This week, playwright Carmen Medway-Stephens’ ‘Bara Bread’ starts its run at the Stiwdio at Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff.
In little Lovenny, due to the passing of Nettie’s mother, the heart and soul of the village, Nettie (Sarah-Jayne Hopkins), is brought back to her childhood roots, a far cry from the city slick fast paced society she now knows. Left for her on the kitchen table is a book of recipes that her mother had put together as a parting gift with a note that reads ‘let us bake bread together’. As Nettie scatters her mothers ashes and makes the mother dough it becomes clear that her abandoned culinary skills are dusty. However, through feeding the mother dough, the bread maker’s answer to the alchemist’s ‘the philosophers stone’, a little magic is sifted into the mix and the understated kitchen table becomes an emblem of hope and honesty where the bread is broken, secrets are shared, barriers are brought down and relationships are rekindled. It becomes clear that the steps of making bread mirror the steps taken in our own lives.
This exploratory narrative of magical realism takes us back to the mode of storytelling where these women’s lives and challenging experiences are shared with one other. Womanism is a term that is rooted in black women’s culture but it is a phrase of solidarity and one that strikes a chord with Carmen Medway-Stephens’ script. The creation of these five women in a little Welsh corner of the globe interacting by creating bread together is the reflected image in Alice Walker’s The Colour Purple of the female community sewing the quilt together, fashioning a unified and supported life for themselves. There is Mair (Olwen Rees) who is discovered to be a larger than life female vicar whose path has faced many challenges, Lara (Saran Morgan), the village’s typical teenage disaster, an endearing young mum who spends her benefits on nappies and a night out in Swansea, Annabel (Michelle McTernan), the village ‘intruder’, botox blitzed and money grabbing and Maggie (Louise Collins), the widowed shepherdess, a recluse who has lost touch with her womanhood since her husband passed away. Despite appearances, as they open up to each other it is clear that life has consumed them all and as they sit kneading the dough together, (like the art of making a good loaf) they share, prove, nurture, feed their souls and grow together.
Alongside a subtle and sensitive soundtrack (with the exception of an unnecessary addition of ‘You raise me up’ at the end), Chris Morgan’s direction is intuitive and fluid; despite the simple home set-up it is a very challenging performance to choreograph. Watching these women physically create this process, you can almost smell the bread cooking. The interactions between these characters are fittingly comical and the concept of born and bred Welsh heritage is aptly personified but the narrative excels because of its strong cast. Michelle McTernan, Olwen Rees, Louise Collins, Sarah-Jayne Hopkins and Saran Morgan bring Carmen Medway-Stephens’ fresh and actively engaging script to life.’
Bara Bread’ raises your spirits, touches your heart and makes you hungry for more.

I give absolute credit to the author Gary Owen for connecting the two stories of current troubles with the historic tale of “The Sacrifice of Iphigenia” (17th century – greek mythology). The story depicts Agamemnon‘s sacrifice of his daughter Iphigenia in order to save the army of Troy. Her name has been noted to mean “strong-born”, “born to strength”, or “she who causes the birth of strong offspring”.

‘Iphigenia in Splott’ was performed in the Sherman Studio theatre. It’s somewhat small and dark compared to the main theatre at the Sherman, but that made the performance more personal and intimate.The solo star of the show “Effie” appears on stage with absolute impact. The disoriented lights on the stage bellowed out and the audience is on edge. I for one was excited and was surprised as to how effective the monologue style of performance was!

Effie is angry, hyped, she’s shouting at us the audience, “You lot, sitting back, taking it easy, waiting for me”, I was shocked! “To – what? Impress you? Amaze you? Show you what I’ve got?” Then goes on to say, “well I’m afraid not!!” Effie seems like she doesn’t care what the audience thinks of her. “She knows what YOU think”, directing the statement to the audience, or as she’s telling the story; the people in the street who see her drunk in the morning, the people who cannot look her in the eye!!

I feel as if I am a person in the street as well as a person of the audience, it creates a three-dimensional presence. She continues to run herself down and  says “you think” of her using cringe worthy language that provokes shock throughout the theatre. She refers to “you lot” again, being the audience/slash people in the street, “every single one”, “you’re in my debt” “I’ve come to collect”. I was confused, in her debt?…The kind of threat like “your in my debt” is something you would not like to have said to you by some raging woman on the street, the character evokes feelings of fear and caution towards her with this don’t care, I’m in control attitude.
Sophie Melville (Effie) is a powerful actress with a strong stage presence and both Effie and Sophie both being powerful, have my full attention. After the first scene, I was asking myself questions and instantly wanted to know more. Why was Effie so troubled? And what has happened to her for her to display this hostile attitude?

