★

“their seeming discomfort bled into the audience, from which came a palpable feeling of unease”

Badback Mountain is billed as ‘a funny and poignant evening of Alt Country music and canny theatrics’. It disappoints on all fronts. The premise was ill-thought through, the jokes would not have been out of place in a cheap Christmas cracker, and the music was middle-of-the-road rock ‘n’ roll with only the merest nod to Nashville. Although Jonathan Holloway seemed a good deal more relaxed on stage than his co-star Liam Grundy, both performers seemed aware of the stilted nature of the filler dialogue, and their seeming discomfort bled into the audience, from which came a palpable feeling of unease. Laughs were thin on the ground and the post-song applause was sparse throughout.

One of the evening’s main problems was that it was never clear what exactly we were watching. The vague overarching premise was two friends, getting on a bit in years, going up to Edinburgh with a show. At the beginning, it seemed that we were sitting in on a rehearsal, with a named off-stage sound engineer called Hope. There was one forgettable folky number in this section – No Girl in Tennessee – but quite what the song had to do with The Rockford Files, which our heroes were apparently basing their show around, remained unexplained. Hope then disappeared and there were some drunken office-party antics from Holloway, with a blonde wig and some rubber bands, which allegedly fed into The Rockford Files skit, but then this too melted away, and suddenly we found ourselves looking at a flip chart diagram of the Pleasance, which had now become the scene for their planned heist. If this sounds messy and incomprehensible, it’s because it was. And the songs seemed to have no relationship with any of these narratives, nor much to speak of with the country music tradition. 24-7, 365 was a reasonable rock’n’roll number, but why was it there?

Why was there a catbox containing an invisible cat named Brexit? Why did the two Starbucks coffees brought in at the beginning remain untouched for the length of the show? Why was the show named Badback Mountain? And why did Grundy and Holloway choose to make this a piece of theatre? They obviously get on famously and enjoy making music together. And it did seem as if everyone would have had a lot more fun if we’d all been in a nice pub somewhere, with a few pints on the go.

Reviewed by Rebecca Crankshaw

The Turn of the Screw

Omnibus Theatre

Reviewed – 8th December 2017

★★★★

“a piece of theatre which is both hauntingly familiar yet timeless”

Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, first published in 1897, is a story that captures the zeitgeist of the late 19th Century. An era charmed by superstition, madness, and the early writings of Sigmund Freud, James’ novella is a tale of a house held together by belief, seduction, and childhood secrets. An unnamed governess travels to a country house to take care of two children, Flora and Miles, but soon shadows from the past return to disturb the idyllic setting.

Screw

Jeffrey Hatcher’s excellent adaptation, Directed by James O’Donnell, draws on the universal themes of innocence and corruption, and childhood terrors, creating a piece of theatre which is both hauntingly familiar yet timeless. On entering Omnibus Theatre’s intimate black box space the audience is confronted with a lone wingbacked armchair and a bookcase of old tomes, the set of all good storytelling, instantly drawing the audience in and setting the moody tone of the piece. The style of this minimalist set (Paul Lloyd), combined with simple yet sympathetic spotlighting (Simon Gethin Thomas), is sensitive to the era and allows focus for the naturalistic performances to shine through.

This two-hander is performed by Ruth Ollman, playing the Governess, and Nick Danan who skilfully takes on the roles of Master, Housekeeper, and the child Miles. Ollman gives a strong yet understated performance, lending the Governess a captivating and curious stillness. Despite scenes of heightened emotionality she never loses the audience by venturing into the realms of melodrama. Danan is mesmerising to watch, flawlessly flitting between the sweet and retiring Housekeeper and the seemingly sinister Miles, providing the audience with genuine chills. These transitions allow for the suspense to build and for tensions to be broken, giving the audience fleeting moments of psychological relief. The pair’s ability to add flashes of humour also provides contrast and lightness to this otherwise dark and troubling tale. Despite a few fumbled lines both actors gave compelling performances, using James’ lyrical language and a diary entry structure to lead the audience seamlessly through the twisted plot.

With a timeless tale, subtle staging and captivating performances, Strange Fish Theatre Company have produced a wickedly good yarn for modern day audiences.

Tag Archives: Omnibus Theatre

Badback Mountain – 1 star

Badback Mountain

Omnibus Theatre

Reviewed – 23rd January 2018

★

“their seeming discomfort bled into the audience, from which came a palpable feeling of unease”

Reviewed by Rebecca Crankshaw

BADBACK MOUNTAIN

Omnibus Theatre until 28th January

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Review of The Turn of the Screw – 4 Stars

The Turn of the Screw

Omnibus Theatre

Reviewed – 8th December 2017

★★★★

“a piece of theatre which is both hauntingly familiar yet timeless”

With a timeless tale, subtle staging and captivating performances, Strange Fish Theatre Company have produced a wickedly good yarn for modern day audiences.

Reviewed by Matthew Arthur

Photography by Simon Gethin Thomas

The Turn of the Screw

is at the Omnibus Theatre until 16th December

Click here to see more of our latest reviews on thespyinthestalls.com