stage
STRINDBERG KNEW MY FATHER
Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff Tue 11-Sat 15 May
Edvard Munch’s topless Madonna is caught in a moment of what appears to be lustful contemplation, her eyes closed and her arms thrown back. At first, it’s a bit of a mystery: why has this painting been chosen for the promo- tional material for Strindberg Knew My Father? Yet, if one considers this is very much a play about the scandal that lies behind culture’s biggest figures, we can see this poster as an open-armed invite into the themes of biographical tittle-tattle and absurdity that lie within this production. When you also consider that the muse for this work was a lover of August Strindberg, the offbeat real-life protagonist of this work, the reasoning behind using this naughty image becomes quite clear.
Based on the events of the summer before Strindberg’s revolutionary play Miss Julie, Mark Jenkins’ Strindberg Knew My Father focuses on a moment of change where, in the midst of mental illness, an epoch-defining playwright emerged. The issues discussed are red hot, with Jenkins describing his play as a “sex war with scheming men and feisty women, battling in and out of the bedroom.” Jenkins’ work tells the story of Countess ‘Anna’ Frankenau and Ludwig Hansen, the eccentric individuals that Strind- berg is said to have based his characters on. The play exposes the insanity that constantly lurks, waiting to reveal itself. ‘It’s a crazy play about crazy people’ claims Jenkins. So radical in its content, it will be fascinating to see how Everyman Theatre allow this to all pan out, translating it from uncomfortable disrepute to comedy. But don’t worry if you’re not overly clued up on your nineteenth century Swedish drama. This play is interlinked with historically accurate details and takes a lot from the theatrical ideas of Strindberg but still manages to promise an en- tertaining evening independently of the original work. ‘It’s a comedy-romp for thoughtful people’ explains Jenkins. ‘I don’t want the audience to get the view that this is a deeply penetrating philosophical play. It’s a laugh and the laugh is on Strindberg’. And, with this, together with examples of alchemy, hypnotism, levitation and Mesmerism, there’s
plenty to keep us all amused. Tickets: £8 (£6). Info: 029 2030 4400 / www.chapter.org AMELIA FORSBROOK
THE DEVIL INSIDE HIM
New Theatre, Cardiff Thurs 6-Sat 15 May
It’s so far, so good for National Theatre Wales. Their first production, A Good
Night Out in the Valleys proved to be
just that. Shelf Life, their second, offered something different and quite brilliant. The third production in the drama that is Year One of NTW promises to top the lot
with John Osbourne’s The Devil Inside Him.
Performing in the large New Theatre, it’ll be a challenge to get a decent audience for this young company. However, with rising Welsh star Iwan Rheon playing the lead role following his recent Olivier award- winning performance in the West End, this is one piece of theatre that you really should not miss.
The Devil Inside Him is the first play
that Osborne wrote. Written at the age of 18, it predates Look Back in Anger by some 6 years, and was thought lost until its recent discovery in the archive of the Lord Chamberlain, who censored all plays until 1968.
The play tells the story of Huw Prosser, a plain-speaking young poet growing up in a deeply conservative Welsh village. It sits somewhere between the world of 1950s melodrama and the ground-breaking ‘An- gry Young Man’ writing for which Osborne became famous. One thing you can be sure of, though, is that if this is anything like the two NTW productions that have gone, before then you’ll be in for a treat. Tickets:
from £7.50. Info: 029 2087 8889 / www. newtheatre.co.uk (JR)
BUZZ 40
DANGEROUS LIAISONS
Sat 1 Borough Theatre, Abergavenny; Tues 4 Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon; Fri 7 Aberystwyth Arts Centre; Thurs 13 Coliseum, Aberdare; Fri 14 Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl; Sat 15 Theatr Hafren, Newtown; Tues 18-Wed 19 Torch Theatre, Milford Haven
Mappa Mundi, the Welsh theatre company with a penchant for dynamic twists on classic tales, return with a risqué rendering of Pierre Choderlos de Larcos’ scandalous 1782 novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Only just suitable for those sweet and 16, this saucy stage adaptation seems poised to rouge more than a few cheeks, and set fans fluttering. Amid the dripping decadence of 18th cen- tury aristocratic Paris, two vengeful and manipulative ex-lovers, the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, idly direct the helpless pawns of their innocent associates in a highly eroticized battle of social chess, as an amusing diversion to the stupor of such excessive luxury. The intricate layers of deception, plot, and counter-plot, gradually unravel through a series of letters, exposing the sexual appetites of the elite and the sordid affairs of French society. This irreverent and so- phisticated exploration of greed, betrayal, and lust builds steadily and extravagantly towards an inevitably tragic climax. BBC series My Family’s favourite timid and loveable dentist Keiron Self stars alongside Mappa Mundi regulars and some of Wales’ newest actors, creating an exciting and promising cast. Tickets:
from £9.50. Info: www.mappa-mundi. org.uk (NS)
RUSSELL KANE: FAKESPEARE
The Riverfront, Newport Sat 15 May
This has been a busy year for the disarm- ing, infectious young comic, Russell
Kane. The Live At The Apollo newbie has
polished off his UK tour, the acclaimed Gaping Flaws, and completed a full run at Melbourne International Comedy Festival during a nine-week Australian tour. Now, off the back of a hit run at the Edinburgh fringe, and a somewhat oxymoronic perfor- mance at the RSC Stratford-upon-Avon, Kane takes his latest Fakespearian offer-
ing, Fakespeare: The Tragickal Saveings Of King Nigel, for another spin.
With expressive brows muddled between the high and the low, the bright-eyed comedian produces a jumble sale of an exciting genre. Against the backdrop of a vernacularly Shakespearian, modern-day Southend, the naturally down-on-his-luck banker King Nigel flits from suicidal solilo- quy to racy rhyming couplet as PA, Donna of Billericy, arrives on the scene. Kane reveals the burgeoning potential in his comic roots as he writes, directs and stars in the highly entertaining duologue against Sadie Hasler (Al Murray’s Mul-
tiple Personality Disorder, ITV1). The
sharp wit of his quill is achingly current, and perfectly pitched, raising the expecta- tions for his subsequent projects sky-high. Bawdy, raucous, fun and what can only be described as pun-tastic, and all from a comic who has already received extremely promising critical attention. This is not
to be missed. Tickets: £12. Info: 01633 656679 / www.newport.gov.uk/ theriverfront (NS)
FUNNY BONES
Weston Studio, WMC, Cardiff Bay Mon 3 May
Hello, impossibly energetic kiddiewinkles. Hello to you too, mums and dads who have used up all of the entertaining holiday ideas over the Easter break. If your young’uns are aged five or above and have bags of energy to spare, there’s a great new interactive dance show on this Bank Holiday Monday. Funny Bones is a double bill of family-friendly contemporary dance. The first piece, DanSense, explores the five senses, complete with spoon covered costumes and water-filled buckets (you might want to wear some waterproofs for this bit). The second piece is called ‘Go’ and sees the dancers engage with different sporting disciplines, challenging each other and getting the audience to take sides. The tickets are cheaper for the early birds who get their bookings in first. If you leave it till the day of the show you’ll pay full price, unless you’re under 16 that is, in which case you only have to pay £6 and get a 10% discount on drinks on top of that. Lucky!
If you fancy making a day of it then it might be worth knowing that as a ticket holder you get free entry to the family dance workshop that’s run before the show. All you need is loose clothing and energy! Borrow some from the kids; they have tonnes of it. Tickets: £8-£12. Info:
029 2063 6464 / www.wmc.org.uk (RB)
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