have to get on your horse to see it this time around – it’s playing at the Intimate Theatre in town until 5 November. Go on – Oom Schalk is waiting.
