VAULT Festival 2019 Archives - Page 17 of 21

★★★

“The rapid-fire spoken word is dense and often too fast to catch everything, which adds to the confusion”

Opal Fruits is a young girl living on a South London council estate in the 1990s. Her pseudonym is her favourite candy. Holly Beasley-Garrigan, in her debut solo show, presents snapshots of the lives of four generations of working-class women growing up on the same council estate. She combines poetry, voice-overs, direct address, and internet jokes to tell their stories, while constantly coming back to the question: Is it possible to tell working-class narratives to middle-class audiences without being exploitative? With a recent rise in the ‘trendiness’ of working-class aesthetic – a brand of irony-culture made popular by the sort of people who would never notice if they’d dropped a twenty-pound note – Beasley-Garrigan can’t help feeling her show may be part of the problem.

Beasley-Garrigan begins naked behind a hanging duvet cover, asking an audience member to hand her clothes from the piles around the stage. Once dressed, she comes out saying this isn’t the show she wanted to make, but pitching a ‘working-class story’ was the only way she could get funding. Getting into the performance, she changes outfits to change characters. These women, we learn, are herself, her mother, her grandmother, and her great-grandmother. She rotates outfits at a dizzying pace. We’re barely given time to orient to each character before she switches to something else. The rapid-fire spoken word is dense and often too fast to catch everything, which adds to the confusion. The show is a kaleidoscope of fragments more than anything coherent.

Opal Fruits is a mess, but it’s a fun mess that Beasley-Garrigan seems to embrace. She’s a charismatic performer. We want to watch her. The natural ability to hold an audience allows her to get away with an underdeveloped patchwork piece that in different hands might lose people. It’s rough, but the raw material displays plenty of talent and lots of potential. The hour is as enjoyable and creative as it is eye-opening and challenging.

At the moment, Opal Fruits is mainly hindered by indecisiveness and insecurity. Beasley-Garrigan is deeply conflicted about how (or even whether) to tell her working-class story from the current distance she’s put between herself and her past. Her show will be immensely stronger once she grapples with these conflicts off-stage, removes all of her guilty, defensive apologies, and arrives prepared to stand behind her work. Most artists experience anxiety about representing their subjects the right way. None ever do it perfectly. While it’s tempting to try to excuse yourself from judgment with disclaimers (‘This isn’t the show I wanted to make,’ ‘My friend talked me into it’), they don’t accomplish anything, and only leave the artist sounding somewhat immature.

Beasley-Garrigan has a strong voice, a fresh presence, and a wonderfully imaginative mind. When she decides what she wants to say, and commits to an approach, she’ll be a powerful artist for the modern era.

Reviewed by Addison Waite

In Loyal Company

The Vaults

Reviewed – 27th January 2019

★★★★

“a gripping, moving tale about the limits of human endurance and the strength of young people’s spirits”

Arthur Robinson (but his family calls him ‘Joe’ because it’s simpler) is a young lad in Liverpool in 1941. He works as a packer in a factory, goes to the dancehall where he’s too nervous to ask a girl named Mary to dance, and looks forward to his mum’s scouse dinner on Sundays. All of that changes when the Germans bomb the city. By chance, Joe’s family’s house is spared. Joe’s best mate Frank isn’t so lucky. Frank’s death is a turning point: Joe decides to join the army.

In Loyal Company, written and performed by David William Bryan, is the true story of Bryan’s great-uncle, who fought in South-East Asia during WWII and was eventually taken prisoner by the Japanese. It’s a gripping, moving tale about the limits of human endurance and the strength of young people’s spirits. From ‘lights up’, Bryan’s talent as a performer is clear. He owns the stage, powering through the hour with the sort of ease and confidence that’s truly enjoyable to watch. With only vivid description, some good movement direction, and sound effects, Bryan and Jonny Ryan (lighting and sound) bring a war to life.

There is no set – just one crate on a bare stage – and yet, with the richness of his language, and the earnestness of his performance, Bryan succeeds in immersing the audience in the foxholes of battlefields, aboard ships, and in the jungles of Thailand. The shows at VAULT Festival are at varying stages of development. In Loyal Company stands out for its sophistication and polish.

Bryan’s ability as an actor is well-matched by his skill as a writer. He’s crafted a tight hour. Where many fringe shows struggle with meandering narratives that stall and start, it’s a relief to be on a deliberate, solidly-structured, well-paced journey. One potential issue is that the second half is much heavier in tone than the first. Although this is natural for war stories, a bit more levity might have been nice – some comic relief appreciated. It would soften the contrast between the two halves, which at the moment is quite stark. Nevertheless, it’s an absorbing story and a thoroughly engaging performance. Bryan is undoubtedly an artist to watch.

As a WWII story, In Loyal Company takes on extra significance this week, which includes Holocaust Memorial Day. Although the story doesn’t deal directly with the events in Europe at the time, it is a powerful reminder of the horrors so many young British men endured in defiance of fascism. At a time currently witnessing a rise in nationalism and the scapegoating of outsiders, stories like Bryan’s hit back with stinging relevance. Just two generations ago, the British people sacrificed everything to take down Hitler’s regime. Today there are certain, increasingly vocal factions that want to emulate it. Now more than ever it’s imperative to tell our grandfathers’ stories. Remembering real heroes, like Arthur ‘Joe’ Robinson, who fought against world leaders caring nothing for human rights, may help curb the rising tide of hatred.

Tag Archives: VAULT Festival 2019

Opal Fruits
★★★

VAULT Festival

The Vaults

Reviewed – 27th January 2019

★★★

“The rapid-fire spoken word is dense and often too fast to catch everything, which adds to the confusion”

Beasley-Garrigan has a strong voice, a fresh presence, and a wonderfully imaginative mind. When she decides what she wants to say, and commits to an approach, she’ll be a powerful artist for the modern era.

Reviewed by Addison Waite

Opal Fruits

Part of VAULT Festival 2019

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

In Loyal Company
★★★★

VAULT Festival

The Vaults

Reviewed – 27th January 2019

★★★★

“a gripping, moving tale about the limits of human endurance and the strength of young people’s spirits”

Reviewed by Addison Waite

In Loyal Company

Part of VAULT Festival 2019

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