I’LL BE BERT To 31 August.

Edinburgh Fringe.

I’LL BE BERT
by Bill Cronshaw.

Dreamshed Theatre Company at Theatre 3 (venue 112) of The Space@Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh To 31 August 2009.
Runs 1hr No interval.

TICKETS: 0845 508 8515.
www.edfringe.com
Review: Mark Courtice 25 August.
The Goalkeeper’s place in middle aged angst

Bill Cronshaw 's one man play celebrates Bert Trautmann, a Manchester City goalkeeper who was famous for playing on despite a broken neck in the 1956 Cup Final.

In fact it's about a great deal more. As Britain struggled free of the privation and misery of the 2nd World War the baby boomers were growing up. Seeds were being sown for how we live now; so, 1956's Christmas present was the first replica shirt.

It is also celebration of a certain bloody-minded miserablism that is encapsulated in the Manchester City supporter ("disappointment written in their DNA”). Cronshaw catches this perfectly as he views the side's current success with deep suspicion.

For Mancunians and City supporters of a certain age this all rings bells. For audiences in general it is perhaps Trautmann who is the most interesting. A German who won over the Kippax end, whose courage was unquestioned, he was taken to the hearts of a country for which the scars of the war were very fresh.

Cronshaw 's performance is pitch-perfect as he catches a type to be found in pubs, newspaper offices and factories across Manchester; he also peoples the story with a richly comic mix of ferocious mothers, football team officials and bigger lads.

Economically told, this play uses an intriguing moment in football history to explore the roots of a more universal middle-aged angst, while retaining a healthy cynicism about looking back.

Performer: Bill Cronshaw.

2009-08-27 13:36:59