Review: A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The Globe Theatre, for SWLondoner

Review: A Midsummer Night’s Dream @ The Globe Theatre

ICONIC: Shakespeare’s Globe

Posted Tuesday, 10 September, 2013 – 14:38

By Immi Calderwood

Anyone who thinks they have seen enough of ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ should think again with Dominic Dromgoole’s most recent Globe offering.

Performed on Shakespeare’s stage, in Renaissance costume and accompanied by a musical score to match, the description anticipates a ‘Midsummer’ stripped back to Elizabethan basics. But that is far from the truth. Instead, the production achieves a perfect symbiosis of classical and contemporary, forcing even veterans of the play to see its words in a whole new light.

The ‘contemporary’ element derives from merely changing the emphasis of a line or the focus of a scene, through to the decision to actually re-word parts of the script. Rewriting Shakespeare is, of course, a very bold move. Dipping into dangerous territory regarding respect for the words of the Great British Bard. The care with which the adjustments are achieved, however, creates room for the production to breathe: the actors are free to interact with their audience without it jarring, and the audience are treated to laughs that no one expects.

The most praiseworthy aspect of the production is that it achieves its originality whilst retaining the familiar: the conflict between the worlds of court and forest; the metatheatre and self-awareness; and of course the slapstick and the ridiculous.

Key players in the slapstick are the Rude Mechanicals, top of the heap as the real highlight of this production. The antics of the pack, led by Pearce Quigley’s wonderful Bottom – Shakespeare’s joke on theatre critics of the future – take ridiculous to a whole new level. It is through the Mechanicals that the ingenuity of the classical/contemporary combination really comes into its own.

The best-loved moments of the Mechanicals are enhanced by modern twists: a tap-battle between Bottom and Quince (Fergal McElherron), Bottom’s bizarre reference to Martin Luther King, and Flute/Thisbe’s (Christopher Logan) zombie-apocalypse death.

Although some moments do feel a little crowbarred – an unfortunate consequence of going for all out laughs- the success of this production is founded on a respect for one of Shakespeare’s greatest works that goes beyond mere reproduction of the original. This is a real achievement: a production that delivers everything best loved about ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ with a very tangible affection, yet is not afraid to make adjustments, offering up something unexpected to its clearly delighted audience.

Photo courtesy of kevinofsydney, with thanks.

 

Review: Carnaby Street at New Wimbledon Theatre, for SWLondoner

Review: Carnaby Street @ New Wimbledon Theatre

TRIBUTE: The song celebrates the 60s

Posted Thursday, 26 September, 2013 – 15:51

By Immi Calderwood

Monday night’s ‘Carnaby Street’ audience was up on its feet and having a boogie by the end of this song and dance spectacular.

The production tells the story of Scousers Penny and Jude as they arrive in London for the first time, having hitchhiked away from home. Jude is a singer/songwriter hoping to find fame and fortune in the Big Smoke, while Penny is madly in love with him and would follow him anywhere. Although Jude has no idea.

Told retrospectively through the eyes of cheeky chap Jack, the show is based on the life of Carl Leighton-Pope, a music agent who has been in the business for over 40 years.

In 1964, however, Leighton-Pope was only starting out on his career, as an 18-year-old out-of-work actor working nights at the infamous Marquee Club on Wardour Street, round the corner from Carnaby Street.

In the 60’s Carnaby Street had attained the fashionable reputation it still holds today. It was a popular destination for both Mods and Hippies, with a number of independent boutiques springing up all along this very desirable strip.

It is this fashionable, ‘in-crowd’ atmosphere that Carnaby Street gets really right. The whole production oozes ‘cool’ and ‘desirable’, as well as the up-and-coming excitement that surrounded the street at the time.

As made evident by the title, the location is absolutely central to the whole show’s spirit: ‘Soho was called the ‘Square Mile’ and that’s where the 60’s really began,” said Leighton-Pope.

The enthusiasm and charisma of the production is tangible. It takes a lot to get a theatre full of the middle-aged former-flower children on its feet, but the bedazzling enjoyment of the whole cast is infectious.

Aimie Atkinson is sensational as timid Scouse girl Penny, awash in a world of mini-skirts and sequins, in a pair of beaten up jeans with a rucksack and sleeping mat. But a quick makeover and a change of attitude and she becomes the epitome of 60’s chic.

Atkinson makes a really excellent job of the transformation, stripping it of any cliché, and bringing out the complexity behind the character. The relationship between Penny and ‘wild thing’ T (Mark Pearce) is the show’s only attempt at tragedy, and without two such strong performers the glimpse of the darker side of the 60’s could have become lost amid the glitz.

Aaron Sidwell plays the Jack-the-lad at the centre of the show, looking fresh-faced and very dapper in his mod get-up. Sidwell is an excellent frontman for the show, striking up immediate rapport with the audience. His asides help blend the first half’s succession of songs together, to help give the slightly fragmented script some continuity.

Sidwell’s onstage companion, newsboy Al (Gregory Clarke) provided a very interesting addition to the production. Although he rarely interacts with other characters, Al proclaims snippets of headlines while striding across the stage, providing some historical depth to the show. Although raising some nostalgic chuckles and nicely juxtaposing historical events with the modern day, the frequency of these moments do trip up the flow of the performance.

Although the narrative becomes very engaging later on, and the characters are endearing, this musical is really all about the music. Leighton-Pope said of his time on Carnaby Street: “Our whole lives were based around music. It told us who we were, who we hung round with, what girls we knew, what dances we did, in fact, our entire lifestyle.”

Carnaby Street is a real celebration of 60’s pop hits, and the audience’s nodding heads and clapping hands were all in tribute to the delight and nostalgia that these classics evoke.

Carnaby Street is at The New Wimbledon Theatre until Sept 28 (inc. Saturday matinée)

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