Review: What Women Want

What Women Want

Citadel Arts Group/Workers’ Educational Association (WEA)

Theatrically good, subjectively biased, ‘What Women Want’ portrays women’s fight to achieve suffrage through rose-tinted glasses. The acting was superb, with the cast convincingly taking on multiple roles, but the play needed to be slicker and the technological aspects, while good, experienced more than a few hiccups. However, the content of the production was extremely prejudicial; all men were idiots or bigots, unless they supported the cause so portrayed as compassionate and hard- working. The terrorist acts of the suffragettes were skimmed over in favour of portraying the ‘Cat and Mouse Act’ and not enough emphasis was brought on the brave endeavours of suffragists. Furthermore, unconnected female martyrs were projected at the end, which took the little integrity it had left from the play.

Diverse Attractions, 17 - 22 Aug, 5.30pm, £9.00 (£7.00), fpp 238

tw rating: 2/5

http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/8615

Review: Turn The Blue Light Down

Turn The Blue Light Down

The About Turn Theatre Company

Control, domestic oppression, football and suicide are all themes in this post-punk production. It seems that ‘Turn the Blue Light Down’ has taken the safe structured approach to writing about young suicide in that there is the link to something everyday (football): the play’s protagonist is ground down by a character who lashes out at others due to his own securities and a loving mother who when devastated by her child’s death makes a conscious decision to positively change her life. As this approach was the one taken, the hard-hitting subject matter missed the mark and what could have been an emotionally engaging piece elicited a sympathetic reaction rather than an empathetic one.

The Spaces @ Royal College of Surgeons, 17 - 29 Aug (not 23), 2.10pm, £8.00 (£6.00), fpp 234

tw rating: 2/5

http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/8614

Review: Optimism

Optimism

Edinburgh International Festival/Malthouse Melbourne

Either I have just seen something profound or have sat through two hours of useless Austro-French philosophy. Based on Voltaire’s ‘Candide, ou L’optimism’ and with a cast led by the award-winning comic Frank Woodley, ‘Optimism’ sees the eponymous protagonist being thrown out of his utopian home into a dystopian world full of war and greed, making him forever question his optimistic outlook. The theatrics of the piece are huge: at times distressing and frightening, purposefully confusing and sometimes even compellingly twee. The fast surreal pace of the plot can alienate the audience, and the piece focuses more on the philosophy than the humour making the first half slightly disappointing compared with the rest of the play. You’ll be confused, inquisitive and entertained

Royal Lyceum Theatre, 15 - 17 Aug, times vary, prices vary, fpp 20

tw rating: 3/5

Review: The Church Of Salsa

The Church Of Salsa

World Festival

In the beginning Salsa created Cuba and the beat. And Salsa said let there be sugar and there was sugar. And Salsa saw the sugar, saw that it was good, and Salsa divided the rum from the sugar. And Salsa called the rum Havana, and the sugar he called Demerara. And Salsa said let the dancers under the beat be gathered together under one place and let the dance floor appear: and it was so. And Salsa said let the beat bring forth the drums, the keyboard and the trumpet: and it was so. And Salsa said bring forth the feet to move to the beat and he saw it was good. And on the seventh day, the Church of Salsa partied.

The World @ St George’s West, dates vary, 10.30pm, prices vary, fpp 113

tw rating: 3/5

Review: So He Made Some Soup…And Other Tales

So He Made Some Soup…And Other Tales

ButterflyBelly Theatre Company

The production of this play was very much soup-like, reminiscent of a minestrone or broth with every possible meat and vegetable in it creating a lucky dip of edibles, where an intrepid spoon could produce a mouth-watering piece of lamb or alternatively a drooping, insipid courgette. At times creative with theatrically innovative ideas, for the most part it felt diluted, like it hadn’t been allowed to simmer; the cast seemed unsure of their lines and nervous about their blocking, which drained a lot of the energy vital to the confusing plot - where you are given just enough croutons to keep up with it. The recipe was interesting enough, but the cook spoiled the broth.

The Spaces on the Mile @ The Radisson, 24 - 29 Aug, 3.05pm, £5.00 (£4.00), fpp 228

tw rating: 2/5

http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/8839

Review: Once Upon A Time: Naughty Fairytales Your Mother Never Told You

Once Upon A Time: Naughty Fairytales Your Mother Never Told You

Two Shades of Blue

'Two Shades of Blue' say they’re like ‘’Allo ‘Allo', and they did have awful accents…unintentionally. They say they’re like 'Shrek' and they do reproduce the clichéd stereotypes that 'Shrek' picked up on. They say they’re like the ‘Carry On Films’ and they do come across as slightly seedy. However, I would say that they are like an uncharismatic am-dram group trying to be funny, succeeding in some parts but mostly not. They do provide a decent storyline, good technical aspects and add some new features to old characters, but despite the high point with Prince Charming and the magic mirror, the performers appear nervous on stage, insecure in their own abilities and at parts, I struggled to hear them from the front row. Awkward theatre.
, , (5.45pm), , fpp216
tw rating: 2/5
[tp]

Spotlites @ The Merchants Hall, 24 - 31 Aug, 4.45pm, £8.50 (£6.50), fpp 216

http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/8846

Review: Abacus Danger And The Pits Of Panic

Abacus Danger And The Pits Of Panic

Champo Productions Featuring Lousy, Lewis and Double M

I am not one to advocate taking narcotics, but if you go see this play make sure you are drunk as a skunk or equally as inebriated on any other illicit substance, as then you may enjoy this inadvertent comedy of errors. As this show progressed I couldn’t help but wonder if the cast of this production had ever rehearsed together as I hadn’t seen so much unintentional on-stage carnage since my primary school nativity play: wrong exits and entrances, misplaced props, wigs and wooden acting made it seem as though Alan Ayckbourne had written his most naturalistic and convincing farce yet. The intoxicated audience behind me enjoyed themselves, but this performance made me want a very stiff drink.

The Spaces @ The Royal College of Surgeons, 24 - 29 Aug, 9.45pm, £6.00 (£5.00), fpp 18

tw rating: 1/5