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Review Family Tree, Actors Touring Company and Belgrade Theatre Coventry in association with Brixton House by Tanica Psalmist

Family Tree, directed by Matthew Xia, greatly explores the era of segregation in the 1950’s, where Henrietta Lacks, performed by Aminita Francis takes to the stage to tell her story. 

Playwright, Mojisola Adebayo

Playwright, Mojisola Adebayo poetically enacts how Henrietta Lacks, diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1951, endured difficulty to find treatment, leading her to turning towards St Johns Hopkins hospital, being the only hospital, medically treating black people at the time. 

Production Photographs: Helen Murray

Aminita Francis, greatly enacts snippets of Henrietta’s personality as we see her disgust and detest for George Guy, the researcher for tissue culture at Hopkins hospital, who’d been trying to grow human cells outside of the human body for hundreds of years! We see the disturbance on Henrietta’s face as she dives in to the cheekiness, elaborating on how her cells were taken without her consent or knowledge and to be quite frank, why wouldn’t she!  

Setting the scene, we get a good feel for the other amazing actresses playing multi-rolling parts as ancestors and nurses, played by Mofetoluwa Akande, Keziah Joseph & Aimée Powell, expressing their annoyance towards exploiters like George Guy, and stress the importance on the roots of racial injustices and the disproportionate inequalities in health care who never gave credit to the descendants of Henreitta Lacks irresistible cells and black people as a whole who have contributed greatly to society world-wide.

The set design by Simon Kenny is remarkable, with glowing, hanging immortal cells on a tall branched tree, an expression for Henrietta’s forever growing and dividing cells for years, where every medical centre wanted it for research, spreading vast across the entire world. Becoming one of the most important concepts for medicine, being used for space emission to see what would happen to human cells in zero gravity, created cancer medications, cloned for genes, helped to make the polio vaccine, mapping and the important ingredient used for all vaccines mankind injects, the entire world has undeniably benefitted from Henrietta’s cells. 

However we also see how the most important cancer cells used for medical research, took her life also in October 1951, at the age 31 , never knowing how important her cells would be, until a science writer worked with the family to discover the truth, the uncovered well hidden legacy 5 decades later. 

Family Tree is a strong reminder of what Henrietta has done for the world, and the mixed emotions of this incredible woman’s involvement in science especially, alongside the anger black people carry seeming everyone else can and has benefited from this, apart from black people, apart from the family. Immortal cells used all over the world for scientists research , labs and yet black people all over the world especially the family continue to suffer from basic health care. 

This production paints a family tree of Black women whose cells, blood and waters have birthed, raised and changed the world by preserving her legacy. Family Tree is a vocal statement about Henreitta’s life and the (HeLa) genome, science and communications, and race and science, the history of science and medicine, and how it was built on the backs of black people without their knowledge. The concepts of what blackness means in a world that refuses to accept and embrace true history. Especially the unique story of HeLA, who continues to save lives, giving life, as her special cells can invigorate fertilisation, people till today still report being able to give birth thanks to HeLa cells, which is one of the many beautiful impacts of an incredible black woman who has been denied her place in history, which director, Matthew Xia, highlights creatively.

Catching up with playwright Mojisola Adebayo after the play, was insightful. Mojisola Adebayo, has done an incredible lyrical justice by enabling this play to be a poetical masterpiece, by powerfully executing the realities of race, inequality, health, the environment and the incredible legacy of one of the most influential Black women of modern times, Henrietta Lacks, whose influence on modern-day medicine, is so relevant, it can and will never be forgotten. 

Family Tree metaphorically expands on beauty, in the context of honesty, life and our connection to nature, Orishi, the Nigerian goddess, talking trees, movement of expression through spiritual dance & connectivity. The power and manipulation of a slave owner is seen throughout this play, as well as many spiritual, ritualistic mediums of truth, love and ancestral rhythm which chants hope for all black people have lost, in the fight for power, peace and longevity. Family Tree is full of metaphorical, symbolic and spiritual codes, languages and passion, highly recommended!

This production will be touring nationally until, June 13 – 17. You can find out more about the production and book tickets here.

