JB Shorts 15 @ Josuha Brooks, 7.4.16

 

Audiences for theatre are a bit like church goers. They feel they ought to go but rarely feel enthused enough to actually attend. Maybe it's too expensive, too time consuming, hard to follow or just plain boring. Not so for JB Shorts however. JB is the perfect evening for people who want to dip a toe back into live theatre, or even engage with it for the first time. Six 15 minute, stand alone pieces – a smorgasbord of drama featuring a range of characters and mini tales. If you don't find yourself getting into a particular piece, fret not, there's a whole new story coming along shortly. It isn't easy to write a 15 minute piece; you have to hit the ground running to grab the audience’s attention, lay out a scenario and quickly establish characters but, the writers of JB Shorts 15 by and large, made an impression with every piece.

The Intruder (Diane Whitley) tells of a break-in that causes two elderly sisters to reminisce about a past event. It's left to our imagination to decide what happened but the main focus of the play centres on the effects of Dementia. Thanks to the engaging performances of Joan Kempson and Melissa Sinden and the warm humour in the writing, this piece manages to make the audience smile despite the subject matter. 

Two women meet for a reunion with their 'wild child' school friend in A Different Time by Lia Holdsworth. There's clearly no love lost here, as the former class mates exchange fantastically awful remarks and opinions on each others lives. This is where the piece is at its funniest, as Linda and Amanda viciously chip away at each other, expertly displaying the competitive nature of school reunions. When wild child Samantha does appear, she is a reformed character who forces them to re-evaluate what actually went on in the past. 

Office life can be a battery hen existence, punctuated by pointless and boring meetings. This gathering is attended by characters that we can all recognise; the timid woman who somehow became a manager, the disenchanted go-getter getting nowhere, the skiver and the unbearably smug know-it-all (a hilarious Will Travis). Peter Kerry’s Humble at times gets a little too OTT, and even though we know the pay off from the outset, it's a journey of belly laughs getting there. 

If the scene from the Last Supper had happened up North; False Prophet is how it might have played out. Jesus, a fading star with wannabes snapping at his heels and his disciples of fans worshipping a new kid in town. It's a clever and funny idea written by Paul Coates, that the enthusiastic cast wring every last laugh out of. 

Build A Bonfire by Trevor Suthers suffered a little by being the only straight play in a collection of comedies, but it did raise an interesting point about art and censorship. Should the crimes of the creative prevent their work from being displayed? However, the characters and their middle class world were a little clichéd and difficult to sympathise with. 

A Labour Party Spin Doctor ends up in a coma after Ed Milliband fails at the Polls. Fedora wakes up weeks later, only to discover Jeremy Corbyn is the new Labour leader. Paul Mason and James Quinn’s Party Animals is the strongest and funniest play of the evening. Fedora is an appalling, outrageous yet fantastic creation thanks to the combination of sharp, topical writing and a magnificent performance from Sally Carman who quite rightly got the best reception of the night. 

A thoroughly enjoyable evening of theatre in a wonderfully intimate venue. 

Words: Drew Tosh 

Photos: Courtesy of JB Shorts
 

Preview: Extra Love Album Launch gig @ Band on the Wall, 26.02.16

Building on the success of their EP, Big Man, Extra Love serve up more helpings of feelgood, conscious music with their debut album, Out Of The Dark.

With their signature brand high on energy and positivity, they bring their unique flavour to create a fresh style of reggae.


Highlights of the album include the easy, atmospheric sprawl of 'Rubadub Soldier', the soaring vocals and jazzy horns of 'Freedom', and the infectious bounciness of 'Be Ready'. 'Ruff Out There' has a slightly darker edge, but still boasts a nice, laidback swagger.


The deep tones of singer Angelos, coupled with the rhythmic chants of Kuntriranks is the perfect vehicle to express the band's message.


Out Of The Dark brings a touch of sunshine to the rainy Manchester streets, makes your body get up and puts a great big smile on your face.

Words: Anna Tuck

Cats @ The Opera House, 2.2.16

Much like the first album I bought, I will always remember the first musical I saw on stage. Musicals, or music in general for me, had been restricted to VHS, music channels or CD before then. Everything suddenly become so much bigger, and that is what resonates most in my memory. How could it not, with a cacophony of voices and choreography that was explosively elegant and soft; all under a low hanging full moon?

Cats was other worldly, and certainly set the motion for my own stage aspirations. Now, over a decade later, “let the memory live again”. Yet, this wasn’t the show I remembered. The same déjà vu moon had me convinced I had been here before, so why was everything so strange?

