Author: laurakressly

laurakresslyhttps://theplaysthethinguk.wordpress.com
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Masurca Fogo, Sadler’s Wells


By guest critic Tom Brocklehurst

Any review of Pina Bausch’s work should begin with a mention of her whole body of work just in case you, dear reader, are coming to her for the first time. Bausch was an influential modern choreographer, working with the company Tanztheater (literally ‘dance-theatre’) Wuppertal from 1973 until her death in 2009. She created a great number of dance pieces, which the company now continue to tour after her death. The shows normally consist of short scenes – switching between passionate dance pieces and small comic vignettes. The tone often fluctuates wildly from piece to piece throughout the show.

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Wunderkammer, VAULT Festival

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by guest critic Jo Trainor

6 performers, 2 musicians, 1 speaker; Do Not Adjust Your Stage’s Wunderkammer is its own wonderful world of improv insanity.

Wunderkammer works by having a professional make a speech in front of the audience and performers, and from that the ensemble and musicians take ideas, stories and characters and make a series of comedic sketches. Think a funky extension of a TED talk.

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My World Has Exploded a Little Bit, VAULT Festival

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by guest critic Michael Davis

My World Has Exploded a Little Bit is not your average show at the Vaults (or anywhere else for that matter). Developed in collaboration with director/dramaturg Donnacadh O’Briain, My World Has Exploded a Little Bit is Bella Heesom’s response to her parents’ deaths occurring within a few years of each other. That’s devastating at the best of times. For it to happen during your 20s will have a profound effect on one’s relationships and worldview.

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Save + Quit, VAULT Festival

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Joe and Steph are two lonely Londoners, and Cara and Dylan are dealing with grief in Dublin. The four young people, in two pairs of intertwined stories, disclose their anxieties and struggles in narrative monologues that are strong examples of moving storytelling. But they are only loosely linked thematically, and there is little that conveys a wider reason for placing these characters within the same work. The stories command attention as do the performances, but the question of why they are presented together never disappears.

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Dirty Great Love Story, Arts Theatre

Richard Marsh and Katie Bonna have the sort of falling-in-love story you see in movies. The two years that it took them to get together are a ridiculous mashup of drunken disorder, absurd coincidence and goofy comedy. So they wrote a show about it. Character comedy Dirty Great Love Story uses rhyming poetry (the language of love) and narration to reveal the exquisitely human and often cringy landscape of modern dating. Though the supporting characters are underdeveloped and there’s an overall lack of depth, the show has undeniable charm that can warm the coldest of hearts.

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This Must Be the Place, VAULT Festival

by guest critic Nastazja Somers

“Home, is where I want to be / Pick me up and turn around / I feel numb, born with a week heart/ I guess I must be having fun”

David Byrne’s lyrics to ‘This Must Be the Place’, one of the biggest hits from Talking Heads, can be easily seen as the inspiration for the production of This Must Be the Place which, after playing at the Latitude Festival, is now at VAULT Festival. Acclaimed playwrights Brad Birch and Kenneth Emson target the themes of loneliness and belonging in a moving and captivating way. However, whilst the piece is also beautifully acted and directed, it lacks a certain precision in conveying its message.

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Hearing Things, VAULT Festival

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by guest critic Martin Pettitt

The subject of mental health and its lack of provision in the NHS is a hot issue and one I am close to myself. The recent announcements by the government of further plans and funding to tackle the problem have been met with skepticism from those in the profession. Hearing Things is a show that sets out to show how these issues are played out at ground level and how they affect those that manage and use mental health services on a day-to-day basis. Through extensive research and workshopping, the piece follows a handful of characters as they attempt to traverse the potholes of their own, and others, mental health issues.

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The HIV Monologues, Ace Hotel

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By guest critic Jo Trainor

Diagnosis, dread, death, devotion, Patrick Cash has written five interlocking, thoughtful monologues that explore HIV from the most human perspective.

Alex isn’t wearing his power bottom singlet, but his James Dean swagger and Nick’s beautiful eyes are the making of a dream Tinder date. Until Nick reveals he’s HIV positive. Alex legs it, but his audition for Barney the next day forces him to re-evaluate his behaviour.

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A Hundred Different Words for Love, VAULT Festival

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by guest critic Michael Davis

“The Sun is just a star…”

Language. Love. Since time immemorial, human beings have been trying to capture in words the essence of this most nuanced of emotions. Fresh from his success with Team Viking at last summer’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, James Rowland premieres his latest show, A Hundred Different Words For Love at The Vaults. Set within the same universe as Team Viking, Rowland, through anecdotes and music, offers a personal take on the oldest of stories.

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