Effie is unemployed and shares a flat in Splott, urban Cardiff, with her friend Leanne. She drinks and takes drugs and has a boyfriend that she does not speak very highly of called Kevin. She talks about her Nan. I notice that in the play at first instance and as from what I can remember she does not give any mention to her parents. Maybe a breakdown in her family structure as like so many others in her age group/area has got her in this position? Maybe? But I don’t think this is the only reason Effie finds herself in this position in life. I believe there has been a multitude of short comings for this young girl.
This strong-willed character talks about a woman on the street and there are scenes where she is shouting at the woman and talking about the roots in her hair. I thought this attitude was uncaring and selfish as she doesn’t know the woman’s struggle. It could be the mere fact that this woman couldn’t afford hair dye as she was on a low-income struggling to survive but Effie doesn’t care about these details, they are irrelevant to her at this time. You are given the impression of a wayward woman with a terrible attitude towards the community, but also a wayward woman who feels the community does not care for her, highlighted by Effie giving the audience the finger. My impression of Effie surprisingly is sure to change throughout and this probably happened to the majority of people who have had the pleasure of watching this play.

One of the statements Effie makes in the play is; “Disaster, It’s Monday morning, and I’ve got a brain functioning on full power. That’s not normal, it is not normal. And it’s definitely not safe”. I get the impression that Effie feels stronger drunk but it begs the question; why cannot she deal with her life sober like so many other troubled people of her age who are living subject to social depression? And why are the people on Clifton Street unable to look at her, as she says “Face on I’m too much for you to handle”. This play is shockingly raw, but the truth is Effie is correct, most of these people cannot face her.
Through Effie’s struggles she meets a man on a Cardiff night out called Lee, he was a soldier and she instantly falls in love with him. When she meets Lee you instantly see a change in her characteristics. The loud, brassy, carefree and what seemed selfish Effie becomes compassionate. As the play progresses we learn more of Effie’s life and the consequences or her relationship with Lee. We see in her actions ways in which the playwright Gary Owen links this contemporary tale of sacrifice with the Greek myth “Iphigenia”.

Effie is an intelligent young girl but she does not have the knowledge or education to convey herself articulately.  The consequences of this are a a tragic series of events occurs and we heartbreakingly see in front of us the struggles we all face in the economy and how spending cuts on the NHS and similar cuts can affect us more closely than we care to imagine.
A serious question that is at the heart of the play is  What happens to the people or young persons who get rejected from the system, who do not conform? Are they now lost in system and forgotten? Let’s hope not and let’s hope that there is a follow on play, highlighting positive moves in Effie’s life.
I thoroughly enjoyed this play and can confirm that it has further inspired me to not judge people as you never know a person’s story or the struggles they face. ‘Don’t judge a book by it’s cover’ is a saying that most definitely springs to mind when thinking of the moral of this story. I can genuinely say I would definitely encourage more writing of this type at the Sherman Theatre.