How to Defeat Monsters (and get away with it) Review by Bethan Lewis


The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre co-production
Monday 10th April 2023

 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Family-Friendly Monster Seeking Fun

Flossy and Boo productions have become a firm favourite with my family and How to Defeat Monsters (and get away with it) certainly didn’t disappoint. This co-production with The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre, provides an immersive, interactive experience with audience members being invited into the whacky world of Monster Seekers.

Audiences can choose between self-guided “Explore” experiences or “Performance” sessions. We attended a Performance session that was led by eccentric Monster Seeker Ramsden North and his eager pals Babbity Banesworth and Freddie North. The team introduced us to Chapter 36, the Newport branch of the monster seeking network. They explained that instead of defeating monsters, our mission as trainee monster seekers was to find out about them, discover new species and, most importantly, protect them from S.C.R.A.M – the Society for the Control and Removal of Awful Monsters.

We were invited into their impressive underground laboratory to practice our monster detection skills. The majority of the experience was self-guided, allowing the audience to explore an imaginative range of monster trapping devices and exercises, with the performers interacting with small groups on an adhoc basis. Occasionally the team stopped the action, bringing the audience together to inform them of a vital update.

The wonderful set design and dressing in the basement space really captured my children’s imagination. The space was full of creative, hands-on activities to help hone our monster seeking skills. Particular favourites included rummaging for monster food that was hidden in buckets of slime, donning hard hats to enter the tunnel of the brave, drawing monsters on a giant chalk board and packing a suitcase for an upcoming mission in the explorers tent.

The interactive elements made this experience really stand out. This style of performance was particularly great for younger children who might get a bit wriggly sitting for longer periods in a traditional theatre set up. The performers were clearly hugely experienced in improvising and responding to the audience. They made a point of speaking with each child and making them feel special by commenting on their brilliant discoveries, suggestions or questions. This was a lovely touch which gave the experience a personal feel.

It was unfortunate that S.C.R.A.M (who had an office upstairs) were back from their tea break so soon as this meant that our mission needed to come to close. We felt that we still had some more exploring left to do and could have stayed longer in the space.

Nevertheless, this was a brilliant creative experience to visit during the Easter holidays and we would definitely recommend it. The welcoming atmosphere at the Riverfront was an added bonus – we arrived early but the family sitting area equipped with shelves of books and toys kept everyone entertained.

Thank you to Flossy and Boo, Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre and Get the Chance for the opportunity to attend this performance – we had a great day out!

You can find out more about the production and book tickets here

Review Mother Goose, Wales Millennium Centre by Helen Joy

Panto
Did you enjoy that?
No, panto’s not really my thing.

Well, I guess that’s one way to end the evening. Not the reply I expected.

How awful it must have been for them sitting next to me and my pal volubly joining in with every ‘Behind you’ and screaming ‘Sweet Caroline’ as prompted. It reminded me of a school trip to watch Jacques Tati films and failing to find any of them funny. Panto is either your thing or it isn’t and even if it is, sometimes it takes a conscious effort to enjoy the trip.

It certainly felt a bit trippy at times. I did wonder occasionally if a little soma was in the air in this brave new world of traditional panto meets … um…. What exactly? It followed the traditional styling of slapstick, political commentary, dancing, singing, inuendo and an eclectic collection of critters, gender role reversal, good defeating evil and a sound moral story.

Overstepping the mark is different for everyone – I couldn’t handle the Michael Gove bat. A bit too obvious, too crude for me. But that’s panto. It’s using humour to cross lines. And give parents something to explain to their children in the car on the way home.

The animal costumes were, frankly, odd. The feeling they had been plucked from the dressing up box in a rush gave them an odd sense of the amateur. Presumably deliberate not only to contrast with the extravagance of the lead role but to give more of the feel of waifs and strays. Quite unfair given the very enjoyable solo performances and by Cilla the Goose especially. And even more unfair given the utter rampant chaotic joy of the whole performance.

The sound was unclear at times and it struck me that their natural voices without amplification might have made for a more WMC like performance and a less confusing and weirdly sluggish start. But boy did it pick up pace!