Based on T.S Eliot’s Old Possum’s ‘Book of Practical Cats’, the show is set on a junkyard playground where the annual Jellicle ball takes place. We are introduced to each feline friend and their personalities through song; lyrics from the 1930’s poems of Eliot and melodies of composer Andrew Llyod Web’ber. The show has had an impressive life span of over 30 years. Considered as ‘ground-breaking’ when it opened in 1981, Cats went on to be crowned the longest-running musical in the history of the West End in 1996. It then scooped up the same accolade in Broadway the following year. Translated into ten languages, performed in over 20 countries, while continuing to sell out tours; the longevity of a cat’s life holds true.   

 

There are still glimmers of this shining success story during the performance at The Opera House. Sadly, an irresistible curiosity to update the show well and truly killed the cat. One moment in particular being the infamous Rum Tum Tugger scene where we are introduced to the cocky and charismatic Tom Cat of the show. Oozing confidence and sexiness, Tugger satirises the ‘bad boy’ of a given generation, so earlier performances used Elvis Presley as a model. The instinct to update this is the right one, but the result was oh so wrong and laden with stereotypes that came off almost cartoonish! Dressed with a backwards cap, gold chains and baggy pants, Tugger is updated into our 21^st Century bad boy from the streets. Though, give him a slingshot and go back 15 years you’ve got Bart Simpson. Maybe Mr Webber is trying to relate to the Topshop generation, who are also stuck in the 90s.  

 

 

Despite the tone given off so far, the cast are all evidently talented; both the choreography and the score are notoriously difficult. A phenomenal range is required from it’s singers and a fierce precision from the dancers, but above all, a collective ability to work as an ensemble. This, for the most part, the company did do well. On occasion, performers were in it for themselves rather than as a group, sending key moments out of sync. To be picky, in the opening song ‘Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats’, you really can’t have a lyric boasting the ability that all cats can begin a scale in high C, to then only have one cat demonstrate. Each cat has their opportunity to have their own moment, so I was disappointed that the ensemble scenes were not joint. 

 

 

The most famous song of the show, ‘Memory’, is easily the best thing about this production, and thankfully went untouched. Grizabella (Anita Louise Combe), the Glamour Cat, sings this beautiful nostalgic song of remembrance of her glorious past, and declares her wish for a new life. To dominate a song of such magnitude is an astonishing accomplishment, and one that Combe’s performance was nothing short of. 

Cats has one more of it’s nine lives left to live, and one I feel would be the thriving if it stayed true to what it does best. The rebirth of this classic was understandable but evidently unnecessary. This musical is one that has been passed through generations, and has done so with fond memories from the audience’s first experience. Like Grease or The Sound of Music, you can’t change the originals. Some memories last forever, it’s our job not to forget them.

Words by Kate Morris
 

Images courtesy of Ambassador Theatre Group  

 

Orphans @ Hope Mill Theatre, 14.1.16

No time for a clever anecdote for this one kids, I just need to jump straight in and talk about Play With Fire’s production of Orphans. I know the purpose of a review is to give an honest account of a piece and balance both the positives and the negatives, but spoiler alert this one is going to be positive. This piece did have a couple of negatives I would like to raise, the main one being the audience numbers where not what this piece deserved. The second, we will get to later.

 Orphans is a story of two brothers bereaved as children after the death of their mother and desertion of their father. Alone to raise themselves, the now adult boys live in the dilapidated family home in Philadelphia. Eldest brother Treat (James Oates) provides for his little brother Phillip (Daniel Bradford) by being a petty thief, which soon changes their lives forever when he kidnaps a Chicago gangster (Shaun Hennessy).

Written by Lyle Kessler, the script is incredibly moving and engaging. There is a delectable sprinkling of humour and brilliant one liners, that really give the characters some dimension. This masterfully crafted dialogue acts almost as a ‘safety net’ for its actors, for there is no way we could not get a sense of who these characters are; it is literally ingrained in the things they say. But the cast went above and beyond, with each individual’s performance matching the already brilliant quality of this script.

