THE SILENT TOY SOLDIER |
| HIJINX THEATRE , WESTON STUDIO – MILLENIUM CENTRE , December-10-15 |
 However, this reviewer always eagerly anticipates the email inviting him to the latest production from Hijinx theatre. I know that however stressed and tired I am entering the auditorium I know that I when I leave I will have been thoroughly entertained and I will walk out with a bounce in my step. It would be easy at this time of year to produce a simple crowd-pleasing show but that is not the Hijinx way. Their new director, Jon Darfydd-Kidd has taken ETA Hoffman’s tale “ The Nutcracker & The Mouse King” and given it that Hijinx twist. The plot revolves around a young baker turned into a wooden Nutcracker following a curse from the Queen of Mice. Not only does the Mouse King then declare war on the Nutcracker but the naughty mice start to kidnap the happy souls of Jamburg. Although he is not a soldier these folk expect the Nutcracker to protect them and when he refuses he is banished to with a variety of lively characters. But, he develops cunning plan. The joy of “The Silent Toy Soldier” however, is not the plot but the performance and the staging. The atmosphere of the piece is beautifully enhanced by talent musicians from South Wales University, Caerleon who also provide unexpected cameos. The plot may be a little complicated but two helpful narrators steer us through proceedings. One of the many joys of a Hijinx/ Odyssey show is that you can clearly see the enjoyment of the performers ( I must single out Blue Balmforth for his infectious enthusiasm throughout). Huge praise must also go to the design team who produced a large array of eye-catching costumes, not only adding colour and life to the stage but also clearly defining each character. In contrast to Mack & Mabel in the Main House “ The Silent Toy Soldier” does have a happy ending. As usual I left invigorated and now fully in the Christmas mood. I believe this is the 4th Hijinx show I have seen and even though my expectations are now quite high, this show excelled them. So, a big round of applause from me to everyone involved and I wish you all a happy festive period. |
| Reviewed by: David Cox |
Thursday, 17 December 2015
The Silent Toy Soldier - The Weston Studio - Millenium Centre - December 2015
Sunday, 28 July 2013
Shadow Boxing - 27th July 2013
One of the most innovative ideas in recent years has been the rise of site specific theatre. Take an audience out of cosy seats immediately creates an element of unease, anticipation and the feeling that you are part of an event.
Broken Souls opening production is an adventurous revival of James Gaddas piece "Shadow Boxing" which has appeared previously at the Edinburgh festival. The audience are coached from Chapter Arts Centre to Llanrumney Boxing club with a video of the classic fight between Micky Ward and Alturo Gatti playing which certainly got us in the pugilistic mood.
Having been warned not to step inside the ring or stand behind a punch bag we were free to wander around the gym whilst Alex Harries burst in and tells his story. He is Flynn a talented boxer whose rise to the top is floored ( apologies for the pun) by a personal secret ( which came as a real surprise to me).
A good night at the theatre probably needs two of the three following, good acting, good writing and good production values. When you have all 3 you can feel very fortunate indeed which is what everyone who embarked on the journey felt. James Gaddas's script is tight and involving ( which you would expect from an actor) and impressively poetic.
This, however, is a play which solely revolves around the actor. This is no holds barred, in your face acting (literally). The actor has to be physically fit as we watch sweat pour off him as he unveils his punishing training regime. He must also be totally focussed as he weaves around the audience and trust me there are few more terrifying moments than when he talks directly in your face and makes unremitting eye contact with you. Fortunately, Alex Harries possesses all these attributes (including astonishing breath control) and made the complex Flynn come alive.
This is the joy of site specific theatre. When it works ( and it doesn't always) it gives you a personal connection with the actor and character you cannot re-create in the theatre.For a first production this was enthralling, innovative and a (literally) breathtaking show. Congratulations to all concerned.
Broken Souls opening production is an adventurous revival of James Gaddas piece "Shadow Boxing" which has appeared previously at the Edinburgh festival. The audience are coached from Chapter Arts Centre to Llanrumney Boxing club with a video of the classic fight between Micky Ward and Alturo Gatti playing which certainly got us in the pugilistic mood.
