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Freya Sharp as Taylor, alone in the world except for . . . radio Cockroached
Theatre 63
Old Joint Stock Theatre
***** FORMED in February 2016, Theatre 63 is a
small company of new graduates from Birmingham School of Acting (BSA)
and ‘Cockroached’ is their debut production. So what might you expect from a play, with such
an unusual title, created by a group of new graduates? Well we can
assure you that we certainly weren’t expecting to be greeted by a
delicious array of cupcakes before the performance! Thanks go
immediately to ASM and cupcake chief James Norton. Written and co-directed by William Proudler with
fellow co director Ruby Etches, this production, like the cupcakes, was
a delightful surprise. We were taken aback by the professionalism, skill
and maturity displayed in every aspect of this exciting and dramatic
piece. The script is superbly written by Proudler, with
a well-balanced dialogue that is powerful, thought provoking, humorous
and at times unnerving. The storyline set in a post-apocalyptic broken
world, kept us riveted from interesting start to unexpected finish. Taylor, on this occasion played by Freya
Sharp, is alone and isolated, trying to survive against the threat of
the ‘things outside the door’ with only a plastic crow for company,
three tins of canned fruit and a dwindling supply of water. That is
until she finds Radio (Alexander George). Radio was exactly that – a
fully functioning radio on stage - and George was the dominating voice
at the end of it. Their conversation, which begins as casual chatter
(from Taylor) and indifference (from Radio), moves on through
threatening suggestions, humour, personal insults, sexual suggestion and
in the final moments results in a dramatic, unexpected climax.
Sharp was compelling in her delivery. She proved
to be extremely talented actor and gave us the full gamut of her
performing skills, not only acting but singing, dancing and even playing
the ukulele! A mature, confident, versatile performance full of
expression. George expertly created the unseen, dark, oppressive yet
sometimes sensitive character of Radio, no mean feat when relying on
voice alone. The use of a radio was a novel and interesting choice and
certainly added another dimension to their performance, with both actors
successfully mastering the timing and technological difficulties that
this media must have presented. Haunting music, which
never detracted from the action, complimented by good lighting and a
well designed set added to the atmosphere perfectly. The characters’
dialogue was poignantly interspersed with ‘old’ songs played over the
radio such as Can't Help Falling in
Love and
Runaround Sue
a reminder that ‘all the digital stuff had disappeared’ and only vinyl
survived. As the author explains it is a play ‘about connections
or lack thereof. It explores how we predispose ourselves to
connecting to people we can’t see, online and on our phones’. The production, which was written to be non
gender specific, was played over two nights with Sharp and George
swapping roles for each performance. We left wishing we’d had the
opportunity to see both nights as we would have liked to see how the two
actors compared and contrasted in each of the roles. Fully self funded this highly talented group of
creatives have excelled themselves. It is heart-warming to think that
the future of theatre is safe in their hands. If their debut production
is anything to go by, they have a very bright future in front of them.
They are taking ‘Cockroached’ to the Edinburgh Fringe next year and are
presently looking for more venues in which to stage it. Check their website and
follow them on facebook and twitter for notifications of future
performances.
http://theatre63.com/ Rosemary Manjunath and Elizabeth Smith 18-6-16
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