Oates explosive performance as Treat is superb, as he encapsulates the demeanour of a violent and manipulative adult, with an underlying vulnerability and childish longing. This makes it is easy to feel empathy for him when the time comes. Hennessey gives a stellar performance of Harold. Although we first meet him in a vulnerable position, tables are turned when with gun in hand Harold throws the boys a lifeline and becomes the parent they have yearned for. Hennessy was a natural fit for Harold’s fast paced, hilarious dialogue; all the while being the tender vein running through the play. The stand out for me however was the excellent Bradford as Phillip. I have seen Bradford in a show before where again he was wonderful to watch, but he didn't have much to apply in terms of physicality. So to see just what more he had to offer when approaching a role was a great surprise. Rather than portray housebound Phillip as child trapped in an adult body, I sensed Bradford instead create a portrait of someone with potential Autism spectrum disorder, who could thrive and functioning at a high level, but not without the experience and help he’s not getting.        

 

  It’s all been pretty positive so far hasn't it? It continues with direction and production of the show, which is both slick and precise. The only thing I would bring up, was that some of the physical combat scenes were a tad sloppy. Understandably the moves where risky and it’s best to approach with caution. However, with the characters all having such prominent behavioural traits there is a brewing feeling that any one of those behaviours could get out of hand. When it inevitably does in those moments, the pace slowed down.

The standard of this production was what you would expect at The Exchange or HOME, and I'm proud to say it has come from a team of independent theatre makers. So while you’re buying a season ticket at your favourite theatre, think about what you could be missing on the Indie scene.

Words by Kate Morris

Images courtesy of George Hill Photography 

Into The Woods @ The Royal Exchange, 09.12.15

The pantomime season is upon us and if, like me, you want to go to the theatre without the risk of someone saying “It’s behind you” or listen to the same tired jokes you've heard a thousand times before, fear not. There is light in the forest of the Manchester theatre scene.

Into The Woods at The Royal Exchange is an imaginative telling of Stephen Sondheim’s enchanting musical. The story opens with a wealth of fairy-tale characters, including Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella and a wicked witch, all looking for their happily ever- afters before embarking on various quests that require them to go into the titular woods. Each character’s tale starts to intertwine amongst the trees and branches, before they eventually reach the end of their stories, or so we think. Soon we are shown what happens after happily ever after, and it’s not all singing birds and friendly dwarves.

The Royal Exchange hold no punches with this production. The second you walk into the theatre, you see large trees surrounding the performance space, inviting the audience to go into the woods themselves to see the show. The entire cast are amazing.  Normally when watching a show, it’s easy to see the standout star, but each cast member shines, never missing a single beat. Some highlights from the show are Marc Elliot and Michael Peavoy’s duet, ‘Agony’, which has the entire audience in stitches with their perfect timing and sublime voices. It was a joy to watch. Gillian Bevan’s portrayal of the Witch was a real showstopper and Natasha Cottriall brought a wonderful mix of childish innocence, sass and edginess to the part of Little Red Riding Hood.

The cast were just one part of this fantastic show. A special mention has to go to director Matthew Xia, who rose to the challenge of taking this epic musical and fitting it into the Exchange’s intimate venue. This is greatly helped by Jenny Tirmani’s jaw-dropping set design, which looks unassuming to begin with, but soon you feel you are sitting between towering trees and being chased by monstrous giants.

If you are looking for a magical experience this festive season there’s no reason to get lost in the thicket, just go into the woods, …or the Royal Exchange.

Into The Woods runs until 16 Jan 2016 

Words: John Mulholland 

Image: Courtesy of The Royal Exchange 

This Last Tempest preview @ Contact 26-27.10.15

Contact Theatre is one of the most innovative theatres in the North West, consistently presenting creative works that are thought provoking, outspoken and daring. Productions presented at Contact often cross art forms, creating wonderful and wacky hybrids. This summer I experienced Sensored, a day of creative events that merged sound, smell, texture, music, dance and theatre; this multi-art-form approach allowed something really powerful to come through and was a fantastic insight to Contact's creative amplitude. So it's safe to say that Contact is the perfect venue to host the upcoming collaborative project This Last Tempest. 

On hearing the title, some readers may have immediately thought of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, which they would be correct to do so. However This Last Tempest is a sequel and radical taken on the Shakespearean classic, that is equally accessible to audiences familiar and new to Shakespeare. Created by producing organisation Fuel and internationally acclaimed theatre company Uninvited Guests, this show fits perfectly with Contact’s innovative programming, promising an experience which is part theatre part gig. 

Beginning where Shakespeare left off, Ariel and Caliban are left alone on an enchanted island as Prospero's ship sails over the horizon and out of sight. In the hours that follow spawns a spectacle of magic where the spirit and creature weave unheard versions of the story, and conjure up what we mortals thought impossible; a world where humans are monsters and inanimate things come to life. 

