“another thought-provoking production in the Voila! Europe Festival“
Performer Natasha Stanic Mann presents a devised solo piece called The Return as part of The Cockpit Theatre’s Voila Europe! 2022 Festival. With the assistance of a group of international artists, Stanic Mann has put together a short show, performed in English and Croatian, which explores the hidden consequences of war, and the migrations that are often the result of blood-soaked conflict.
Stanic Mann is an engaging artist. She welcomes us in her world with smiles and humour, music and dance. This lightness of touch is essential when one considers that the story she tells us is really one of tragedy heaped upon tragedy. The Return is the story of her family, who have been involved in not just one migration as the result of war, but many. It’s a common experience in what used to be known as Eastern Europe—and Natasha, as she introduces herself—gives us a quick lesson in the complicated geography of that region. It begins in Ukraine with her great grandparents, moves to Bosnia where her father was born, and then Croatia. Bosnia and Croatia used to be part of one country, and Natasha also educates us about the harrowing breakup of Yugoslavia, told through the experiences of one who lived it. At every step, Natasha deals with the difficulties of moving countries, languages, cultures—not helped by petty bureaucrats in each new situation. She has come onto the stage barefoot, she tells us, because bare feet are a metaphor for migrants. This is heavy material, but at any moment, Natasha engages our attention, and our sympathy, with a Czech folk song, Doris Day singing Che sera, sera, or a poem from her own Croatia. The Return will be an eye opener for anyone whose family has been rooted in the same spot for hundreds of years. The Return is also a reminder that war can come back at any moment to uproot the lives of a new generation.
This is rich, compelling material for a drama. If anything, fifty-five minutes is not really long enough to get to grips with it, in a way that is completely satisfying. But given that this is a solo performance, Stanic Mann makes a good beginning in the time allowed. Assisted by director Andres Velasquez, and artistic collaborators Filomena Campus, Emily Harwood, Steve North and Valentino Nioi, Stanic Mann engages directly with her audience. There is very little in the way of staging. Instead, she readily approaches audience members, asking questions, introducing songs and poems in a friendly, one to one way. She makes her points lightly. It is the lighting (Josephine Tremelling) and sound (Chris Prosho) that adds the darker, more tragic mood.
The Return is another thought-provoking production in the Voila! Europe Festival, and an opportunity to see some of Europe’s most intriguing emerging companies and their latest work.
If the work of Natasha Stanic Mann and her fellow artists, and other, equally experimental companies, appeals to you, keep an eye open for future festivals like this one at the Cockpit Theatre.
“From moment to moment, 999 is funny, haunting, and just plain mystifying
The Voila! Europe Festival is currently running at the Cockpit Theatre, which means it’s an opportunity to see some of Europe’s most intriguing emerging companies and their latest work. Chance of the Hunter is a young Hungarian company who have come to the festival with their bleakly humorous, post-apocalyptic show 999. 999 is a multimedia show using live performers, handheld cameras, and a large screen for projecting both images and subtitles. The show is mostly in Hungarian, but every so often the company breaks out their English, and it’s impressive, despite their concerns about being understood.
It turns out that understanding is the key to this ominous vision of a world cooking in climate change. From moment to moment, 999 is funny, haunting, and just plain mystifying. It’s a non linear narrative about a maker of animal documentaries named Donald Tenborogh who abandons his work in despair. At various points in the show, Donald lists all the species which are disappearing as a result of climate change. He becomes obsessed with termites, probably because they are the one species that might even thrive as temperatures increase on our planet. Humans will not be so fortunate. Donald’s thoughts—or dreams—it’s never made clear, are presented to us in a series of short scenes, in which we encounter everything from rich people arguing about who gets to use the jacuzzi in their survival bunkers, to game shows that aim to find the ultimate “survivor.” In 999 survival means finding ways to live in a world subject to random and terrifying weather events, scorching heat, gas masks to help with unbreathable air, and fascistic governments that force a mother to give up a child to be raised by the state. That’s a lot of significant subject matter to put in a seventy five minute show. To their credit, the Chance of the Hunter Company introduce these themes with wry humor, as well as commitment. The performers give us an all too real insight into what it might feel like, living in a rapidly heating world.
Director and performer Gábor Viktor Kozma and the company use the most minimal of set design and costumes, both designed by Zsuzsi Szöke, to make the point. Performers Gedeon András, Boróka Kovács, Kozma, Emese Nagyabonyi, Blanka Szekeres and Fanni Zádor use their bodies to tell the story, helped by video cameras that show their performances from different angles, often in close up. 999 is a harsh world, and harsh camera angles bring added emphasis. Add in gas masks, a polar bear head, and oddly beautiful floating plastic capes that drift in the wake of the wearers, and 999 begins to seem like one of those dreams you’ll remember vividly when you wake up. Unfortunately, like dreams, much may seem incomprehensible when you reassess your memories. This is largely due, at least for English speakers, to the fact that the English subtitles on the screen are often obscured by the video projections. It’s like flying blind, even if it’s beautiful up there, listening to Hungarian, with striking images on screen and on stage, and atmospheric music composed by Márk Pásztor.
It’s always good to get a front row seat to watch what our Europeans friends and neighbours are working on, so check out the Voila! Europe website at the Cockpit Theatre, if the work of Chance of the Hunter, and other, equally experimental companies, appeals to you. The Cockpit Theatre is a welcoming space, and chances are good that you’ll find company members at the bar before or after the show, happy to tell you more about their work.
