MOZART PREPOSTEROSO!, Nola Rae, Touring
MOZART PREPOSTEROSO!: Nola Rae
Touring
Runs: 1h 20m, no interval
Review: Rod Dungate, mac Birmingham, 27 February 2002
True fooling: clowning and miming release truth, enlighten us and make our lives better and brighter: Nola Rae is one of the greatest around
Nola Rae is a great fool – among the greatest we can see performing today. She is a true fool – she uses clowning, miming and general tom-foolery to release wisdom, to enlighten us and to make our lives better and brighter. Her performances are detailed, accurate and direct and never cease to delight.
In her latest show, she enters Mozart's psyche, she presents his life (from birth onwards) and explores his relationship with his music. However great Rae's fooling, each element is based on rigorous research and a desire to reveal truth through the fun. So in Preposteroso!, the story starts with a bewigged Father Mozart and his relationship with his baby son, a delicious doll-puppet replete with mini-wig and tiny red nose.
However, the baby soon has the piano keys under the mastery of his minute hands. An hilarious moment when this first happens and incredibly touching as well – ironically he plays vigorous variations on Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. We see the child Mozart paraded and displayed as he performs for the rich and well-to-do. As father takes son on endless journeys and to performance after performance, we see the child (though 'played' by the simple doll puppet) grow first tired, then exhausted then totally exhausted. We feel sympathy for the child.
Later, Rae, herself becomes Mozart (she dons the red nose). Mozart plays music and composes more great works while he does it. At one point he has so many ideas at once he is literally swamped by great works and becomes tragically (though comically) overwhelmed. . And he has a far from artistic relationship with an opera soprano (another glorious puppet.)
This varied and far from simple emotional layering of the performance is another vital element of its great and universal appeal.
Director: John Mowat
Design: Matthew Ridout
Costumes: Alannah Small
2002-03-01 16:50:30