Having been warned not to step inside the ring or stand behind a punch bag we were free to wander around the gym whilst Alex Harries burst in and tells his story. He is Flynn a talented boxer whose rise to the top is floored ( apologies for the pun) by a personal secret ( which came as a real surprise to me).
A good night at the theatre probably needs two of the three following, good acting, good writing and good production values. When you have all 3 you can feel very fortunate indeed which is what everyone who embarked on the journey felt. James Gaddas's script is tight and involving ( which you would expect from an actor) and impressively poetic.
This, however, is a play which solely revolves around the actor. This is no holds barred, in your face acting (literally). The actor has to be physically fit as we watch sweat pour off him as he unveils his punishing training regime. He must also be totally focussed as he weaves around the audience and trust me there are few more terrifying moments than when he talks directly in your face and makes unremitting eye contact with you. Fortunately, Alex Harries possesses all these attributes (including astonishing breath control) and made the complex Flynn come alive.
This is the joy of site specific theatre. When it works ( and it doesn't always) it gives you a personal connection with the actor and character you cannot re-create in the theatre.For a first production this was enthralling, innovative and a (literally) breathtaking show. Congratulations to all concerned.
Nat Luurtsema - 10th July 2013
More familiar from being part of sketch comedy troupe “Jigsaw” Nat is also pursuing a solo stand-up career.
As you would expect in July she is touring her Edinburgh show in preview form and duly arrived with notes, voice recorder and a bottle of water. It wasn’t a large audience on this hot Cardiff Wednesday but she quickly won us over with stories explaining why she is single and how she is coping in her 30’s.
This is personal insight territory especially when she explains in some detail her relationship with a comedian she names. Obviously, this is work in progress and doesn’t flow naturally yet but she has a good rapport with the audience especially when deciding whether our laughter was strong enough for her to drink her water.
A lot of modern comedy is anecdotal and can be quite bland. Tonight, however, I felt I was in the presence of an unusual personality who wasn’t worried about portraying herself in a less than favourable light. Funny and undoubtedly will improve by next month.
Head to Laughing Horse at the Counting House in Edinburgh and you won’t be disappointed. (And amazingly it’s free).
As you would expect in July she is touring her Edinburgh show in preview form and duly arrived with notes, voice recorder and a bottle of water. It wasn’t a large audience on this hot Cardiff Wednesday but she quickly won us over with stories explaining why she is single and how she is coping in her 30’s.
This is personal insight territory especially when she explains in some detail her relationship with a comedian she names. Obviously, this is work in progress and doesn’t flow naturally yet but she has a good rapport with the audience especially when deciding whether our laughter was strong enough for her to drink her water.
A lot of modern comedy is anecdotal and can be quite bland. Tonight, however, I felt I was in the presence of an unusual personality who wasn’t worried about portraying herself in a less than favourable light. Funny and undoubtedly will improve by next month.
Head to Laughing Horse at the Counting House in Edinburgh and you won’t be disappointed. (And amazingly it’s free).
Matthew's Passion - 25th July 2013
Plays about sufferers of Asperger's Syndrome seem to come along like buses. Nothing for ages, then two arrive together. The big current London theatical success is the National Theatre's production of " The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time", while the Welsh offering is "Matthew's Passion" which recently ran at the Sherman Theatre.
Matthew is a sufferer struggling to focus in the real world, instead showing more interest in birds, especially the migration habits of swallows. He lives in a stifling environment, his father being an-old fashioned vicar and his mother struggling to cope with her role as a vicar's wife. Desperate to encourage Matthew to connect with people they engage Martin a travelling musician. In true play fashion this decision has wider implications than they could have expected.
This isn't a play that believes in subtlety. Within five minutes of the start I guessed everything that would unfold and frankly found the first half dull and obvious. Increasingly I feel short plays should run without an interval but here I felt the break worked. It allowed the cast to inject some much-needed pace life into proceedings.
