★★★

“Ismini Papaioannou’s costumes are brilliant, part cabaret part drag, they bring a vibrancy to the characters”

A hand snakes out from behind a glittering starry backdrop. Out slithers a performer, wrapped in glimmering metallic pleather – both mysterious and monstrous. ‘I am Charybdis a creature from the depths…’ their demeanour shifts, ‘and your host for the night!’

This is our chatty, flirty (and monstrous) MC (Hannah Van Der Westhuysen). They are joined by ‘Siren’ (Jazz Jenkins) and ‘Scylla’ (Kate Newman) to perform a series of musical numbers retelling and reclaiming their stories – ‘we used to kill and now we cabaret’. They are hopeful about rewriting history and no longer ‘being a step on a hero’s journey’. These are just some of the pithy and clever lyrics from writer and lyricist Quentin Beroud.

It’s entertaining, a little simplistic maybe, but a fun idea. But from a story perspective, it’s hard to know where it could go from there. This must have been a struggle for Beroud and writer/director Emily Louizou. The second act sees a more narrative driven story, where a mortal visits these monsters to ask for their help. At this point the energy changes, but the sombre tone and character led narrative have not been earned. A beautifully performed speech from Newman as the mortal feels a little hollow, in comparison to the campy caricatures of the beginning. The monsters, who’ve been caught in their dressing room, have shed some of their costume, which ruins the illusion. It is as if with their costume they’ve shed their extreme selves, and are much more human. It makes sense that there would need to be some story, but it clashes with the earlier tone and brings the whole energy down.

This is not the fault of the performers, all of whom are charismatic and complex. Jenkins has an incredible voice, Newman shows stark emotional range, and Van Der Westhuysen has a captivating stage presence.

Ismini Papaioannou’s costumes are brilliant, part cabaret part drag, they bring a vibrancy to the characters, and may be my favourite thing about this show. Scylla is imagined as a dog/human hybrid in an outfit made of wigs, Siren in an underwear as outerwear lingerie moment, with feathers and taloned boots. As mentioned, Charybdis is in skin-tight pleather, part seaweed part scales.

I’m not sure who the audience for this is. Retelling Greek myths is always popular, they’re great stories, and spinning them as tales of female empowerment and subjugation should work well. But this isn’t bringing anything new to the stories, apart from some great tunes (Irene Skylakaki) and joyous choreography (Ioli Filippakopoulou). While perhaps that is enough, the whole show feels strangely empty.

Reviewed on 28th May 2024

by Auriol Reddaway

Photography by Sophie Giddens

THE BOOK OF GRACE at the Arcola Theatre

★★★★★

“The acting maintains an astounding level of intensity, with tiny looks and touches between the cast changing the atmosphere in an instant”

The electricity was palpable during the finale of this layered and explosive production from the eminent writer Suzan-Lori Parks. Director Femi Elufowoju jr draws out big performances from the cast of three, with haunting staging emphasising the themes of division, secrecy, boundaries, and the green shoots of redemption.

The piece is set on the US-Mexico border, where Vet (Peter De Jersey), a border patrol guard is about to be honoured for his work intercepting migrants. He chooses different terms to describe them, many offensive, and sees the patrol more as a calling than a job. A screen flickers on the wall, live streaming footage of the border.

William Fricker and Rae Smith’s set further feeds into Vet’s obsession with delineating the other. Imposing scaffolding bisects the stage, with a US flag ripped to shreds on barbed wire suspended at the top. There are a palimpsest of hidden pits and nooks that are revealed over time, but covered over to be almost imperceptible on first view.

Vet’s son, Buddy (Daniel Fancis-Swaby), opts to visit, for the first time in 15 years, apparently to honour his father and attend this ceremony. It is clear (even from the length of absence) that their relationship has been difficult in the past, so it seems like this gesture may go some way to repairing what has been broken. However, currents still run deep, and the return does not have wholly wholesome motivations. He is revealed to be on a vengeance mission, and is on the lookout for three strikes of evidence which frame the piece in a menacing countdown.

Contrasting their disturbances, Grace is a breath of fresh air, often arriving on stage with a song in Ellena Vincent’s rich alto, or through classics played through an old radio set. She collects good-news stories in her Book of Grace which provides the other narrative framing device, setting out chapters, and providing context. Initially this can seem jarring and one dimensional, but Parks’ piece introduces doubt as to their veracity, and the snippets of fantasy, particularly around a story of a dog, grows in significance.

There is so much circularity and detail in the piece, from names, to symbolism of uniforms and clothing, to ritual washing and drenching, and it feels like nothing goes to waste. The acting maintains an astounding level of intensity, with tiny looks and touches between the cast changing the atmosphere in an instant. The closing scenes are so well choreographed by Kemi Durosinmi, that I do not think a single person in the audience took a breath for the final ten minutes.

This is an incredibly accomplished piece of theatre, addressing so many of the themes that are pertinent in the current political environment. The acting, direction and staging are all richly thought through, and absolutely do justice to Parks’ superb material.

FABULOUS CREATURES at the Arcola Theatre

★★★

“Ismini Papaioannou’s costumes are brilliant, part cabaret part drag, they bring a vibrancy to the characters”

Reviewed on 28th May 2024

by Auriol Reddaway

Photography by Sophie Giddens

Previously reviewed at this venue:

FABULOUS CREATURES

FABULOUS CREATURES

THE BOOK OF GRACE at the Arcola Theatre

★★★★★

“The acting maintains an astounding level of intensity, with tiny looks and touches between the cast changing the atmosphere in an instant”

THE BOOK OF GRACE at the Arcola Theatre

Reviewed on 20th May 2024

by Rosie Thomas

Photography by Alex Brenner

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THE BOOK OF GRACE

THE BOOK OF GRACE