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Abandon Theatre presents... The Other Day By Chole Austin Directed by Emma Stroud and Connected Devised by Maheem Mohammadally Directed by Maheem Mohammadally
WHITE BEAR THEATRE 9 September- 5 October, 2008
A review by Amber Gregory for EXTRA! EXTRA!
Two plays about funerals. I figured that I would be in for a gloomy night. The White Bear Theatre Club is a tiny theatre where the audience and the actors are so close to each other that the 'fourth wall' is touching the end of your nose. There are two actors on the stage. One of them is smoking. The intensity embraces you. The evening is advertised as two separate plays which is why I was surprised when the actors from both plays appeared on stage and the plays were performed simultaneously. A short scene would be shown from one play, then the actors would freeze, the lighting would change and the other play would begin. This was the method used throughout the 90 minute production. Having the two plays quite literally connected in this way meant that the audience was never able to attach themselves completely to one of the stories. This created a Brechtian affect because as soon as you were drawn into one of the plays and had become emotionally attached to the characters, the actors would freeze, the lighting would alter and the other play would continue. This rollercoaster journey that the audience was taken on throughout the performances was enabled by going between emotions from two different couples of people on stage who were unattached to each other. The Other Day is a play about Billy, a young man who had committed suicide. Two of his friends from school meet up at the funeral and go back to his lonesome house in the countryside and reminisce about the old times and wonder if they could have done anything differently... Alcohol becomes involved and the flirting begins as we learn more about the couple and their characters. It is interesting that the playwright has chosen one male and one female part for this play (apart from to explore the inevitable love story which is expected when two single highly emotional individuals are involved) but it also gives us a chance to get to know Billy from both a male and a female’s perspective. Through the woman we learn that Billy was the kind of guy that girls would find attractively mysterious, with his odd good looks, his beautiful piano playing and his depressive mind. Through the man we can see his frustration towards his friend, who sees this suicide as Billy's final selfish act. His guilt for not being able to do anything, and his annoyance towards Billy for him never letting him in emotionally, and feeling confused about this friendship which he doesn't quite understand. The character of the man, Alex, is played by James Maclaran. At first he comes across as the typical posh public school boy infuriatingly on a mission to 'discover himself'. At the start of this play I simply thought 'I hate this guy, a stereotypical actor playing a stereotypical role'. However, as the play continued the more irritating his role became, the more I was drawn towards this character. He was simply so lost, confused, extravagant, ghastly, crude, politically incorrect and absolutely hilarious. He is a man desperate to keep his mind off recent events and to talk about his dreams of 'tiny dinosaurs that live in his shoe'. By the end of the play he had created a gem of comedy within this sad story about the loss of a great friend who neither of them ever quite understood. Connected is the story of a brother and sister, connected by a traumatic event that took place in each of their pasts. After not having seen each other for years they meet up at their Uncle Mike's funeral. To avoid more awkward family conversations they escape to a back room where they smoke, drink and chat. The chats consist of the trivial: each other’s Facebook picture etc; what they're up to now; their unlucky love lives and their childhood. What makes these chats so intriguing however, is the incredible acting by both performers. Helen, is played by Emma Stroud, Director of The Other Day and Artistic Director of Abandon Theatre. Thomas, is played by Deon Newbroner who established Abandon Theatre alongside Emma Stroud. The two performers have clearly worked closely together before and what is most incredible is how they make the characters of Thomas and Helen so believable. So often in theatre the audience is very aware that the actors are merely playing parts, but in this performance these characters are brought to life so accurately because they seem so real and human. The performance was devised by Abandon Theatre (alongside Director Maheen Mohammadally) which perhaps explains why the actors are clearly very attached to their roles, as they are parts that they themselves created. Connected deals with the delicate issue of child abuse and is supported by CHILDLINE. The performance and subject matter, which has been developed over the last twelve months stemmed from a conversation with survivors of sexual abuse, and different ways that it can affect individual lives. This very serious topic is tackled extremely successfully and appropriately by the performers. It is an intense and emotional performance where Emma Stroud plays her part with snippets of humour which not only adds to her character but gives the audience something to laugh out loud at which is sometimes necessary during a double bill of funeral plays! The performance (both plays) has been choreographed extremely cleverly in movement and script. Both plays have their humorous and serious moments. After seeing one very serious moment the scene of the next play will often be lighter, which keeps the audience entertained. Connected is a performance that escalates towards one huge revelation, whereas The Other Day is more of a bumpy, yet consistent journey. The different styles of the plays complements one another well and the idea of having the plays running alongside one another is simply perfect. The plays share the same realistic set of a cream sofa, red carpet, wooden table and green bean bag. It is great to see how identical sets can be transformed by how the actors use them as set in two completely different locations. The lighting designed by Fridthjofur Thorsteinsson also plays a crucial part in the production as it brings the audience successfully from one story to another. For me, the most effective part of the production was actually the characters of those who had died. The actors brought these individuals to life and by the end of the performance we knew as much about the characters of Billy and Uncle Mike as if they too had been live on stage. White Bear Theatre Club Tube Kennington (Northern line) Buses 133, 159, 109 Tickets £10 Concessions £8 Book@www.ticvketweb.co.uk Free 24 hour telephone booking 020 7793 9193 (excluding Mondays) at 7.30pm and Sundays @ 5pm
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