It helped that they finally gave the great comic actress Ri Richards a chance to show her talent creating some much-needed laugh out loud moments. Immediately, though we are brought down to earth with a rivetting dramatic scene between Matthew's parents with Bethan Morgan hitting every emotional nerve possible.
Overall, I felt the playwright was wrong to centre the attention on a struggling marriage rather than concentrate on the more interesting subject of Asperger's syndrome and led to an evening where the acting was of a higher quality than the writing. I may be being unfairly critical however, having just watched and loved "The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time".
Matthew is a sufferer struggling to focus in the real world, instead showing more interest in birds, especially the migration habits of swallows. He lives in a stifling environment, his father being an-old fashioned vicar and his mother struggling to cope with her role as a vicar's wife. Desperate to encourage Matthew to connect with people they engage Martin a travelling musician. In true play fashion this decision has wider implications than they could have expected.
This isn't a play that believes in subtlety. Within five minutes of the start I guessed everything that would unfold and frankly found the first half dull and obvious. Increasingly I feel short plays should run without an interval but here I felt the break worked. It allowed the cast to inject some much-needed pace life into proceedings.
It helped that they finally gave the great comic actress Ri Richards a chance to show her talent creating some much-needed laugh out loud moments. Immediately, though we are brought down to earth with a rivetting dramatic scene between Matthew's parents with Bethan Morgan hitting every emotional nerve possible.
Overall, I felt the playwright was wrong to centre the attention on a struggling marriage rather than concentrate on the more interesting subject of Asperger's syndrome and led to an evening where the acting was of a higher quality than the writing. I may be being unfairly critical however, having just watched and loved "The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time".
Tuesday, 16 July 2013
The Scottish Falsetto Sock Theatre - 13th July 2013
Every year I make one mistake in booking over 100 tickets for the Edinburgh festival and in 2012 I booked two tickets to see The Scottish Falsetto Sock theatre forgetting I was now double-booked. Today,however, on a sticky, hot Cardiff Saturday I was happy to embrace the air conditioning of Chapter Arts Centre and finally catch up with the Sox.
The premise is simple,the show is two high pitched talking socks from a country whose capital is Edinburgh. Who knew?
July is a month where most performers hone their material in readiness for the Edinburgh festival in August. Some acts need it more than others and tonight's show fell into that category. This year's show is Sox In Space although a lot of time is spent exploring other genres, horror in particular. When we did head towards the astral plain the references were fairly generic.
But, what ultimatlely does an audience want? An hour of average comedy or a couple of moments of sheer brilliance. There is a lot ( perhaps too much) music but their parodies of David Bowie's "Starman" and Michael Jackson's " Earth Song" ( apparently his biggest hit, which I thought was Billie Jean) caused hysteria with DARKCHAT David and Anne. ( The latter hasn't stopped singing the former's song about a group of birds ever since).
The first 2013 DARKCHAT after the show caused a heated debate. One member called it " dull and boring" whilst two revelled in the 2 highspots. There is obviously plenty of work to be done but if they can tighten some of the more self-indulgent moments this can be another triumph for The Scottish Falsetto Sock Company.
The premise is simple,the show is two high pitched talking socks from a country whose capital is Edinburgh. Who knew?
July is a month where most performers hone their material in readiness for the Edinburgh festival in August. Some acts need it more than others and tonight's show fell into that category. This year's show is Sox In Space although a lot of time is spent exploring other genres, horror in particular. When we did head towards the astral plain the references were fairly generic.
But, what ultimatlely does an audience want? An hour of average comedy or a couple of moments of sheer brilliance. There is a lot ( perhaps too much) music but their parodies of David Bowie's "Starman" and Michael Jackson's " Earth Song" ( apparently his biggest hit, which I thought was Billie Jean) caused hysteria with DARKCHAT David and Anne. ( The latter hasn't stopped singing the former's song about a group of birds ever since).
The first 2013 DARKCHAT after the show caused a heated debate. One member called it " dull and boring" whilst two revelled in the 2 highspots. There is obviously plenty of work to be done but if they can tighten some of the more self-indulgent moments this can be another triumph for The Scottish Falsetto Sock Company.