The witches were extravagant comperes, pushing and pulling the chaos and glory of the story along in some style. Great singing too – really great in fact. Jack was appropriately clownish and played the audience well. Vic, Gabriel Fleary standing in for John Bishop, deserves special mention – what a generous and complete performance. And alongside Gandalf, Sir Ian McKellen, who as Mother Goose runs the show. She headlines this old story and carries it in some style. Larger than life, bigger than everyone else on stage, Les Dawson and Grimaldi combined.

What a bird. And as my mother would have said, Less of the old if you don’t mind.

Aside: dear WMC, tinned wine is not the way forward. It really isn’t.

Review The Beekeeper of Aleppo, New Theatre by Charlotte Hall

Going into this production, I had great expectations for it, because I read the book a few months back and it was so hard to put the book down! You went on an emotional rollercoaster and felt like you experienced it with the characters, like you knew what it was like to go through that because Christy Lefteri is a brilliant writer.

The Beekeeper of Aleppo is an account of a Syrian couple’s dangerous journey to the UK, as their country is undergoing a civil war. It portrays a lot of harrowing events, including the loss of their son and Nuri’s memory is unreliable, as he remembers something different to what actually happened, or what his wife said happened.

The staff at New Theatre, Cardiff were friendly, approachable, and knowledgeable, and we had a drink voucher, so I got a cappuccino before it started, and it was delicious. The atmosphere in the theatre was excitable and the staff were very helpful and wanted to talk about it with us, so it was great before going in. They put on easy listening music when we sat in the theatre and they released the safety curtain a few minutes before it started, so we got a great picture of the set beforehand.

There was a cloth used as a wall (which was brought down close to the end of the show), two windows and an open door, they used multiple sand dunes, a bed (which was used in multiple settings; an actual bed, a place for Nuri and Afra to sit in the back of a van, and the boat crossing the border from Turkey, I believe) and there was an armchair embedded in one of the sand dunes. There was also part of a door by the chair, and it was used later on as a trapdoor, and they projected a clip of the actors being in the trapdoor, onto the back of the ‘wall’ of the set.

They used technology very well in the piece. They used lighting effectively to show when Nuri was talking to the audience, narrating, and they used Greek/ Arabic music at significant moments in the piece. They used the ‘wall’ to project all sorts of things for symbolism or just for you to visualise the scene, so they used an eye to represent Afra being blind from trauma and Nuri who was metaphorically blind, they used it to show bees, they used it when the characters were on the boat, and the sea was projected on the ‘wall’ as well as over the sand dunes.

When Mustafa (who’s Nuri’s cousin) was explaining to him what to do when the bees get angry, which was to become a tree, at one with nature, and he put his hands over his face, Nuri did it, and the cast came on with jackets that were evocative of bees, which was clever. At the end the whole cast came on, looked at their hands and put it over their faces as well which was a lovely and wholesome moment. At the end, when Nuri and Afra were on the beach, there was no accompaniment, or anything else, which was very effective and emotive.

The only difference between the actor playing Mustafa and the character in the bed and breakfast in the UK was one wore a bobble hat, and so the transitions between past and present were not entirely clear.

All in all, there were lots of lovely moments in the performance and they used technology very well to help the audience with visualisation, but I didn’t feel the theatre production came across the same way as the book did, and I didn’t feel very emotionally invested in their journey this time.

Review Heathers the Musical, Theatr Clwyd By Donna Williams

 out of 5 stars (5 / 5)

Following two hugely successful seasons in London’s West End and a WhatsOnStage award for Best New Musical, Heathers is back for a new UK and Ireland tour this year. Music, lyrics and book by Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy, this high octane, dark-comedy, smash-hit is based on the 1989 cult movie of the same name, written by Daniel Waters, and starring Winona Ryder and Christian Slater. The musical was originally trailed in LA then moved Off-Broadway in 2014 and Off-West End in 2018, transferring to the West End in 2018 for limited engagement.

Our protagonist is Veronica Sawyer (portrayed beautifuly by Jenna Innes, with incredible vocals) who opens the show dreaming of a better day. But be careful what you wish for, for once Veronica joins the popular, yet incredibly cruel, Heathers, life takes a deadly turn and things only get worse when the mysterious new kid in town, J.D (played by understudy Tom Dickerson at this performance- although I would never have guessed, he appears to be born to play this role)  becomes the object of her affection. Although Veronica hates the school bullies who have made her life hell for so long, she didn’t exactly have murder in mind until…

On arrival to the auditorium, we are greeted with a scenic canvas of the outside of Westerberg High, a fictional high school in the fictional town of Sherwood, Ohio, complete with American flags, mascot (a rottweiler nonetheless) and school logo. The stage is set, and we’re transported back to high school, where the popular kids get their kicks by name-calling, wedgie-giving and lunch-tray throwing (cue fantastic musical number in the canteen, cleverly choreographed with said props).

It’s not often that a musical deals with such dark issues- bullying, suicide, sexual assault, rape, and murder. And yet, the play-off between the darkness and the comedy is perfectly balanced. Where a musical can move between a devasting double funeral, to a song about loving your ‘dead, gay son’ you know it’s on to a winner! The music is memorable, with high-energy routines as well as huge power ballads and although not a hugely dance-heavy show, what dance there is proves fun and punchy and the slow-motion fight routines work wonderfully, allowing for plenty of laughs.

Heather Chandler, Heather Duke, and Heather McNamara are played by Verity Thompson, Elise Zavou and Billie Bowman respectively, and what a trio! The girl band of the piece if you will, no more so than during ‘Candy Store’. This number requires big vocals and slick movement and all three certainly deliver. The Heathers ‘look’ is also to be commended. Despite their bright, bold colours these girls are nothing but dark and manipulative, a clever contrast, and there’s something particularly stand out about Verity Thompson with her bleached blonde hair, donning her blood red skirt and blazer. She’s clearly the leader of the pack and the costumes go a long way, throughout the production, in portraying each character- from the hippie teacher to the preppy stud.

The whole creative team must be celebrated for bringing this fabulous musical to life. It truly is a tour-de-force- the cast, the music and lyrics, the choreography, the set, the lighting, the costumes: I simply couldn’t fault it. It’s worth noting that the show has been given an age recommendation of 14+ due to some of the language and mature themes. However, if you want an unforgettable night out at the theatre then Heathers the Musical is definitely for you!

Heathers the Musical finishes its run at Theatr Clwyd on Saturday April 1st and continues on to the Theatre Royal in Plymouth from April 4th to the 8th. The tour finishes its run at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford on October 21st.

To find out more about Heathers the Musical and to book tickets for the tour please visit here

Theatr Clwyd, Mold

Thursday March 30th to Saturday April 1st 

Cast:

Veronica: Jenna Innes

Jason ‘J.D’ Dean: Jacob Fowler

Heather Chandler: Verity Thompson

Heather Duke: Elise Zavou

Heather McNamara/Dance Captain: Billie Bowman

Martha Dunnstock: Kingsley Morton

Kurt Kelly: Alex Woodward

Ram Sweeney: Morgan Jackson

Ms. Fleming/Veronica’s Mum: Katie Paine

Kurt’s Dad/Veronica’s Dad/Principal Gowan/Resident Director: Jay Bryce

Ram’s Dad/Big Bud Dean/Coach Ripper: Conor McFarlane

Beleaguered Geek: Tom Dickerson

Midwestern Surfer Punk: Lizzie Emery

New Wave Party Girl: Eliza Bowden

Drama Club Drama Queen: Eleanor Walsh

Young Republicanette: Summer Priest

Stoner Chick: Maeve Byrne

Hipster Dork/Officer: Liam Dean

Preppy Stud/Officer: Markus Sodergren

Creative:

Producers: Bill Kenwright & Paul Taylor-Mills

Writers: Laurence O’Keefe & Kevin Murphy

Director: Andy Fickman

Choreographer: Gary Lloyd

Assistant Choreographer: Christopher Parkinson

Design: David Shields

Lighting: Ben Cracknell

Sound: Dan Samson

Musical Director: Will Joy

Review Dialogues of the Carmelites, David Seligman Opera School, RWCMD Sherman Theatre by James Ellis  

 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

A review of Poulenc’s second opera, presented by the performers of the David Seligman Opera School, Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Sung in English.

Francis Poulenc, the bisexual, French composer is known for a lot of things. His cheery music covers broad strokes in his canon, yet his masterpiece remains Dialogues des Carmélites. This fictionalised take on the Martyrs of Compiègne makes for a fittingly, great opera, though it is not without it’s slight flaws. 

Poulenc fashioned this fine work with scuttling rhythms, tributes to Catholic chants and a fine ensemble of large female voices. In France, The Reign of Terror saw many types of people executed for different reasons, for this warped cause. In what is one of the most lamentable moments in their history, the nuns of the Carmel of Compiègne are sentenced to death. The opera famously ends with each one of them getting the guillotine…

The students of the Royal Welsh College and Music and Drama deliver fine vocals and a stellar orchestra of 60 players also impress. A very bouncy James Southall remained spirited and rigorous throughout this near three hours. A long first half, left us taking a break in the middle of the second act and the English translation remaining mostly audible, a rarity in opera. Director Rachael Hewer kept most of the faith in setting, though couldn’t resist some brief, subversive moments. 

Stella Sifan Chen makes a production of arches, candles and the colours of the French flag looming over the proceedings. Costumes by Shane Erikson are of the era and a nice touch see’s each of the nuns adorned with their personal, golden halos to remind us of their sainthood (they were beatified in 1906 by Pope Pius X).

The cast is filled with vast promise and far too many to mention in an idle review.  Easy to get confused with which sister is which, but all the cast had Mary on their side, some angular moments of blocking also effective for the space. 

The executions themselves were more of an axe affair then the guillotine, a white screen fell for the entire last scene and blast of harsh light from James Blakeman got each nun on the block at sonic speed. I should be more moved at this final agony, yet I’ve always thought Poulenc could have lost himself even more in this wallowing tableaux, piercing moments throughout the opera prove this dreaded anticipation. These students pulled off this demanding opera with might. 

Next David Seligman Opera School is Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel in July 2023.  

Review, Trouble in Butetown, Donmar Warehouse, by Gareth Williams

 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

To see the Wales-based play Trouble in Butetown performed on a London stage was a tantalising experience. This was a rare example of accent and language reverberating around a place not situated within the confines of its nation. To hear Welsh being spoken miles from home in front of a multicultural audience where English was the common denominator was both a surprise and a delight. When coupled with the intimacy of the Donmar, where the audience are immersed right in the action, the familiar phrases, said without translation or explanation, made for an authentic performance that was unexpected but welcome.

The scenery and costume added well to the verisimilitude, transporting us all into the living room of an illegal boarding house in wartime Cardiff. Credit must also go to the dialect coaches who have worked wonders with a cast of mixed nationalities, Sarah Parish among them who, as the matriarch Gwyneth, delivers a voice of which those in the Valleys would be proud. She may be the star name in this production but the star performance goes to young Rosie Ekenna as Georgie. Making her debut on stage, her confident and agile performance belies her nine years of age. She produces a character that is full of attitude and vigour; tough as nails, and a quick wit which is keenly delivered. Her relationship with Samuel Adewunmi, who plays American GI Nate, wanted for the murder of a fellow soldier, is especially wonderful, the two bouncing off one another as equals in both their dialogue and action.

Rita Bernard-Shaw also shines as Connie, an aspiring singer, whose stirring renditions of jazz standards and blues numbers mark her as a real talent vocally. Meanwhile, Zephryn Taitte brings a much harder edge to Norman than Call the Midwife fans are used to seeing (he plays pastor Cyril Robinson in the long-running series). His presence on stage is always evident though never dominant; a character of compassion borne of struggle and hardship. His inclusion, alongside fellow immigrant worker Dullah (Zaqi Ismail), means that Trouble in Butetown portrays what the programme calls the “cosmopolitan community with seafarers from all around the world making Cardiff their home”. In doing so, it cannot help but include racial tensions which, though localised, speak to universal issues, giving voice not only to past generations but present struggles too. This is a story not only of Tiger Bay but contemporary Britain too.

There is a feeling at the end of the play that what has been witnessed is a celebration of diversity. It presents Wales’ capital city as a place of welcome and integration that belies the historical notion of a homogenously white population. It also presents the cultural importance not only of BAME identities but the native language of the nation, included here not as statement or stereotype but as real expression of lived experience both then and now. It challenges the notion, still prevalent in wider society, that Welsh is a ‘dead’ language. Trouble in Butetown plays a small part in taking it beyond the border, and in doing so, communicates cultural inclusion on several fronts.

Trouble in Butetown premiered at the Donmar Warehouse between 10th February & 25th March 2023.

Reviewed by
Gareth Williams

Review Frederic Rzewski: Late Piano Works, Bobby Mitchel, Naxos by James Ellis

Image Juyang Chen

Frederic Rzewski, composer
Bobby Mitchell, piano

Late Piano Works (Naxos)

 out of 5 stars (2 / 5)

We lost Frederic Rzewski back in 2021, a maverick American composer who utilised the piano for shocking purposes. In this puzzling recording thanks to the ardent efforts of Bobby Mitchel, we hear some more of the composer’s strange, recent offerings.

Excerpts from Dreams have a ghost of Bach lying within them, pretty harsh at times. His War Songs have a rambunctious nature to it, a mashing up of various songs from his home land. Very easy to point out the similarities to Charles Ives, that titan of musical invocations whom Rzewski does owe a lot. Winter Nights has strange momentums and little of pleasure other than some attacks on the keys. Saints and Sinners starts of feeling like Erik Satie in character, the ironic side of Rzewski never far away. Through it all there was very little to be surprised with in this recording, though I do admire Bobby’s commitment.

Out now on Naxos label, CD and digital download.

Review National Theatre Wales, The Cost of Living, Swansea Grand Theatre by Charlotte Hall.

 out of 5 stars (3 / 5)

National Theatre Wales latest production consisted of three part theatre experience called ‘The Cost of Living’. The first part, which only 50 people that have paid for the main part, could come to, if they wanted to, was a discussion with politicians and council leaders where they heard the public’s opinion, on the cost-of-living crisis and what people in power can do to help (which I didn’t attend, therefore I can’t comment on that part). The third part was protest music by Minas, but I will not comment on this because I am going to discuss the piece of theatre.

Credit Kirsten McTernan

The second part K and the Cost of Living was a theatre performance, which is an adaptation (by Emily White) of the play The Trial by Franz Kafka. The narrative tells the story of an innocent man who is arrested, but is still allowed to live his life. He doesn’t really get the chance to prove his innocence and at the end of the play he is killed. This adaptation was very similar to the original (although I have read, not seen, the original play) and it was an interesting take on it. I thought it was a good adaptation, and was well-modernised, but there were some things that were confusing and that didn’t make it a 5-star performance.

Credit Kirsten McTernan

Eerie music was played before the performance, and then at the start of the play, they brought up the curtain a little bit. Then we had two people crawling towards the centre of the stage, drawing chalk on the floor, the curtain went down, and the music restarted. Then the curtain came up a bit more than the last time and there were two more people. The curtain came down, and the next time it came up all of the actors were on the floor, and the others joined in to do interpretative movement, which was like they were puppets and their body parts were moving outside of their control. They made it as if nothing had happened and the lights were still on between the curtains going up and down, which was a very interesting start, but it didn’t seem to have relevance to it.

Credit Kirsten McTernan

There was a diverse cast and several actors played the role Josef K, the main character, which I thought was a lovely modern turn to it. They had actor Gruffudd Gyln to play Josef K, then a transgender character, played by actor Joni Ayton-Kent, then another character played by Lucy Ellinson, and the last Josef K was played by Kel Matsena. That added another modern twist and showed people from different backgrounds which represented National Theatre Wales themselves because they are a diverse organisation. It does potentially sound confusing, having four actors playing one character, but the way that they made the transition made it very easy to know which was Josef K. It was at significant part of the story that the whole cast came together to dance and the one in the centre was swapped for the next Josef K. All the actors multi-rolled, and it was very well executed, they were all excellent actors. Sound and lighting was used very powerfully to demonstrate their points, but I felt the parts of movement weren’t necessary and were a bit show-offy, something to add to make it ‘more modern’.

Credit Kirsten McTernan

In terms of the main narrative, the company made a theatrical point of having the power cut off, and the landlady (Mrs Grubach) shouting to one of the tenants to put money in the meter. There was a protest before Josef K goes to work in the bank, with ‘enough is enough’ and ‘freeze the prices not the poor’ on placards. At another point Josef K gave a signature to a petition, but that was pretty much all the references to ‘the cost of living’. I felt the main point of the adaptation was to show how the government and people in power don’t understand, and show prejudice against working class people or minority groups, and about how we give all of our information away through data with our technology. It felt like the company had toyed with the phrase ‘the cost of living’, to mean
something different, being that the price you must pay for living is to have a lack of freedom and prejudice and inequality against you. This felt out of touch with what was advertised and instead this production was a modern take on what life is like.

NTW wanted people who actually struggle with the cost of living to see the production, but the cheapest price for a ticket was £8.00, which doesn’t reach their supposed target audience.

I thought the adaptation of The Trial was well done and the actors were brilliant, however I don’t see the connection to the cost of living, as in struggling to find money to eat and choosing between heat and eating, I think it was falsely advertised in that way, and there were parts that I felt were put in just to say it was modern, but didn’t really fit well with the rest of the production such as the dance/ movement sequences.

Review Hansel & Gretel, Mid Wales Opera, Riverfront Theatre, Newport by James Ellis

Photo credit Matthew Williams Ellis

 out of 5 stars (3 / 5)

From Bristol to Newport, I got around this week for reviews and other endeavours. I’ve a soft spot for Engelbert Humperdinck’s take on the Brothers Grimm story of Hansel and Gretel and Mid Wales Opera seemed up for the challenge. 

With their last night in Newport, things felt pretty tight for this showing, though a brief hiccup in the overture for the horn was as clear as day. This reduced orchestra had an easy time with the scores thanks to its approachableness and clarity. Conductor Jonathan Lyness kept it all together like a fine gingerbread house, compelling and fun. Written by the composer’s sister Adelheid Wette, David Pountey’s winking translation works well from his time with English and Welsh National Opera (the latter the bench mark from Richard Jones superb staging.) The easy fall back upon setting this in the 1980s are as standard now, though this family could easily be set now with raising gas prices, inflation and general hardships. Director Richard Studer has made safe decisions here: we see miners, milk and a mother’s anxiety at a tempestuous time for UK history, one now miring our own. Sets also by Studer come into their own with the out-house for the father, later turned into the garish Witch’s house, featuring acidic wallpaper and contraptions of the era.    

It’s easy to show the dark nature of the German fairy tale, the first two acts doing a good job in mood. Wales is blessed with great singers and here was no exception. Charlotte Badham and Ayls Mererid Roberts are fine leads, though the former has been given a costume which gives the appearance of a slubby middle aged man, as apposed to a boy. Phillip Smith as the Father is in proud voice which roars everything he vocalises, a fine highlight. Rebecca Afonwy-Jones as both the Mother and Witch gets to show off drama and fun in these roles, near Wagnerian and then almost light Offenbach offerings. You can tell she enjoyed herself as the Witch, easy to fall into as we the audience are through the woods concerning plot and pacing and just get to enjoy ourself in the second half. Siân Roberts is both the Sandman and Dew Fairy, a milkwoman who offers up milk to the kids then later offers the witch an axe, with a sweet voice I found rather charming.  

Photo credit Matthew Williams Ellis

The real joy comes in the Evening Prayer and Pantomime in the opera, as the siblings realise they are lost in the woods and will have to get some kip. The singing here shines thanks to the hushed leads, if a little more push might have really sold it. The miners seen here are Corws Y Plant, later the children who escape the clutches of the witch. They have a sort of night ritual surrounding the children, though the blocking of this moment leading up to it is flat. At the end they too get to sing and have a jolly old time, joining in with the absurd, retro dance moves seen at the start of the evening. 

You can never go wrong with this one hit wonder from Humperdinck. It remains endlessly charming. 

Mid Wales Opera’s latest production will be Berlioz’s Beatrice & Benedict on tour around Wales in autumn 2023. 

Photo credit Matthew Williams Ellis