'Bleak Expectations' by Mark Evans
18 August 2023
I have been a big fan of the BBC Radio 4 Dickens parody ‘Bleak Expectations’ for many years (reviewed here in August 2008 and November 2012). As I wrote here in 2008: “Mixing its metaphors and Dickensian clichés in an enormous Victorian cauldron of gruel, Bleak Expectations creates a hilarious surreal world that could only exist on radio.” Proving me completely wrong, writer Mark Evans has now adapted his show for the stage and last Saturday we were at the Criterion Theatre in London to see it. The stage version features a completely new cast playing faithful recreations of my favourite characters. Dom Hodson as Pip Bin has exactly the right naive enthusiasm and blissful ignorance of the consequences of his actions, John Hopkins is ridiculously evil as Pip’s ex guardian Gently Benevolent and Marc Pickering has a ball playing all members of the Hardthrasher family. Best of all is JJ Henry demonstrating the unbreakable optimism of Harry Biscuit who is convinced that there is no problem that cannot be solved with swans (and cake!). Caroline Leslie’s production also, cleverly, includes a different guest star each week as the narrator, Sir Philip Bin. On Saturday our narrator was Stephen Fry - who seemed perfectly cast as the short-tempered pompous older version of the show’s protagonist (played on the radio by Richard Johnson). The guest narrator provides opportunities for some very funny ad-libbing with the cast and breaking of the fourth wall. Although I suspect everything is meticulously scripted, ‘Bleak Expectations’ has the feel of an improvised comedy in the vein of ‘Austentatious’ (reviewed here in August 2012). The enthusiastic young cast also reminded me of some of the funniest touring outdoor theatre companies such as the Pantaloons (reviewed here many times) and the Handlebards (first reviewed here in July 2018). It’s all incredibly silly but for a long-time fan it was brilliant. Harrumble!
Labels: Comedy, Drama, Theatre
'Romeo and Juliet' by WIlliam Shakespeare
9 August 2023
Last Friday evening we were back at Wrest Park in Silsoe to see another outdoor performance by the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. Last year we saw them perform 'As You Like It' (reviewed here in August 2022). This year's touring production is 'Romeo and Juliet', directed by Peter Stickney. The Lord Chamberlain's men provide the closest experience to what it must have been like to see the original versions of Shakespeare's plays - with an all male cast and Elizabethan costume. There are no gimmicks - just very high quality acting. They don't use any amplification, but even though we were near the back of the biggest audience I think I have seen for an outdoor production we could hear every word. We were lucky to have picked a dry evening and "the two hours' traffic of our stage" passed very enjoyably.
Labels: Drama, Theatre
WOMAD 2023
2 August 2023
Last weekend I was back at Charlton Park in Wiltshire for the WOMAD Festival. At most festivals it is impossible to see everything (there were 160 artists performing at WOMAD this year) so you end up curating your own mini festival. I saw 23 performances (including 18 full sets) and this year my WOMAD was dominated by a series of remarkable women.
Liraz is a singer who was born to an Iranian-Jewish family and raised in Israel. In 2020, in defiance of the Iranian government, she recorded an album in a hidden basement in Istanbul with her Israeli octet and musicians from Tehran who cannot be named for fear of reprisals back home. Her music is joyous Middle Eastern pop underpinned by life-affirming political messages.
Marina Satti is a classically trained Greek-Sudanese singer who founded Fonés - a female a cappella group performing traditional polyphonic songs - and Chόres - a choir of 150 women aged 13–55. She combines catchy pop music with close harmony female vocals which draw on Greek and Bulgarian traditions and, at times, sound very like my favourite Finnish group Värttinä (reviewed here in August 2006). This video from 2019 showcases the vocal harmonies of Marina Satti and Fonés: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEs0YJrdjYg
It was great to see the Manchester-born Palestinian singer, musician and broadcaster Reem Kelani again, who I last saw at WOMAD in 2007 (reviewed here in August 2007) and whose 2006 debut album 'Sprinting Gazelle' is still a favourite of mine. Her explanation of the stories behind her songs gave fascinating insights into Middle Eastern and Mediterranean ancient and recent history and I would recommend listening to her Radio 4 documentary on the role of music in Egypt's 2011 revolution, 'Songs for Tahrir', which is available on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b019fxjf
There were two great comic performances at WOMAD this year. It was wonderful to see the brilliant New Orleans-style Riot Jazz Brass Band - ten years after I first saw them at WOMAD (reviewed here in August 2013). As their website says Riot Jazz "hail from the grimy protoplasm of Manchester’s prolific creative scene, spreading unconditional love and irresistible energy across the nation and continent". But what makes a Riot Jazz performance is their irrepressible frontman MC Chunky. Part compere, part comedian, part rapper, he provides a running commentary during and in between the tunes, orchestrating the audience participation, introducing the band and entertaining everyone, all in a strong Manchester accent. His role is also a very clever way of getting round the brass player's challenge of not being able to play continuously for an hour without a break. Here's a flavour of Riot Jazz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8iaBTIYv2w
Puuluup are a self-styled Estonian zombie-folk duo who play hiiu kannel (a rectangular violin-like instrument) and use electronic loopers to create multi-layered songs. As they explained "there used to be 38 other musicians in the band but it was too expensive so we got rid of them and bought a looper, and now we are rich". They have perfected a very serious kind of ridiculousness and the deadpan humour of their introductions to the songs is hilarious. We are told that most Estonian folk songs are about agriculture, or cross-country skiing. And when they finally play a love song it is an ode to a piece of technology - a wind turbine "but otherwise it is just like any other love song". This short video will give you an idea of taste of the craziness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVFFHgqrvZg
I always enjoy the Taste The World stage at WOMAD, where artists who are performing at the festival are interviewed while cooking a traditional dish from their country. This year I saw the eccentric Austrian singer Alicia Edelweiss wrongfoot her interviewer when asked whether the Knödel recipe she was demonstrating had been passed down through generations of her family, explaining that she had actually found it online last week in preparation for this session. And the most moving moment of the weekend was Sahra Halgan from Somaliland cooking a traditional meat casserole while talking about having to act, at the age of 16, as an untrained nurse during the war of independence against Somalia. When the resistance ran out of medicine, painkillers or antibiotics, she tried to relieve the pain of the wounded in the only way left to her - by singing to them. Somaliland has been a self-declared republic for 32 years, with a population of nearly 6 million people and regular democratic elections, but is still not officially recognised by the United Nations. Sahra Halgan singing, smiling and holding a small Somaliland flag, while sprinkling spices into her bubbling casserole will be one of the images that stays with me from WOMAD 2023.
Finally it was a real privilege to see the legendary Afro-Peruvian singer Susana Baca. At 79 years her voice still has strength and delicacy, and her gentle, beautiful songs are delivered through a beaming smile.
You can see a selection of my photos from WOMAD 2023 at: http://culturaloutlook.blogspot.com/search/label/WOMAD2023
Labels: Concerts, Festivals, Music
