Camden Fringe 2019 Archives - Page 11 of 16

Scenic Reality

Hen and Chickens Theatre

Reviewed – 11th August 2019

★

“J B Pichelski’s script does have interesting concepts buried somewhere”

The Camden Fringe can often be a hotbed for exciting, thoughtful, creative new work that screams out for a larger platform or further development. Scenic Reality unfortunately does not fit into this category. Despite some interesting ideas fuelling the play, the execution results in a hugely disappointing experience.

Scenic Reality centres around four friends reuniting under unfortunate circumstances – Janet (Amy Woods), Lucy (Francesca Mallett), and George (Brodie Husband) all convene at Damien’s (Patricia Gibbons) flat, in response to a letter Damien had sent. There’s a tension amongst the four as it transpires that they haven’t seen each other since before they all went separate ways after college, and that a film that Damien made when they were last together caused a severe falling out. The events surrounding this are revealed through a plethora of flashbacks that intersperse this reunion – and when I say plethora, I mean it. There are approximately ten jumps back in time throughout the play, which means twenty scene changes as it travels back to present day. That’s three minutes between each scene change on average, which is blisteringly quick for any piece of theatre, and subsequently creates a stilted, juddering pace with no momentum. No scene is given any time to breathe or develop organically, instead vaguely alluding to something that’s happened or going to happen and then jumping in time again before allowing any conflict or theme to really be explored.

That’s a shame, because J B Pichelski’s script does have interesting concepts buried somewhere – the role of art in a continually gruelling and dissatisfying system, adapting to disappointment and post-university life, and the way artists are expected to exploit their trauma for the sake of their craft are ideas that all briefly pop up, but the breakneck rush through time instead means that none of these are allowed to establish themselves as themes, instead just making a fleeting appearance and then being absent for the rest of the play. The hollowness of the script is exacerbated further by dialogue that operates only on the surface level, which facilitates flat and low-stakes direction from Samantha Wright.

The performances, too, feel unengaged with the story. Woods is notably authentic, and Mallett and Husband provide solid enough work, but Gibbons just seems bored, as every line she delivers feels disinterested and follows the exact same inflection. This greatly dampens the energy of the piece, resulting in a protagonist that the audience simply cannot invest in.

Scenic Reality clearly has good intentions – its representation of a non-binary character, for instance, is mature and exemplary. It makes it all the more of a letdown that the rest of the play feels comparatively immature and undercooked.

Reviewed by Tom Francis

Photography by J B Pichelski

Scenic Reality

Hen and Chickens Theatre as part of Camden Fringe 2019

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Abducting Diana | ★★★½ | March 2018

Isaac Saddlesore & the Witches of Drenn | ★★★★ | April 2018

I Will Miss you When You’re Gone | ★★½ | September 2018

Mojo | ★★ | November 2018

Hawk | ★★★ | December 2018

Not Quite | ★★★ | February 2019

The First Modern Man | ★★★ | February 2019

The Dysfunckshonalz! | ★★★★★ | May 2019

No One Likes Us | ★★★ | August 2019

Vice | ★★½ | July 2019

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The Indecent Musings Of Miss Doncaster 2007

Lion and Unicorn Theatre

Reviewed – 10th August 2019

★★★½

“Some lines are stellar but the occasional too-easy joke could be lost without ill effect”

2007 was a big year. The first iPhone hit the shelves, as did the last Harry Potter book. We got Gordon Brown as PM. And, in Doncaster, our ‘Miss Donny’ is crowned Miss Doncaster, with the sash and tiara to prove it. A starry start indeed – but The Indecent Musings of Miss Doncaster 2007 shows what happens next. And, spoiler alert: this is where the glamour ends.

The one-hander, written and performed by Annabel York, spans confessional, spoken word and stand-up, and although just how biographical it is isn’t clear, it’s hard not to see it as intimate. Staging (design by Elle Loudon) supports this; lighting and choreography are exceptional. The sound design (Jacob Welsh) is terrific; scenes of Donny dancing work brilliantly, with clever and thoughtful music choices and just the odd scene where the sound levels are awry and we struggle to follow York’s quickfire delivery.