Joe Lycett - July 13th 2013
Originally this Edinburgh preview should have featured Nick Helm. Sickness meant he was unable to attend and he was duly replaced by Joe Lycett. I suggest they couldn't have found a more opposite comedian if they had tried.
While Mr Helm is noisy, hairy, sweaty and in your face Mr Lycett is calm, collected and friendliness personified. Most Edinburgh shows have to have a pun title but for once " If Joe Lycett Then You Should've Put a Ring On It" actually fits the bill.
This is a series of stories about how his life has changed by wearing a "Walrus ring" after being advised to harness his inner animal. Armed with this alter ego he has turned into a serial complainer (when justified) by email. Some of these tales are hysterical especially when large organisations get the joke and join in the fun. ( Who knew employees of the Sun had a sense of humour).
We are bordering on Tom Wrigglesworth campaigning territory here but Joe Lycett's indidivuality shines through and we can see why he has been nominated for Fosters Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer.
This is still work in progress in readiness for next month's festival but on this evidence he is definitely worth finding a place in your schedule for. You may even decide to create your own complaining alias.
While Mr Helm is noisy, hairy, sweaty and in your face Mr Lycett is calm, collected and friendliness personified. Most Edinburgh shows have to have a pun title but for once " If Joe Lycett Then You Should've Put a Ring On It" actually fits the bill.
This is a series of stories about how his life has changed by wearing a "Walrus ring" after being advised to harness his inner animal. Armed with this alter ego he has turned into a serial complainer (when justified) by email. Some of these tales are hysterical especially when large organisations get the joke and join in the fun. ( Who knew employees of the Sun had a sense of humour).
We are bordering on Tom Wrigglesworth campaigning territory here but Joe Lycett's indidivuality shines through and we can see why he has been nominated for Fosters Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer.
This is still work in progress in readiness for next month's festival but on this evidence he is definitely worth finding a place in your schedule for. You may even decide to create your own complaining alias.
Sunday, 7 July 2013
Lloyd Langford - 3rd July 2013
If August is the month when comedy fans head to the Edinburgh festival ( other forms of entertainment are available), July is when comedians stage gigs to try out new material. The Cardiff comedy festival takes full advantage and previews can be seen throughout this month.
Starting the ball rolling was Lloyd Langford with "Galoot", defined as someone who is strange or foolish which perfectly describes his strange appearance ( check out his web-link below). Immediately the audience starts laughing and doesn't stop throughout the set. We discover why he hates Jessie J ( I'm sure you will too by the end), hear about other idiotic events and and why he has decided to take more chances with his life.
This is gentle humour although occcasionally he does unsettle you with an unexepectedly caustic remark.
After building up the show well he slightly falters at the end with a sexual anecdote I don't think fits into this
particular show. As he himself stressed this is work in progress so there is plenty if time to tighten this material before Edinburgh. Even so, this is still a highly enjoyable hour in its present form and can only get better.
So, if you get a chance to see Lloyd Langford on tour go.
If you get a chance to see Lloyd Langford in Edinburgh go.
If you get a chance to see any other preview shows (generally a lot cheaper than the finished product) go.
You won't be sorry.
Starting the ball rolling was Lloyd Langford with "Galoot", defined as someone who is strange or foolish which perfectly describes his strange appearance ( check out his web-link below). Immediately the audience starts laughing and doesn't stop throughout the set. We discover why he hates Jessie J ( I'm sure you will too by the end), hear about other idiotic events and and why he has decided to take more chances with his life.
This is gentle humour although occcasionally he does unsettle you with an unexepectedly caustic remark.
After building up the show well he slightly falters at the end with a sexual anecdote I don't think fits into this
particular show. As he himself stressed this is work in progress so there is plenty if time to tighten this material before Edinburgh. Even so, this is still a highly enjoyable hour in its present form and can only get better.
So, if you get a chance to see Lloyd Langford on tour go.
If you get a chance to see Lloyd Langford in Edinburgh go.
If you get a chance to see any other preview shows (generally a lot cheaper than the finished product) go.
You won't be sorry.
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