Theatre

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THE TRESTLE AT POPE LICK CREEK

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, in rep with Heritage until Sat 18 Mar. See listings for details .000

A touching moment between Iain Macrae and Pauline Knowles The creation of false consciousness is the most important element of social control. Where would the ruling classes be if they weren‘t able to convince folk lower down the economic scale that the things that oppress them are actually good for them? Naomi Wallace’s play speaks more articulater on this subject than any piece seen in recent years.

Here a pair of teenage lovers, Pace (Julia Dalkin) and the slightly reluctant Dalton (Ian Skewis) plan to play chicken with a locomotive on a trestle bridge, escaping a world whose economic oppression weighs heavy upon them. As Dalton’s parents Gin (Pauline Knowles) and Dray (lain Macrae) manifest their economic expendability through emotional exhaustion, the youngsters reinvent their world through a series of subversive erotic games involving gender swapping and passion displaced from the usual erogenous zones.

All of the characters, even Dalton’s gaoler (Eric Barlow) who is introduced early, before the play’s inevitable tragedy, find some means of representing life to themselves through games and performances, for reality is too harsh. From the creation of shadow animals to the imitation of turtles, from plate- smashing ceremonies to shirt-tearing rites, each character reacts to their social and cultural oppression through private gestalt rituals.

Director Philip Howard brings carefully flattened-out performances from his cast, giving the spartan poetry of Wallace’s script the chance to breath and thrive. The performances are all good, but those of Knowles and Dalkin stand out, defining a steady rhythm of alternate restraint and emotion throughout. The quality of this piece is defined through the kind of cool detachment from events which seems to come from a genuine, very focused anger on the writer’s part. This is not an easy play, but it is important, and truly engrossing. (Steve Cramer)

REVIVAI

RUM AND VODKA & THE GOOD THIEF

Citizens‘ Theatre, Glasgow, Tue 13- Sat 24 Mar.

With the l'(}\’|\./£l| ot The Good thief. Conor McPherson's ar‘ttlairhed paiahle of a gangster on an unwitting guest for rehabilitation, comes the lesser—knesm Ruhr And Vodka. the Duhlin tale of an office number-(titineher who lacks it all in and goes out On a three-da\ hender. Performed in grith monologue. hoth

«‘7 plays cover the more universal theirtes ot a

SGll-l't-EitllSalltNl and guilt. but there's also ‘Close to the knuckle’ no dOut)t that McPherson's work is as quintessentith Irish as a pint of the black stutl.

‘l've realh tried to reswst the phrase "Cr'aie".' admits director Justin Young. ‘hut the idea of this guy Sitting in the puh telling stories. the hlarnex. that's a ten, Irish thing, And Wlllllll hoth pieces there are these amazrngl; rich. resonant stories. Heartbreaking Journeys of realisation. which are both inoung and slightly intimidating too.‘

Young =s keen to recreate the Intel‘sitj. ot the 'r‘onologaes. en‘ohaszsing the i'eaiih ot the _‘r‘.ara<‘te's. and using :on'. stage lighting and naturalist (i at‘ting.

"The pieces are dose to the knuttk'e r there's something rain. and :ntirriate about then‘.' he s; gs, 'Yo:.“.'(‘: get characters speaking to tot; straight twp the heart. li we'xe done our Johs, the audience will heizei. e this ts a rea? nersei‘ telling their store 'Olll. Lassn‘an

58 THE LIST ' 11‘ Mar .1‘”

THE KING or SCOTLAND Citizens' Theatre, Glasgow, Tue 6-Sat 10 Mar.

‘4 yix .' 'y 0r I 0 r (thin. ll’..~i\it .‘ t1‘ltt| t t . .t _.\1\ t4. i i';/\ O' '; vv\";1~ I '1‘ ‘1‘ 7‘ i t “y t ‘3';

a F-‘=";}e rn's‘. as? test :a t" :3' a".

Pea. er Sta":"d

Gtfld'tl Kern. not! .7. triage. .'-.':'-': ttf‘rl sear. .'.ll| lw- fan. "g it»; {2.1. f." s 3"»

and seenxs keenly aware o‘ t"is taeet of

the hunah ehararter. A sto'i. (‘t a" ahenated n‘ah ‘.'.’tt(? do as an e‘.er‘,:ta‘. lot: in contentporar‘, Shetland arxi presents a diary of his ()‘.'.'.". t‘.'.'isted suhieetix'ity is. attttor'rl'r‘g to Kellj,. ahout (3‘.’(?l\'fl£t\, lite. 'lt's ahout the complete

alienatrti‘. o. one person, saw Kei‘,_

trim. A

.'.'.'ie starred .r: l-leggres t:r;;:

Ni V: hi AY BURNT UMBER

Gerard Kelly: ‘Funny, filthy and brilliantly written’

Heat". (i.:‘:\tit‘.‘.. ‘l lo‘Vs ..'r.it\le- tr‘ tTCJll‘rtl‘LllllC‘ttlt‘ amone “utsrie hri‘seit_ A?’ the sane he's a (tiil'nar‘. rerson. \'.e tit". :;".l'etl .2'he." heng to realise, a long i", that he's aytziai“. Sound depressirg _' \‘Jell it isn't. as Kellx attests: 'lt's the

filth-est, 'r‘.>st l‘n’iranf",

39st t vui’h with realit‘. '

ti the funniest. .'.nttr-n plays lut-

we: had. oft-n» (min en

Gilded Balloon, Edinburgh, Wed 14-Sat 17 Mar.