Much like most of my London reviews, my horizon is slowly being expanded to the different theatres this City has. Trafalgar Studios has been known recently to house actors such as James Mcavoy and Jane Horrocks in small and intimate shows. The studios itself contains two spaces, which contain two different shows at a time; something unusual for the West End. There is a sense of the Western Studio at the WMC in this theatre, which is homely and versatile.
Golem intrigued me initially by its’ marketing. It’s weird and wonderful designs seemed out of the ordinary and with a transfer from the Young Vic, there must be something worth seeing in this show with a name that splits parties on its’ pronunciation.
Golem (‘Go-lem’) is a story about an almost alternative world to ours where the acceleration of media, advertisement and gimmicks quickly take over our lives and control us, when in reality we think that we are the ones in control. This is represented in a clay monster-like creature that is used as a servant to suddenly switch the juxtaposition when influenced by the surrounding society, ultimately subliminally telling us how to live life.
What firstly struck me about this production was the artistic aspect. Walking in, the screen already contained a slightly uneasy collection of drawings of families and persons, accompanied by an eerie soundtrack. When the show began, this changed to this alternative reality world, with a drum set and piano on stage played by two performers, dressed in whichever character they needed to be. There was a reminiscent of alter-reality films such as Hugo, Repo Men and In Time crossed with written fiction such as 1984. However, the artistic aspect and some writing had a sense of Tim Burton, with bright bold colours in costumes and set, darkened make up and strange outfits and hair and the inclusion of contemporary references and comedy.
This continued through to the fantastic set – the performers interacted with cues on the screens which interacted with them when needed. This was extraordinary to watch as we delved into a 2D- 3D world where this alternative world petered on animation and real life. Their placement within the set was so exact that there is a skill to identify in being able to bring across such strong characters and interesting storyline while finding the exact point on stage.
The performers themselves were not only some of the most talented I have witnessed, but managed to bring hilarity and comedy to the narrative but still contain this element in serious scenes. Each had an unusual voice, expressions, body language and stance which was held consistently. Turning of heads and interaction with each other was synchronised, again, reminding much of Tim Burton’s animations. This continued through the use of some character’s doubling up – their talents continuing to shine through how easily they adapted to create new characters while still having the overall common stances of slight hunches and strange sideways facial expressions.
This production is really hard to review – not due to any negativity but more to the abundance of positivity. As a performer, my tastes in what I like to perform in are very selective. While I love scripted pieces, Shakespeare, the more common and likeable, there is a certain feeling of excitement and butterflies in the weird and wonderful; the taboo subjects and those contesting a point. Golem is exactly all of this. Long has it been that a production took my breath away as much as this, and inspired me so much. It’s slowly becoming apparent in my search for shows to watch and review, for entertainment and for interest, that the West End is becoming more open to such theatre and perhaps performances such as Golem are exactly what audiences need to take a leap on.
I only wish that I could really do this production justice. It’s everything you want and everything you need.

The Curious incident has become a well-known story not only on the theatre circuit but back to its’ origin of reading circles. As a kid I read the book and fell in love with it, perhaps not understanding some content until today.
The Story of Christopher – a boy with autism whose family has been hit with different upsetting events, and how his life changes with the death of a local pet dog, we see his life from school, to family, to how he copes with the outside world.
It is astonishing that the National Theatre were brave enough to take on such a story – autism being a prevalent disability in our society, the risk of taking on this story in a gentle and respectful way was not only courageous of them but so right to do, to show the difficulty that people with this disability undertake on a daily basis.
The set itself designed by Bunny Christie was beautiful. Reminiscent of The Nether that I saw the other week, there was a sense of futuristic and interchangeable worlds with the use of a grid like box created by projections. The scenes changed, the technology used throughout seemed simple but were so mesmerising, and the performers were evidently well talented to take this within their stride. Simple props were used but used well to create a sense of chaos up to the end of the first half and the second half using larger stage changes for more impact compared to the minimalist scenes.
The main actor playing Christopher, Graham Butler was beyond words. Being able to bring a realistic and not taboo-comical take on someone with a disability can be hard to do and was done so well and, as said previously, with a lot of respect. He was able to bring a tear to the eye of the audience with his character’s contrast to those around him, with how hard he finds situations and events. The struggles and viewpoint of the situation were shown well and really struck a chord. The fellow performers and their more naturalistic roles took this in their stride as well, some doubling up at times and creatively being able to interchange with these, at times letting us forget that they were the same person. As a collective, there was a sense that the intricate nature of the performance needed them to be synced and supportive of one another – the use of physical theatre was in abundance and at times the need to lift and support performers horizontally against walls, flipping effortlessly and smoothly over into different directions was beautiful and well executed; a feat only possible with such a strong cast.
An usual take on this production was the use of live animals. My knowledge of laws around this within the theatre world is naive and so shocked and confused me slightly. It was evident that, while still in character, the performers and stage hands were very careful and gentle with the animals during their very short period on stage. As an animal lover, this again struck a chord with me, helping the tears of emotion from the production flow more freely with happiness and with the beautiful and gentle interaction. The brave nature of using these in a live and continuous performance was also brave but knowing their take on the subject, it was known how well they were treated.
Curious Incident exceeded expectations. So perfectly executed, it is hard to come away without feeling any emotion and awe for the production. It is certainly a show that could be seen countless times without boredom ensuing and something that must be a bucket list tick for everyone.
Link to a short documentary on the set design of the production
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01jydtx
 

