upfront Welsh Autumn Theatre: Angel
eases in. Matter of fact, he’s going to tell you about them. Take it away!
It has been a long time coming, and it doesn’t half feel good to be writing a theatre preview piece that covers the whole of Wales. Yes, live theatre is well and truly back this autumn and our theatre companies and venues have some truly exciting performances for audiences to enjoy.
In Cardiff, the Sherman Theatre Company have a very appropriately named festival as they throw their doors open again with Back In Play – a festival of 12 brand new shorts to ease audiences gently back into live theatre.
Kicking off with Radical Reinventions: Hamlet Is A F&£$boi on Fri 8 Oct, the season is packed full of titles that truly tickle the theatrical tastebuds. In this Shakespeare-inspired piece, we follow Evie (played by writer/performer Lowri Jenkins), who is disillusioned, fed up of social media and totally over men for good when she makes a big decision. She turns her attention to books in a bid to find a romantic hero. Does she find what she’s looking for? Well, you’ll just have to go along to the Sherman to find out.
Radical Reinventions: Hamlet Is A F&£$boi
Another title to jump out at me in this festival is an evening of inspiring performances by Young Queens in association with Hayaat Women Trust. These young Welsh Somali writers and performers will share their stories through drama and poetry, offering a unique outlook on the world and the complex relationships that we all build. This show also includes a post-show talk about the Cardiff Somalian community and is performed for one night only on Mon 18 Oct.
Il Tabarro
Another of Wales’ leading producing houses, The Torch Theatre Company in Milford Haven, return to the stage this October for the first time in almost two years with a very emotive drama called Angel. I first saw this play at the Edinburgh Fringe, and indeed was one of the lucky people to get a ticket as the entire run sold out there. It’s a powerful production about one woman’s journey to defend her town against the Taliban, which is timely indeed (though not uniquely so in this particular roundup). Angel, a sniper played by Yasemin Özdemir, tells the story of Rehana, who allegedly killed more than 100 ISIS fighters. Her story became an internet sensation, being dubbed ‘the Angel of Kobane’ by those who saw her as a symbol of resistance. It’s a tense watch, this, but one I strongly suggest you go and see.
Now to Mid Wales Opera, who will tour Puccini’s passionate late masterpiece Il Tabarro (The Cloak) across Wales and English border towns, opening in Brecon’s Theatr Brycheiniog on Fri 1 Oct. They’ve translated it into English, which makes this production very accessible for anyone who wants to try opera for the first time. Set in Paris by the banks of the Seine and performed in one act, it tells the story of barge owner Michele who suspects his young wife Giorgetta of being unfaithful. With a fast-paced score and twists and turns at every corner, this is one of the composer’s great operas, sure to make for a great night at the theatre.
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A Selection Of Highlights We find Jamie Rees in autumnal mood, on account of the laundry list of great plays, ballets, operas and suchlike taking place in Wales as the season
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