WELCOME TO MY WORLD. To 5 March.
Wolverhampton
WELCOME TO MY WORLD
by Christine Watkins
Foursight Theatre at Newhampton Arts Centre To 5 March 2005
Runs: 1 hour 15 mins
Review: Ranjit Khutan: 3 March 2005
Ingenious new play in a strong production.In this, the second offering of an evening of two new plays (first play Home Sweet Home), Ada packs away her dead mother's worldly goods, mostly comprising old Country records, in a small windswept house. It shouldn't take long - but the woman at the window is trying to get in, and the Jim Reeves tribute band that lives in the cupboard under the stairs won't go quietly...
This is an extremely well crafted and written play that uses song, physicality and dialogue to build multi-layered stories which whirl around and tease the memories of the relatively quiet Ada.
Donna Heaslop's Ada is flung from one story to the next by Shona whilst Jim Reeves songs are sung to the side of the side of the stage. Kate Hale directs the complexities in this script well and shows a smooth confidence that is portrayed when the characters 'physical and emotional paths cross at precisely the right moment for maximum impact.
Lucy Tuck's Shona is a childish and reflective character teasing Ada and distracting her from her task. Tuck's smooth physical gestures both controlled and careless - take the edge of Ada's sharpness as she moves around the stage in retelling her stories, shifting the emphasis and focus of the tale we are told.
Just like Ada's mother - who we are told walked into a heap of country albums and couldn't find her way out the Jim Reeves tribute band (superbly acted out by the talented Ali Belbin and Mark Dunn), gently motivate us to join in their appreciation. The songs work well in this play and even if you're not a Jim Reeves fan beforehand, you leave humming his songs unpicking the complexities of this highly enjoyable piece of theatre.
Ada: Donna Heaslop
Shona: Lucy Tuck
Jim: Mark Dunn
Mary Ann: Ali Belbin
Director: Kate Hale
Sound: Duncan Chave
Costume: Toni Griffiths
Photography: Dave Finchett
2005-03-13 10:21:37