The critically acclaimed and possibly controversial in the West End sector, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown was a production I was very excited to see. Announced recently with an early closure, this news worried me in the contrast to the good comments I had heard about the production and so there was a slight anticipation to what I was about to embark on.
Women on the Verge is based on a Spanish film (Spanish: Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios)  written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar. The musical is still based in Spain but with a range of English dialects, we see the story of several women and their lives due to the impact of significant men; 3 women sharing a cheating middle-aged man and two younger women over the dream man. While this sounds an extremely feminist and almost man-bashing in its’ narrative, this comical musical professes much for both genders and orientations, hitting on some stereotypes in a funny way.
Returning to my earlier comment of being slightly controversial on the West End, Women on the Verge dared to bring a new and unconventional musical to the difficult and notorious scene where Musicals consist rarely of productions that are not well-known and usually of whose music everyone already knows, ready to sing along to. As someone who is not hugely into musicals, but is finding slight entertainment in them recently due to the West End, this satirical and broad attempt at a West End musical was right up my street – the music catchy, with a Spanish twist which complimented my love of European and Mediterranean culture and dared to bring out a bit of  atmosphere in such a small theatre.
The set itself was something new – minimal in content but very realistic, the scenes were interchangeable and cleverly done so – performers on stage handing each other items during the change, with the main actress (Tamsin Greig) at times looking confused, as if this World was some dream state for her in a split second. This was one of the many comical ‘leitmotifs’ that added substance to the performance. The use of neon and bright colours from the staging to the lights to items of costumes was simple yet very effective, giving a sense of Spain’s change at the time in the 80’s, still with influences of the 70’s and 60’s.
My main excitement was of the main actress, Greig. As a huge fan of this comedy goddess from Black Books, Green Wing and more recently Friday Night Dinner, I was eager to see how she transformed on the stage. And boy, was I not disappointed. Professing a beautiful and strong voice, it was unexpected and awe-inspiring to hear from someone who I have personally put down for just TV scripted humour. Yet she also did not disappoint on the latter. Her comedy aura was huge on stage and her sheer talent to bring the big yet the small little changes in voice, expression or even these in the background gave a sense of naturalism and genuine acting skills.
With such talent, it could be seen as difficult to stand to this on stage, but all the fellow performers managed to do so. Easily, they seemed to have escalated their manic character’s to compete with Greig’s and therefore, there seemed a bond and synchronicity on stage. For such a quick paced and hilarious performance, it is great to see how close and trusting they are as a company to help things run so smoothly.
Ending the show, Greig brought herself out of the character to speak to us, encouraging us to come again and invite others due to the closure. Her humbleness and honesty, as well as some personal humour in congratulating the men of the audience to undertake such a show and to all of us as a collective for embarking on something a little different to the usual West End, was warming and gave us more of a personal feeling to the performance than we already had, after easily relating to the content.
Men or Women, this show caters for all, whether it is the relatable narrative, the comical scenes or the unusual take on a musical, this is a show that would be a shame to miss. So much so, I am considering seeing it just one more time, just as a treat!

Normally at this point I have the show’s programme at my side, hastily scribbled notes filling the pages. These are what I refer to when writing a review.
This time however the programme is unusually pristine.
Once the lights dimmed and the action began my notes stopped. I gave myself over to the story of two brothers separated from an early age.
An actor and musician, playwright Alun Saunders’ has an excellent grasp on narrative.
It is Hefin’s eighteenth birthday, and today he finds out he is adopted and has a brother, Jay, who has been trying to make contact for some time now. The play is a mostly unbroken journey through this revelatory day in the lives of Hefin and Jay, raised in Wales and London respectively.
Spoken in both Welsh and English, the cohesion is admirable as we flit between brothers, languages and countries. We are transported in an instant out of a Welsh classroom into the streets of London and back again. The sense of place could easily be shattered, but “when” is so clearly defined two worlds exist on stage in harmony.
A bilingual play, Alun explores the relationship between language, culture and identity. Do we protect them, or do they protect us? Alun asks “what happens and how do any of us react when the rug is pulled from under us?” I could relate to Hefin when in Welsh class he cursed in English; and in London he’d fall into Welsh. We hold onto the things that define us, but they shift all the time.
If you, like me, don’t speak Welsh, do not worry! This was never an issue: the translation of both languages is projected as subtitles onto the set. It was interesting to read these and have the Welsh-speaking audience members react to the delivery of the spoken word.
Designed by Erin Maddocks, the set features a metallic frame playground, a swing and two rubber tyres. The floor is covered in wood chippings – funny how wood chippings can conjure up so many memories. It looks harsh, industrial and unforgiving, but is endlessly malleable. Every location is clearly defined as my imagination is invited to fill out empty spaces and populate the stage. But wherever we are taken and however the brothers interact with the set, it remains rooted in childhood. Its juxtaposition with adulthood is powerful. The two brothers, aged eighteen and twenty-five, often feel like – and sometimes become – children. It is unnerving to witness things that shouldn’t, but nonetheless do, belong in the playground.
The lighting and video design by Katy Morison and Zakk Hein respectively is effective, helping realise and define each new world. Projections throw graffiti, Facebook messages, emails, and handwritten letters against walls. Blurred, evocative footage sends us hurtling around on red double-deckers. The simple use of a phone’s torchlight on a dark stage pushes us into the hidden recesses of a room. One particularly special moment saw the brothers in a whirlwind of light and sound in a short-lived, slick chase scene.
Sound Designer Dyfan Jones opens the play with pumping dance music – one note I did manage was “Eat, Sleep, Rave, Repeat”. It feels more like a soundtrack to a Welsh teenage boy’s life than an actual creed. The music we choose shapes our identity, and it is a joy to hear Dizzee Rascal’s “Bonkers” sung first in English, then in Welsh.