With a an already stunningly visual play as its inspiration, this immersive experience is set to be like no other with an atmospheric soundscape by composer and musician Neil Johnson creating a strange but familiar world for both characters and audience. The concept of the piece is refreshingly simple, but one which removes limitations and enables the creative team to demonstrate their overwhelming creative ability.

The play has a strong key theme of freedom and questions the notion of utopia. We have all done it, where we hope for a better tomorrow or have the belief that a different time and place would bring us happiness; This Last Tempest explores what happens when one finally gets what they have been yearning for and maybe the grass isn't always greener. Although it would be easy for the audience to draw political parallels the company aim to empower their audiences to create their own meaning.  

Uninvited Guests are a company of national and international acclaim, melding the lines of theatre and social festivities to provoke and stimulate their audiences to think about the world around them and the times we live in. This Last Tempest is a brilliant example of these aims, which I urge you to take in while you have the chance.

This Last Tempest 

Thursday 26 November 8pm
Friday 27 November 8pm
contactmcr.com

Words: Kate Morris

Images: Aerial 3 is by Tom Medwell; This Last Tempest and Ariel in Flight by Ben Pacey

Ladyfest MCR @ Islington Mill 14.11.15

Last weekend saw this year’s big Ladyfest event take place at Islington Mill.  Ladyfest has been on my radar for several months  and, from what I gleaned from social media, would be a bold, informative and creative event.

Ladyfest isn’t unique to Manchester; similar festivals take place in other UK cities, and a quick Google shows festivals happening across the pond.  The common ideology is to showcase work by women and others who might experience barriers to sharing their work, from trans, non-binary and intersex artists or mothers juggling childcare, offering a supportive environment away from the generally competitive nature of the creative industries, where money and contacts can be everything.  However, Ladyfest Manchester aims to give visibility to Manchester-based creatives in particular, evidenced in the line-up of musicians and comedy performers sourced from an open call-out.

Workshops on offer included Sex Workers’ Rights, Bike Maintenance and Screen Printing.  I attended a workshop entitled The Art Of Consent, billed as ‘exploring body language, verbal communication, gender stereotyping, 'grey areas' and barriers, laws, and the value of challenging our sexual assumptions in an interactive, creative setting’ - which seemed a huge task for an hour long session.  I went on my own, feeling a little vulnerable and awkward sitting alone at a table, whilst the other table was occupied by a group of friends.  Thankfully, I was soon joined by others who had rejected the remaining empty table - unlike most other everyday situations - with another solo woman joining us minutes later.  And this was indicative of the whole workshop: friendly and open in an atmosphere where it felt ok to share.  There was no pressure, no expectation.  The workshop’s leader Chelsea Murphy - a local consent and sexual violence researcher - and her facilitators were clear that we need only talk about things with which we we felt comfortable.  We discussed and we got our thoughts and feelings down creatively through working together on a collage.  I left feeling positive, not because we’d changed the world or come up with definitive solutions - how can you with such a difficult, provocative subject? - but because I’d been in a room with people who wanted to address the subject of consent and those who wanted to support that discussion.

Of course, that particular workshop isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but the sense I got was that it was indicative of the whole day.  Speaking to Carly Lyes, one of the event’s organisers, it’s clear how central the idea of community and being supportive is to Ladyfest.  Everyone there, whether organising, running a workshop, running a stall or performing, was a volunteer.  Ladyfest Manchester is self-funded and self-organised, the only money coming in from ticket sales.  People are involved because they want to be, because there is a need for this kind of event and community and because the inclusivity it aims to create seems to be successful - the event sold out well in advance.  When asked about future events, Lyes is ready with the plans: a larger festival next year spread over a longer period of time and different venues, more participatory workshops and the possibility of branching out and having their own stage at the big festivals.  From my time there on Saturday, the Ladyfest Manchester clearly has a relevance, a community willing to put in the time and effort to make it happen and an audience who want to participate.

Words: Julie Burrow

JB Shorts 14 @ Joshua Brooks, 5th November 2015

Although it’s not quite Christmas yet, I’m sure you have all seen the sudden mountain of milk tray so temptingly on offer, or so many chocolate oranges they surely can’t all belong to Terry. Tis the season of indulgence, (well almost) and were there are those that like to start their Christmas shopping early, I rather get a head start on my festive feasting and in this instance it’s on the theatrical buffet of JB Shorts 14. Best get my fat pants!

