Where were you on 15th June 1996? It’s a question that we
have asked each other when we remember, and try to comprehend the biggest bomb
detonation in mainland Britain since WWII. Twenty years later, Mancunians and their
adopted cosmopolitans have continued on with their lives, thriving, prevailing.
United. It is with this sense of unity that has allowed theatre company ANU to
ask us to share our memories, and give them a new existence as the heart of On Corporation Street.
Creators of the sold out
award-winning Angel Meadow ANU, have returned to HOME with a new promenade
performance, weaving the audience through backstage and basements as they reflect
on the Manchester Bombings from a 2016 viewpoint. There is no fourth wall,
there is nowhere to hide, the audience are a part of this dreamscape and only
one thing is for certain: The opinion you leave with will be your own. I was luckily enough to be
familiar with the work of ANU after seeing Angel Meadow in 2014. After wiping
away a tear of nostalgia of my first printed theatre review, I knew I had
certain expectations (all good ones in case you were wondering), of content and
style. I have to admit the feeling of guilty amusement at my confused fellow
audience members wondering what is acceptable in a promenade performance:
"The character has just asked me a question! What do I do? Argh she is
still staring at me”. My advice, roll with it. You are going to get more from
the experience if you just invest in the moment.
We are first brought into
the auditorium, where we are introduced to all the potential characters we
could later meet in person. All make their way to the stage, and create an
intense slow motion sequence, impressively creating mini snapshots in the midst
of flying glass and the quaking earth. Impressive as it was, it did create a
pacing issue for the rest of the production, unless the next interaction the
audience has with a character really lands. I can only speak for my group, but
our first interface was a ten-minute monologue with a lot of long pauses; in
this case two slows don’t make a right. I completely understand the intent
behind the delivery; a young man trying to comprehend such senseless
destruction. However, I think this would have been more effective if this
encounter was in ‘real-time’ akin to the other encounters we are about to move
on to. This piece was reflective, such are the audience currently remember that
day, whereas our other characters are still taking in and processing something
that happened a few hours ago.
Two of my favourite moments
came from Jamie Matthewman and Una Kavanagh. In a hot and sticky corridor, we
listen through headphones to a soundscape of recollections and 999 emergency
calls. As I wince at the voiceover recall 180 people all arriving at A&E, a
surgeon (Matthewman) takes a quick breather, enveloped in exhaustion and
disbelief. All without speaking a word. A short walk away in a hospital
breakroom, we meet a nurse (Kavanagh) still trying to steady herself from feeling
the “shaking in the air”. As the rest of the audience sat around the table clad
with half eaten digestives and abandoned cups of tea, I stood near our nurse
host and noticed a vicious looking bite mark on her arm. She apologies,
profusely. She apologies for still being emotional, for talking too much and
for being Irish. My heart went out to this character, a woman caught in a
dilemma of identity and one she feels ashamed of. A heart-rending performance from
McCann and a great finish.
Director Louise Lowe and
Artistic Director of ANU, has created another strong and unworldly production
with On Corporation Street, and one I can imagine will get a lot of comparison
to Angel Meadow. Some that saw Meadow may feel anticipations weren’t met,
because this production in many ways isn’t as overwhelming. Angel Meadow had a
lot to take in, design wise and narrative; it was all very surreal. Whereas
here, the production is very ordinary in a lot of ways, but isn’t that just it?
An extraordinary event occurred to people going about their very ordinary days
and that makes it so hard to comprehend. What I would say, is the action is far
more interesting when we are living it with the characters. We are their
shadows, discovering the same things, hearing the same things, and struggling
the same way. This may not be as feasible with this reflective piece, but I
would have liked to see a bit more of it in this production.
Runs until 25th June
Words: Kate Morris
Photos: Graeme Cooper