Dorian Simpson (Jay) and James Ifan (Hefin)
The two performances are spellbinding. James Ifan and Dorian Simpson play Hefin and Jay respectively, but also narrate and perform all other characters. Dorian is especially skilful at capturing the essence, behaviours and movement of others. James takes us on his rollercoaster of emotion from start to finish; and the two have an irresistible confidence and together they will melt your heart and charm your socks off.
Director Mared Swain ensures none of the humour in Alun’s writing escapes – it is a surprisingly funny play about adoption. She orchestrates a complex, technically sophisticated production, and pulls all the right heartstrings.
The third and final instalment in The Other Room’s ‘Life In Close-Up’ season, A Good Clean Heart is a highly sensitive and enjoyable exploration of identity, fraternal love, and what it means to be someone new.
As if they hadn’t done enough, the good people at The Other Room gave everyone a Chomp bar on the way out. It was Chomplimentary.
On until May 16th, be sure to pick up your ticket from their website www.otherroomtheatre.com
Do not miss this!
Photos by Pallasca Photography

 

Photo by Pallasca Photography
Alun Saunders’ A Good Clean Heart, produced by The Other Room is very much a play for the modern age. It concerns two brothers, Hefin (James Ifan), a teenage wannabe rugby player from Carmarthen, and Jay (Dorian Simpson), a black man from London currently under house arrest, who were separated at childhood and raised apart. Throughout the hour runtime we see their correspondences; their emails, their texts, their letters projected onto the set as they track each other down and arrange to meet. It is a play about words, the limitations of words, the limitations of Welsh, the insular nature of both Wales and London, the bi-lingual breakdown of two societies clashing. The play, in both Welsh and English with the different subtitles running on a screen above the actors highlights the difference in hearing and reading the two languages. Bi-lingual audience members laugh and respond to certain moments whilst non-Welsh speakers respond to different sequences creating a very personal and subjective viewing experience.
A Good Clean Heart is essentially a showcase for the small moments in life, an exhibition of memories and family conversations. It is also an exhibition of performances. Theatre throughout its history has been about actors hiding, actors losing themselves behind the masks of their characters, but that is not the case here. Refreshingly, Ifan and Simpson stay true to their own voices and manage to portray characters straight out of life, it’s as if they are living life right before our very eyes. Ifan brilliantly captures the awkwardness of his character whilst Simpson is not only utterly convincing as Jay, but also manages to bring to fruition through mimic the characters of his girlfriend and mother as if they were there on the stage with him. But most impressively, the duo are not just acting opposite each other, but acting very much in unison as one, despite the fact that their characters come from such different worlds, as Jay, ambiguous to Wales states, ‘Port Talbot; sounds posh.’
The intimacy of the Other Room Theatre at Porter’s gives the production a vitality and realness, whilst the wonderfully designed setting of a dingy playground representing the character’s forgotten childhood adds a potency to the atmosphere. Watching A Good Clean Heart is almost a physical experience, it’s a roller coaster of a play where the actors pour sweat and so do the audience. The story jumps forward in time without an interval or any set alterations and there’s an extraordinarily comic running sequence that needs to be seen to be admired. Although at times there is too much freneticism, too much information to take in and too few moments where the play is allowed to breathe, but that should not take anything away from the overall effectiveness and thoughtfulness of the production. A Good Clean Heart has a bit of everything, the characters sing, rap, dance, cry, argue, jump about, laugh, shout, and most importantly; love.
A Good Clean Heart
Written by Alun Saunders
Directed by Mared Swain
Part of The Other Room Theatre’s ‘Life in Close-Up’ season.
Tickets:
1 – 16 May
7.30pm
£12.50/10.50 conc.
£5 tickets available for jobseekers (proof of status required).