Andrew Lynch’s Emily is an interesting story that starts in the toilets of a horseracing event. Janice (Alexandra Jay Jones) is a rich social butterfly who belittles toilet attendant Lena (Emily Fleeshman) for “not knowing her place”. But Janice soon discovers she has more in common with Lena as she thinks. A nice piece with some good twists but slightly dampened with messy blackouts to mark the three scene changes.

All Items of Value Have Been Removed is set in the future where the world’s countries have been bought up, leaving Britain the last standing and holding back from being sold. More frightful Tony Blair is having a second round of fame! The piece evidently carries a political message and one I’m sure is rather weighty, and certainly for now too big for 15 minute window. This satirical comedy could do with a second chance to reach it’s potential if performed in a different format.

The Outing is a lovely piece of writing and one I really enjoyed. Widower Frank (Josh Moran) meets social recluse Nellie (Jeni Howarth Williams) during a coach trip. The façade of this romantic comic piece is shattered with an unexpected twist, revealing how the ill doings and reputation of someone can unjustly be transferred to another.

Another favourite is found with Sugared Armour, a classic paradigm of estranged characters brought together through unfortunate circumstances. Gemma (Jo Dakin), Annie (Victoria Scowcroft) and Andy (Derek Hicks) all eagerly wait in a hospital waiting room for the fast approaching death of their mother. Memories are recalled, and wounds are opened - some of which run deeper than others, but the answers aren’t at the bottom of a pack of sausage rolls.

Heroine is the most poignant piece of the evening, bringing together two monologues performed simultaneously. Though living in two eras the female characters have the same objective; to prevent their daughter/sister from running away to fight in war. 1930s Ursula (Kerry Willison-Parry) discovers her daughter in the middle of the night about to leave to fight the Fascists in Spain, whereas in 2015 Aalia (Shila Iqbal) discovers her sister packing to fight for ISIS. By far the most thought provoking piece but I did find to be too ‘wordy’ which meant as an audience we didn’t respond as well as we should. Particularly the contemporary side of the script was in parts repetitive, but overall a piece that will be something special with a little bit of a tidy up.

Equal Shares is a play most fitting it the comic expectations of JB Shorts. Two wrong women Joanne (Rachel Logan) and Claire (Eve Burley) mutual agree on a vengeance for Richard (Marlon Solomon) after discovering he has married both of them. A vengeance of which the women get to share Richard, but not in the way he expects, a silly light-hearted piece to end another successful collection of JB Shorts.

Words: Kate Morris

Images: Courtesy of Brainne Edge

Video exclusive: Gideon Conn's 'I Just Don't Know You Very Well'

Manchester's twee-hop wordsmith Gideon Conn has followed up his announcement of a new album, Hip Hop Originals, via the London-based label Wah Wah 45s, with a new video to accompany its first single. 'I Just Don't Know You Very Well' is an ode to the tribulations of attempted romance at the whim of fast-paced and impersonal city living and sees the multi-instrumentalist weaving his colourful lyrical tapestries once more.



Wheeled in front of the camera and taken through a series of costume changes, Gideon spins the threads of his offbeat wordplay to complement Bunty's choral refrain, keeping things sparse and simple yet effective, similar to the tune itself. He could be the third Conchord, teaming seamlessly with Bret and Jemaine's whimsical musings and social commentary.

Infectious in both smile and style, there's a lingering temptation to hit repeat, so for plenty more of the same head to Wonder Inn on 21 November to get to know the full album at his Hip Hop Originals launch show.

Words: Ian Pennington

Hip Hop Originals is released via Wah Wah 45s on 27 November.

Preview: HEALTH @ Gorilla, 27.10.15

HEALTH blur the lines between art, virtual reality and the tangible world. Producing a sound that blasts itself past pigeonholes and genres, they instead create a new movement, floating in a realm where the unreal becomes real and the darkest depths of the human mind are projected onto the whitest canvases.

Their return to the UK with Death Magic should bring a whole new experience for HEALTH fans attending the Manchester show/exhibition/performance. The mystery surrounding their three-day residency at the Echo in LA only creates more velocity and hype, pushing HEALTH further out there into the unknown realms of music and arts. I imagine the residency will be a progression both musically and visually, given that each album has remained true to the ethos of transgression, sounds, contorted reality and the deliverance of their art.

I am intrigued to find out where exactly HEALTH are going on this ride with Death Magic, the residency, the mini tour, then the closing ceremony when they hit Pitchfork in Paris.

Words: Cameron Broadhurst

HEALTH headline Gorilla on Tuesday 27 October.