Alter sueaess .'.’lfl‘. at 5:7 the [Juhiin l range,

new plai. in l (lll‘l‘tllfl"

.oung Iliaii‘atrst Hen Street in: her; his

1: wifillenee this tzontplex huriran rlran'a «entres on a

couple in a foreign and .‘Jhere the, don't speak the language. ihe; haw llt'.(llil?ll a

roon‘. '.-.«hose orrtupanf is tied to a hed. a'iri the rixile ot the (‘t‘illl‘rlif seems to he

per‘tointing exper‘iiiients on their -.:r:tin‘.

It all sounds a hit i<;k\.. hut Street insists that there's ntueh in the pia, ahout low? and

tenderness. in spite of the liontext. ‘l‘he union‘an feigns things like Ms to ti I. tt, get the

attention at her lower. who's a zeri. engaged s<:ir;-ntist,' he sags. 'lheie's a kind of erotit: tenderness hetu'xeen then‘. \"Jl‘iat's meant to eii‘erge front the pla‘, is a kind of e\.'o(:ati\.'e. poetit: (ltléi!lt‘,. lhese people guite llittlélll‘, don't speak eaeh other's

language. and the audienrte '.'.'on'i knoxa' enteige tron‘ the characters

all the '.'.rords. hut the

tlt'.(:l(t(2tl( :nsf

neaning should

lhe play prorhises ah exening o" exrstential guest ‘.'.’llll hun‘an relationships to the

lore. This young ‘.'.’r'ter shows piornise. so it ihight l;(: an idea to catch his early work

and tell your ll‘.{ll(?f; ahout it .'.hen he's a

DANCE,

DECEPTION

Tron Theatre, Glasgow, Tue 6 Mar, then touring I...

lhere's a tendenm to disparage dance purely because of :ts t()lll‘. lhere's no montent. runs the argument. dance is lust the <:elel>iation of pure torrn, \Vlt‘.’ this ali.‘.'a\,'s has to he a <:ritir;isii: is unclear. hut that's to "tiss the point Because there is content. ()odies H? at. in the ease of /)t,=t.er\'ior:.

X laetor 'i.‘ s heen running for eleven

years nox‘r. the l)l;ll".fllt|l(l of

iiueh bigger naine. Steve ()r'aineh

‘An accessible and viable option’: X-Factor

(:hor'eograr>her and artisfir; (lll(:(ll’)t Andre‘s: Glut}, and in that tllt‘t; it's 'lone more to

forward the argument that dance is an accessilne and ‘.’l£lt)l€: option than alrnost

anyone else in Seetland, l rke its last shou'x. Unspoken Deception is a duet,

although this tune round, here suckefl

t()(}tli§ill(l £th ’l‘titL" ()l‘ 251‘} ll'lllfx't”). “‘0.

.tht) the lip/es ot a next/l, rnar'rie’l eoaple.

.nsazd and the power of lt‘,(;ltl()ly to

distort our teelnos as it focuses on the (l(:(;||tl(: of their relationship. its powerful

stutt. We see that ‘.

real life »

we u'rai‘t to see here. not ‘.'./hat's actually there. and

'nu’,h like in

even, tiine we .rass Judgement on this couple. we heeoine {FE/It“: that we

can only ever haze a partral knowledge of their story. (Ereig and daneing partner Rehekah Stokoe work: tip a real Chernistd. their lithe

and tluid nromnnents a (:ouriterposnt to the harhe’i glances they thr'oxr at each other.

and Ouee Ma<:Ar'tht.r's soundtrack etiortiessQ,

.'O|l(:.'(,()ttt>°.(," ll

aceon ipanres the err .ot'onal

f."E‘:."£t’IZ-T:.'.‘3(:Xl,‘:t1‘:'tfl‘;. "roving .‘rorn tinkling attriosolterirgs and

nuisat no 'touse to "erietio guitar-driver drurn 3, bass arid in a hrilliar‘tl/ unsettling

w some i,rtr“<:‘.'ai. hTues rock from Angelo Barlalarrir;nfi'f; Kari/7 Pea/<8 score.

ln. using a rea: narrative tr; druie Deception forward, adding suhstanee and

<3?)".€3t€:’t(i, to Xil actor is <lt:‘izirit|‘,' setting Out 'ts stall. reclaiming dance from the

ream of the Lr".<-;iier:tual and hringrng it back. into the realm of the emotional,

leo" MCDer'nott