Sound effects are also strong. The gentle hiss and suck of Donny’s father’s ventilator in the quieter moments she spends beside him (and the staggering silence that follows once it’s turned off) are particularly poignant. Given that the use of props is almost non-existent, effects do the hard yards in giving us a sense of place.

In the same vein, Rebecca Loudon’s skill in direction is clear, especially in the detail that sets up each scene – the clever little adjustments to the office chair height that tell us that Donny is once again slouched at the desk at her ghastly office job, for example.

Naturally in any solo show all eyes are on the performer, and the clearly-talented York doesn’t disappoint. Primarily a comic piece, almost all scenes are played for laughs. This is perhaps a shame, as York’s excellent and nuanced acting gets a fuller airing in the few emotionally-charged scenes. Make no mistake, though – York is incredibly funny, and throws herself around to terrific effect. We’re introduced to a cast of characters through her, not least the pageant queen persona, Miss Doncaster 2007, herself.

Garbed in the full regalia of evening gown, pink sash and twinkly crown, it’s this version of Donny that opens and closes the production. This deadens the night’s impact just a little; the opening scene is one of the weakest of all and the all-smiles characterisation of Donny’s showbiz embodiment is less affecting and harder to like. After the journey Donny has gone on, it feels reductive, too, to return to the crown and fixed grins at the end.

Generally, the whirlwind of Donny’s chaotic life can risk feeling a bit one-note; exploration of the emotional impact of some of her fraught sexual encounters, for example, including ones where her dates’ behaviours are downright abusive, is lacking. These disastrous, drunken dates are suggestive of Donny’s vulnerability but that gets lost when they’re unrelentingly played for laughs. This is a pity, as a message about female fragility and strength is suggested throughout (it can’t be an accident that empowering tracks by feminist superstars Lizzo and Janelle Monáe feature).

Scripting could also stand to be just a touch tighter. Some lines are stellar but the occasional too-easy joke (‘I call a spade a spade… unless it’s a shovel’) could be lost without ill effect, and a little more light and dark introduced into those more frenetically active scenes.

Raw emotion does come, though, as we see grief take over from nights out on the town, and it’s here that the performance really sings. Our Donny may not be the darling of Doncaster, crown and all, any more. But a new kind of stardom may just beckon – and she’ll be ready.

Hen and Chickens Theatre

Reviewed – 11th August 2019

★

“J B Pichelski’s script does have interesting concepts buried somewhere”

Scenic Reality clearly has good intentions – its representation of a non-binary character, for instance, is mature and exemplary. It makes it all the more of a letdown that the rest of the play feels comparatively immature and undercooked.

Reviewed by Tom Francis

Photography by J B Pichelski

Scenic Reality

Hen and Chickens Theatre as part of Camden Fringe 2019

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Lion and Unicorn Theatre

Reviewed – 10th August 2019

★★★½

“Some lines are stellar but the occasional too-easy joke could be lost without ill effect”

In the same vein, Rebecca Loudon’s skill in direction is clear, especially in the detail that sets up each scene – the clever little adjustments to the office chair height that tell us that Donny is once again slouched at the desk at her ghastly office job, for example.

Scripting could also stand to be just a touch tighter. Some lines are stellar but the occasional too-easy joke (‘I call a spade a spade… unless it’s a shovel’) could be lost without ill effect, and a little more light and dark introduced into those more frenetically active scenes.

Raw emotion does come, though, as we see grief take over from nights out on the town, and it’s here that the performance really sings. Our Donny may not be the darling of Doncaster, crown and all, any more. But a new kind of stardom may just beckon – and she’ll be ready.

Reviewed by Abi Davies

The Indecent Musings Of Miss Doncaster 2007

Camden People’s Theatre until 10th August as part of Camden Fringe 2019

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue: