THEATRE REVIEW Hollywood Screams Too exaes

This show is a walk on the weird side through the gaudy world of Hollywood schlock With Michael Roberts raconteur and mimic par excellence

Roberts' misspent youth in the fleapit cinemas of North London has left its Indelible mark. One moment he Is Peter Lorre, the next Groucho Marx playing the entire cast of Gone With The Wind. His Bette Dam is truly frightening.

You don’t have to remember Devil Girl From Mars or the spine-chilling effects of The Ting/er to be seduced by this affectionate tribute to the worst of Hollywood. Roberts will bring it vividly to life before your eyes.

An absolute must for movie buffs and lovers of the bizarre. (Ross Holloway)

Hollywood Screams Too Talkin' Turkeys (Fringe) Guy Masteison Productions, Observer Assembly (Venue 3) 226 2428, until 5 Sep, 6pm, £9/f8 (EB/£7).

THEATRE REVIEW Hallo Miss South Africa

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The shift to black rule in South Africa is not a straightforward case of improvement, as this compact work by the Mamelodi Theatre Organisation shows.

Just two performers clad in a variety of costumes manage to convey both the bitterness and the optimism of a country in transition through text, song and dance. If some of the dialogues are rambling and full of references unfamiliar to those who haven't Visited South Africa, the undiluted energy and commitment come across clearly, as they rage against the confusion of a society where change means uncertainty as much as hope.

Uncompromising and ultimately worthwhile, this is the essence of raw international Fringe theatre. (Don Morris)

% Hal/o Miss South Africa (Fringe) Mame/odi Theatre Organisation, The Bongo Club (Venue 743) 558 7604, unti/37 Aug, 6.30pm, £8/f6.

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theatre ° dance - comedy

COMEDY REVIEW

Now Comedy

Three guys and a girl walk into a bar .

. and comedy reigns supreme. Gordon Southern, The Harpie, Simon Evans and Steve Keyworth are all on top form tonight, despite their protestations to the contrary

'I'rn being really shit tomght,’

apologises Steve at one pomt. He's not,

but It does make me want to see him again on what he considers to be a good night. Entertaining us With tales

of sex education, drink, drugs and er . ,

. cystitis, these four crazy kids seemed to be having as much fun as the audience. A damn fine show

(Kirsty Knaggs)

Now Comedy (Fringe) Calder’s Gilded Balloon (Venue 38) 226 2 75 7, unti/3l Aug, 6 30pm, £6.50 (£5.50)

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fringe companies since 1981 Telephone (0131) 555 1897

52 "IE IJST 20-27 Aug 1998

Michael Roberts: in Hollywood. everyone can hear you scream

THEATRE REVIEW Confessions Of A Justified Sinner

The fact that the second narrational mice of the Editor is not Included in DaVId Mark Thomson’s adaptation of James Hogg's classic 19th century Scottish novel will displease some purists, but they'd have little else to complain of.

Thomson directs a universally strong cast through this acc0unt of schizophrenic. Robert Colwyn's dark misdeeds. The central character is convmced by a shadowy alter ego of his CaIVInist electness, and sure that he cannot be damned, proceeds onto a spree of murder and infamy

A gigantic wooden structure prOVIdes a beautifully used set while the actors play up both the melodrama and the oft-forgotten hum0ur of the piece, (Steve Cramer) a Confessions Of A Justified Sinner (Fringe) Brunton Theatre Company, Brunton Theatre (Venue I 9 I) 665 2240, until29 Aug (not Sun), 7 30pm, £7. 50 (£3. 50), mats 22 & 26 Aug, 2.30pm, £4.50 (£3.50).

THEATRE REVIEW Mrs Nosey Parker eeeae

It's hard to describe this show Without resorting to cliches. It Is a ’tnumph.’ It is a ’tour de force.’ Jenny Eclair's Liz Parker is a kind of slapper goddess, sucking the audience into a world of hard drink and easy sex, of superficially perfect neighbours, flatulent absentee husbands and delinquent offspring.

It's a breathless but superbly

fESlVIIL controlled performance which gives the character emotional resonance, along With the expected inspired vulgarity.

Because she never asks for our approval, Liz gets our compassion, empathy and even grudging admiration. She’s an unforgettable creation, and this is a fantastic piece of theatre. (Rob Fraser)

3 Mrs Nosey Parker (Fringe) Jenny Eclair, Pleasance (Venue 33) 556 6550, unti/Aug 37 (not 25 Aug), 7pm, [9/[8 50/[8 (£8/[7. 50/f7).

THEATRE REVIEW Bag Lady

‘3‘ a: at

This is an undeniably powerful play, blessed with richly poetic language and boasting a brave, occasionally heartbreaking performance by Lila Michael as the eponymous destitute heroine. It’s a great pity that the stylistic innovations are not matched by the content, which sees the author (Frank McGumness) round up the usual suspects of late 20th century drama: abusive fathers and corrupt, negligent Catholic clergy.

Once we know (and we know very early on) the cause of the heroine's fractured mental state, the piece becomes one of repetition rather than revelation, and there is a sense of being beaten into submission by the misery on display. Worth seeing for the acting alone, however. (Rob Fraser)

3% Bag Lady (Fringe) Nova, C Venue (Venue 19) 225 5705, unti/Aug 31, 6. 70pm, £5 (£4. 50).

THEATRE REVIEW

Fascinations From The Crowd

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Fascinations From The Crowd is a series of intertwining epigrammatic representations of London, set on one particular day in 1998. The eschewing of conventional narrative method allows Fascinations to traverse many of the Wildly divergent cultural strands, and in doing so paints a vivid panorama of a city it suggests is already firmly entrenched in the let century.

Inspired and Innovative use of multimedia evokes resonant impressions of place, as the uniformly superb ensemble cast delivers a mixture of razor-sharp satire, dark twisted humour, and poignant real-life drama.

Breadth and depth of imagination from this deservedly award-winning company. (Ross Holloway)

a Fascinations From The Crowd (Fringe) fecund Theatre, Theatre Workshop (Venue 20) 226 5425, until 31 Aug 7.30pm until 22 Aug 9.30pm [ 7 ([5).

STAR RATINGS *tttt Iwm,gfi *t** ‘«r