‘Thank God!’ was the first statement I made, after the four actors had taken their final bow, ‘I’m normal.’
Because we all have moments of confusion, frustration, despair and clarity – states of mind so imaginatively and comically highlighted by Jammy Voo’s A Corner of the Ocean, a tale of four women’s lives in the aftermath of the disappearance of a diver we never meet.
This hour long piece of theatre is an intense and dark experience that holds your attention throughout. There’s so much going on that it’s impossible to take your eyes off the stage for even a moment: so many cultural references, so much of life given to the audience that, as soon as I finished watching, I wanted to see it all over again.
The use of puppetry is sublime, the writing excellent and the acting first-rate. Although there are four actors on stage, all of whom could easily stand alone, this is a 6-person show – as my theatre companion and friend, Viv, pointed out, the man with the guitar and voice {so much more than a sound guy} is the glue of the piece and it couldn’t have worked without him. And the lighting technician really comes into his own with the spinning, illuminated hand puppetry.
A papier maché newspaper figure that reaches out from the memo board is delightfully threatening and the faux-fur creature who throttles the neck of our Norwegian actor is sinister yet hilarious – this woman is a skilled puppeteer, to be sure.
Dance, song and thought provoking words make for a collective work of art that is deserved of a Tobacco Factory Theatre audience, a venue that continues to attract must-see, inspirational theatre.
Brilliant.
Watch a little of A Corner of the Ocean here.
Tobacco Factory Theatre website
No comments:
Post a Comment