Ion Review

This performance of Ion was a contemporary adaption of the Greek tragedy, written by Jack Dean and directed by Sarah Dyke. The play is set in a post apocalyptic world in which everything we know of this world is destroyed and those who have survived have to piece their lives back together. The survivors include an entrepreneur, Xuthus, who holds control over the new world and a group of preachers who look to religion to the meaning of life. As the tension between the two grows plans begin to be put into motion to eradicate the other, and as a result the preachers choose to unveil the son of the entrepreneur’s wife Creusa as a means of having Xuthus murdered, the plot thickens. The performance was at Bath Spa University in an intimate box room which added to the tension and the immediacy of the performance which was used effectively by director Sarah Dyke who split the stage into two, one half, a picturesque house and the other, a temple with several oddities gloriously hanging from the walls, not only this but the audience were addressed several times throughout the performance which capitalised further on the small performance space. Performance-wise, there was a sense of the cast being underprepared, some scenes were nervous and unnatural, this came down to lack of use of props in the rehearsal process and not only that but a lack of energy seemed to stifle the action slightly.

As a director Sarah Dyke worked on a production of the famous Fiddler on the Roof which was greatly received in its week run in the Bath Spa University Theatre, selling out every night. This in itself poses the question how would she fair directed a smaller, more intimate performance and it would seem she has done well to create a coherent production. However it seemed that elements of the show were overlooked by the audience, some more complicated than they had to be, for instance the silhouetted undressing of the females of the play made to represent the loss of identity and purpose, such metaphors seemed to be quite unclear with lack of through line to utilise Dyke’s clever and imaginative symbolisms.

Jack Dean as a writer has worked with Sarah Dyke several times before so there was a definite sense of synergy and understanding between writer and director even more so when the two edited and review the script together in order to create the best dialogue possible. Some of the original script was edited by Dyke in the rehearsal process as a means of making sure the script stayed adjacent to the plot and also to mirror the original story as closely as possible. The script was concise and to the point, possibly lacking a bit of length and substance but the swiftness of the scenes worked seemingly well.

Overall, the show had some moments which had the potential to be top class theatre but with an evident cloud of nervousness about the show it would seem it could do with an injection of energy to bolster it to the greatness it ultimately could be. Thom's Star rating ***

Lydee

Troy Grainger Hewitt's performance in this adaption of a Greek tragedy was phenominal, a truly mesmerizing performance that captured the audience from start to finish. Thom's Star Rating ****

The Others

A fantastic play with a poignant message. extremely engaging and emotionally charged, thoroughly enjoyed this performance. Thom's Star rating ****

Harold Pinter's Monologue

A short one man peice, the actor held the audience well and engaged us throughout the scene. Thom's Star Rating ***

Harold Pinter's Landscape

An interesting play, it showed a real sign of charm and charsima, a good interpretation of a classic. Thom's Star Rating ****

The Nutcracker

On arriving at the theatre I was pessimistic. Pre-show research was limited, ranging from raving reviews to complete write-offs so; naturally, there was no real way to prepare for what I was to witness. Entering the theatre auditorium to find cast members walking amongst the audience was the point at which I felt this play was not designed for budding actors and directors and as I took my seat there was a large sense that the performance would less than exhilarating. However, for the first time in my short drama critic career I was shown to be horribly wrong about the show as what was presented was a piece of top class theatre. The story was adapted by acclaimed writer Hattie Naylor with music and lyrics from Paul Dodgson and was the headlining performance of the Family Theatre Festival in Bath’s Royal Theatre, this in itself seemed to put pressure on the performance but there was no sign whatsoever of any falter or nervousness from the cast who made the show stunning to watch. The first act set a great atmosphere amongst the audience, appealing to both young and old audience members, I felt the warmth of the piece from the start, the ebb and flow of the story kept the narrative engaging and ultimately produced a pedestal for the second half, which in all honesty was truly brilliant. The second act was the moment in which I felt most drawn to the piece, there was a definite sense of childhood innocence in the play and not only did I feel the excitement of the visual effects I found myself strangely harrowed by the violence and gore which was used to perfection especially in one moment in which the Queen rat takes a bite out of the King’s baby and proceeds to dribble and gargle blood all over herself. Most poignant for me was the war scene in the penultimate scenes of the play, the use of paper airplanes and ping pong balls to connote war ad fighting was superb, not only did it keep the show family orientated it was absolutely amazing to watch. Overall I felt this show stood out for me as it was so unexpectedly fantastic. The cast we professional, the visual effects were stunning and in general it was a joy to watch. If you’re looking for that inner child, this is the play for you. Thom's Star Rating ******

