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Michael Cox reviews a handful of productions at the acclaimed venue: Daydream, Titus, This Side of Paradise, Wot? No Fish!! and Lauder!
One of the hazards of being a Scottish-based critic during August is the repetitive question: what do you recommend for the Festival? My answer for the last two years has been the same—go to Summerhall!
Summerhall is the type of artistic hub that is in itself as interesting as the art it contains. The atmosphere is electrically infective, and things are happening everywhere. Even if the shows one bought tickets for disappoint, time does not feel wasted. It’s also the type of place that encourages audiences to try things they’d normally neglect. It’s that type of place.
Take Daydream (****), a light and sound installation currently holding court in a blue cargo crate in the venue’s courtyard. Shoes and accessories removed, one is invited to lie back on a suspended white tent and take a ten-minute sensory journey. Going by the comments left by previous audiences, many went on crazy adventures in their minds as the installation unfolded. Me? I found myself riding white water rapids through some Amazonian forest. Maybe if I did it again I would find myself elsewhere. Who knows?
I also recommend Titus (****), an excellent short play for young people that’s part of this year’s Made in Scotland programme. A teenage boy stands on the edge of his school’s roof. Is he going to jump, or is he after something else? Titus lets us into his world, combining truth with lies as he tells the audience about his family and his first crush.
Such material could be kitschy or even heavy-handed, but Jan Sobrie’s script is terrific, striking a balance that feels truthful for a teen. Lu Kemp’s direction is simple yet sharp, and Joseph Arkley is excellent as Titus.
How refreshing it is seeing a play for young people that doesn’t feel the need to lower itself for attention.
I wish I could say the same for Dudendance’s This Side of Paradise (**), a piece that is technically impressive but left me emotionally vacant.
One of my favourite rules of art is: it isn’t what it’s about but how it’s about. I have absolutely no idea what Paradise is about (and don’t turn to the Summerhall programme booklet as there is a printing mistake), but everything is executed brilliantly. The performers move about in interesting ways, the design is certainly intriguing and, most importantly, the performance space is excellently used.
And yet, as impressed as I was about all of this, I still found myself staring at my watch and wishing the whole thing would just stop. I honestly regret feeling that way: I cannot deny the beauty and wonder the artists achieve, even at its most violent. Everything is eerie and unsettling, genuinely scary at moments. Fans of movement-based performance might find much to love. As for me, it didn’t quite click, and it was a welcome relief when I was able to leave the confined smoky final staging area.
What does click, rather wonderfully, is bread & circuses’ Wot? No Fish!! (****) Writer and performer Danny Braverman’s great uncle had a habit of drawing cartoon impressions of his life on his weekly pay packet, images which serve as a loving and moving chronicle of a family’s life. Braverman takes the audience on an intimate tour, showing some of these images while narrating events from the family’s life.
It’s all rather simple. Braverman mostly sits at a table and puts each of his uncle’s art under a camera, allowing the audience an up-close view. But Braverman makes for an excellent host, letting everyone in on intimate details, some of which are more guesswork than anything. The result is a production that is consistently humane, frequently charming and funny, occasionally heart-breaking and creating a happy balance between smiles and tears. Don’t miss it.
In a similar vein, but not nearly as successful, is Lauder! (**), a meditation on grieving and loss. A young man who lost his father to the World Trade Center attacks goes on a journey of discovery. He wants answers and closure, and his quest takes him to many strange places.
The frustrating thing about Lauder! is that it is rather great in parts, but as a whole it doesn’t gel. One cannot fault the two performers, who run around onstage, manipulate puppets and props while performing the whole show with a commendable energy and full commitment.
It just doesn’t all add up. Threads are left untied, scenes don’t connect with anything previously seen and it is hard to tell what, if anything, is supposed to be real. I wanted to like it, but its scattered approach left me out in the cold.
All are to be found at Summerhall. Check website and/or programme for dates, times and prices.
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