‘Hag-Seed’ by Margaret Atwood
26 January 2022
I have read a few of the Hogarth Shakespeare series of books in which contemporary novelists are invited to re-imagine Shakespeare plays, including ‘The Gap of Time: The Winter's Tale Retold’ by Jeanette Winterson and 'Vinegar Girl: The Taming of the Shrew Retold' by Anne Tyler (reviewed here in July 2016). But I tend to find loosely disguised Shakespeare stories in a modern setting, with clever contemporary variations of the character names, all a bit cringe-worthy. The exception is ‘Hag-Seed: The Tempest Retold’ by Margaret Atwood, which I have just finished reading. Rather than simply transplanting the story to modern-day Canada, Margaret Atwood has the characters in her allegory version of ‘The Tempest’ (none of whom have recognisable variations of the names of Shakespeare’s characters) putting on a production of ‘The Tempest’ in a prison. The result is less a thinly-disguised retelling, more an entertaining and engaging study guide, as the prisoners discuss the characters in the play, its themes and meanings. I don’t know ‘The Tempest’ that well - I only saw the play for the first time in 2012 (reviewed here in April 2012) and, although I have seen it a couple of times since, it is not my favourite Shakespeare play. But ‘Hag-Seed’ certainly helped me to understand ‘The Tempest’ much more clearly. The device of prisoners rehearsing a play reminded me of ‘The Island’ by Athol Fugard - which I saw performed at the Edinburgh Fringe many years ago - in which two cellmates are preparing for a performance of Sophocles' ‘Antigone’. ‘Hag-Seed’ is a funny and enjoyable tale, not least because the main character - theatre director Felix Phillips - knows he is living the plot of ‘The Tempest’ because he is using it to enact a satisfying revenge on the colleagues who have usurped his position.
Labels: Books
‘Just One Thing with Michael Mosley’
21 January 2022
I am very grateful to Gareth Coles for (repeatedly!) championing the BBC Radio 4 podcast ‘Just One Thing with Michael Mosley’. Each episode is less than 15 minutes long and, as the title suggests, focusses on just one thing you can do to improve your health and wellbeing. Michael Mosley provides very clear scientific evidence for how each of the quick simple things he looks at can benefit wellbeing. He then provides suggestions for minor changes to your daily habits that could make a major difference to your life. For example, the latest episode simply recommends standing up for a couple of minutes every hour. In each case he asks a guinea pig to test drive his hypothesis. The podcast is very persuasive precisely because it promotes very small adjustments. Some of the subjects are fairly unsurprising, for example ‘Sing’ or ‘Drink Water’, though the detailed analysis of these is still revealing. But I found the more counterintuitive topics the most interesting, such as the episodes suggesting improving your wellbeing by eating chocolate or playing video games. You can listen to ‘Just One Thing’ at https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09by3yy or wherever you get your podcasts.
Labels: Radio
'West Side Story' directed by Steven Spielberg
14 January 2022
On Saturday we were at the Odeon in Milton Keynes to see Steven Spielberg’s new film version of ‘West Side Story’. Often feted as the greatest of all musicals, I have fond memories of seeing a stage production of ‘West Side Story’ at the Opera House in Manchester many years ago and I have twice performed Leonard Bernstein’s fiendishly difficult ‘Symphonic Dances from West Side Story’ (with Northampton Symphony Orchestra - reviewed here in March 2008, and with Milton Keynes Sinfonia - reviewed here in January 2015). Spielberg’s film is a homage to the 1961 original, directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise - and is notable for the involvement of Rita Moreno, who played Anita then and is now given a newly invented role as Valentina - Tony’s employer and confidante. Spielberg also invited Stephen Sondheim, who wrote the lyrics to Bernstein’s music, onto the set during the filming, though Sondheim sadly died before the film was released. Spielberg’s recreation of 1957 Manhattan is amazing, using state of the art CGI to make you feel you are there. The gritty realism sometimes sits oddly with the ensemble dance sequences in the New York streets, and uncomfortably reveals the true brutality of this version of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ with some gruesome violence. The new screenplay by Tony Kushner adds a lot of scenes of dialogue, which really help you to understand the motivations of the characters and explain their behaviour, but make the film far too long. Nevertheless, the music is fantastic (featuring the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel), the singing is brilliant (particularly the leads - Ansel Elgort as Tony and Rachel Zegler as Maria) and the dancing is amazing (choreographed by Justin Peck, with some nice nods to Jerome Robbins).
Labels: Film, Musicals
‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’ by Joanna Cannon
7 January 2022
I’ve been really really enjoying Joanna Cannon’s novel ‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’. Set in the long hot summer of 1976, it tells the story of a small suburban cul-de-sac somewhere in England where one of the residents has gone missing. Many of the novel’s chapters are narrated in the first person by 10-year-old Grace who sets out, with her friend Tilly, to solve a mystery that neither of them really understands. Grace’s naive perspective is very endearing, allowing the reader to unravel what has happened more quickly than she does - in a similar way to Mark Haddon’s 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time'. Grace and Tilly’s relationship is also charmingly reminiscent of Pooh and Piglet. Alternating with Grace’s narrative are chapters in the third person from the perspective of the other residents of the avenue which gradually reveal events nine years earlier which appear to have a bearing on what is happening now. I was a little disappointed that Joanna Cannon didn’t just give us the whole story through Grace’s eyes. The other chapters have to withhold information more artificially to prevent the reader from knowing the whole facts too soon. Nonetheless ‘The Trouble with Goats and Sheep’ is entertaining and intriguing with plenty of period detail from that memorable summer.
Labels: Books
