Oval House Theatre presents AROUND THE HOUSE
by Paines Plough Future Perfect writers
and
by Zephryn Taitte and Roy Alexander Weise Sketchbook Productions
Presented by: The Oval House Youth Theatre Company
Oval House Theatre
January 14 – 24, 2009
Both these productions are part of the 33% LONDON 2009 celebration of theatre and film by and for young London
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A review by Marion Drew for EXTRA! EXTRA!
This group of inspired and entertaining performances makes creative use of interesting and out-of-the-way parts of the Oval House Theatre: back stairs, toilets, a workshop. These 7 pieces by emerging playwrights and especially commissioned for the theatre, explore, in short, sharp vignettes issues such as death, sexuality, celebration, and raise questions about, among others, complicity and consequences. The challenge to the audience is to engage with both performers and spaces in a different way, standing in nooks and crannies which suddenly take on a different significance. Working in tight places, sometimes literally shoulder to shoulder with the audience, these accomplished young actors and actresses are skillful, focused and entirely believable. The performances all round are confident, accomplished and a real pleasure to watch. A fantastic idea which it would be lovely to see taken further. The same cannot be said for The Unfortunate Love of the British Empire which in contrast came across as slow, laboured and unfocussed. Four stories are told about four different groups of people in four kitchens across two centuries. The pieces try to examine what the bonds are that unite people, who are sometimes strangers, and whether what really connects people, and how they deal with the issues that they face, change over time. The first piece, which deals with a decision made by Elizabeth I and her betrayal by a handmaid, I feel moves ponderously, and at times the actors are inaudible. It felt to me as if the subject matter had overwhelmed writers, director and cast. The second, dealing with inter-racial, inter-generational relations I found more interesting, both in content and style, but I did not feel really engaged. In the third piece about a struggling young newly-wed mixed race couple, the energy starts to pick up, but it was hard for me to know how or why this relates to the British Empire, perhaps because this is never really defined in any way. In the final piece the link was again vague, but I enjoyed the poetry and for me this lifted the piece. The connection between the four stories I found quite tenuous except on a physical level where through use of sets and lighting, this was cleverly done. The set itself was lovely throughout, carefully constructed with an interesting back section used by stage hands and actors alike, and the lighting was worthy of note and evocative. Reducing the scope of the individual pieces, creating a stronger link between them and injecting more dramatic energy into this play I felt, would have helped it realise its potential. Wednesday 14th to Saturday 24th January, Weds – Sat 7.45pm Box Office 020 7582 7680 (Tues-Sat, 3pm-8pm)
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