Where's Peen been?
The Yard, London
Was Peen keen?
****
This is a multi-disciplinary performance
packed to the brim with punch, awe and salmon. It is Fringe theatre at it’s
best; an all-female cast of good vocalists, compelling dancers and a leading
lady to soak up all of the well-deserved sympathy tells us a tale by means of
one of the freshest, most intriguing productions of late 2012.
A fisherman and his wife are headed towards
some difficult times, because Alaska is running out of fish. It’s obvious
they’re deeply in love, and we never even see the fisherman in real life. He
loves the sea; so much so, that his wife turns him in to a fish so that he can
be with all of the other fish in the sea forever and ever.
It
is, indeed, a very simple storyline that is delivered through the combination
of documentary, music, live art, vocals and movement. On reflection, the idea
of it doesn’t sound as great as it actually is – but this production will keep
you hooked from beginning to end.
Unhidden Collective, the brains behind this
project, are trying to raise awareness of the declining fishing cultures and by
extension the life changing consequences that come with it. The most memorable
parts of this staging – in the most suitable venue – are their techniques of
telling a story. It’s a very appropriately hour-long piece that encompasses a
massive range of inspiring performance styles.
The execution of the piece as a whole,
moving between dance performance to monologues and live art, is slick and
effortless: there’s never a moment of even slight disarray. It relies heavily
upon the audiences’ willingness to reflect, which is pounded home as we consider
the fact that the fisherman’s wife is pregnant and (for some reason) recording
all of her dialogue. Some things remain unsaid, which often makes for much more
powerful, thought provoking performance.
There is a whole
load of backstory to this production, which is (astoundingly) the company’s
debut; the co-director of Unhidden Collective hails from Alaska herself and
dreamed of telling us the stories that she was told as a child. Kudos. This is
a job very well done, and reminds us of the importance of Fringe theatre, and
exactly why we bother to see it.
This production runs until 24 November 2012.
For more information: http://theyardtheatre.co.uk/show/the-fish-tales-of-alaska/
@YardTheatre #FishTales
No comments:
Post a Comment