White Men with Weapons

Amazing performance by a single man cast. The multi-role element was truly breath-taking! hilariously funny but suprisingly poignant. Thom's star rating *****

Hippolytus: Reframed

A brave choice to perform in promenade, some poignant moments with a real shock factor however it began to drag and I lost interest when the news reports went on. Thoms Star Rating ***

Thom Penfold Radio Show

Urashima Taro Cast and Director Q & A

The Director Paul Piris and the one woman cast Aya Nakamura gave a fantastic talk about the trials and tribulations of Puppetry and the transition from folk lore to stage. Thom's Star Rating ****

Blithe Spirit

A nostalgic show, a toast to yester-year with incredible use of special effects in the finale! Thom's Star Rating ***

Enron

A show that documents the downfall of a Businessman, extrodinary light show and fantastic visual effects made it a very enjoyable show! Thom's Star Rating ****

Cinderella - The Victoria Theatre, Woking

Pantomime at its best, special effects and laughs galore! loved the onstage transformation of Cinderella! REAL shetland ponies pulled the carraige! Thom's Star Rating ***

Hamlet

Of all the productions of Shakespeare’s frivolous work I have ever witnessed, this by far was the most unusual. The performance was two African actors, recreating the story of hamlet using a variety of symbolism and meta-theatre. At first I felt as if I was missing an important piece of information about the production, I felt as though more actors would come or the actors on stage were performing some kind of pre-text, however as I watched on, I slowly began to felt intrigued by the actors, they demanded the attention of the crowd and forced us to see what they had to offer. The style was very symbolic in the way that a single pose or arm gesture symbolised one character, especially with Shakespeare’s hamlet it is well known that there are a large number of characters, all of which were all played very well and with enough contrast as to allow us not to get lost in which character was being portrayed. The actors did perform scenes together however the majority was a soliloquy or simply a motion that allowed us to see what exactly was happening in the play, this was unusually good as for someone who knows Hamlet I was reminded of moment in the play just by watching the actors perform motions repeatedly. The actors played women convincingly, there was plenty of room for the audience to find moments when the male actors struck a female pose yet I feel they held their integrity and the audience were so captured by the two men that the humour was only on a basic level. In hindsight, the play had the potential to be extremely dull and un-entertaining, however I feel with the mix of African Folk lore, song and dance, it gave Hamlet a new lease of life. Thom's Star Rating ***

Lily Through the Dark

Lily through the Dark
If there was a way to ensnare moments of Hollywood film in a stage play, Lily through the Dark has shown the best attempt I have seen yet. Normally going to the theatre, I try to avoid play involving puppetry and dark tales of death and despair however, I felt for the first time that puppetry had an effect on me as an audience member. Lily through the Dark was a humble play with a cast of four and two puppets, it focused on the puppet of Lily ,which was beautifully made, and allowed the audience to be so mesmerised by the puppetry that it was almost as if Lily was real The play was charming and humorous but with several poignant moments in which I felt myself choked up. The play follows a small girl, who after the death of her father commits suicide, she promises to find her father and so begins her search for him however, on hearing that her father did not go all the way to heaven she leaps from the safety of the boat taking her to heaven and beings to look. The play used puppetry to explore Lily’s travels through the underworld yet used the four actors to symbolise other characters and add a twisted dimension to the interaction scenes between human and puppet. One stand out scene for me was when Lily came across two hanging gentlemen and when she asks for directions hilarity ensues, however there were darker scenes to the play, the truth behind the concept of death is explored deeply, which is significant as for quite a majority of the play one could suggests the puppetry is good enough to be a children’s show. After the trials and tribulations of searching for her father the story leaves us with a very important and relevant message. Lily is offered an ultimatum, she is told that even though she has come this far it is dangerous for her to die so young and that she must choose to be given back her life and never see her father again or search the dead lands and hope she may find him. The vivacity and intensity of the play caught me off guard and sent me on an emotional rollercoaster from humour to tragedy all in a short period of time. Overall, a fantastic play. Thom's Star Rating *****

Urashima Taro

A fantastic traditional Japanese tale which focused on puppetry and shadow theatre, absolutely stunning production! Thom's Star rating *****