#Review of touring family play, Treasure Island written by Robert Louis Stevenson, adapted by Ross MacKay directed by Jordan Blackwood @scottishtheatreproducers @Macrobert #Whatson in #Holidays #TreasureIsland #FamilyShow #Theatre #Tour

Treasure Island

Written by Robert Louis Stevenson
Adapted by:

Ross MacKay

(A Play, Pie and a Pint’s Party of The Century
and Tortoise in a Nutshell’s Feral),

Directed by Jordan Blackwood

(A Play, Pie and a Pint’s The Scaff and Perth Theatre’s Antigone)

Review by Louise Cannon (Lou)
Bookmarks and Stages

Last night I had an entertaining night at the MacRobert Centre, Stirling, Scotland at family play, Treasure Island. Sail down further to see the synopsis, review, quotes and the all important tour dates of what’s left of it.

Treasure Island_Image by Mihaela Bodlovic

Photo by Mihaela Bodlovic

Synopsis

Local lad Robbie Stevenson prefers to hide away from the world inside the pages of his favourite book, Treasure Island. But with a little bit of imagination, the book comes to life, and he is thrust aboard. Robbie soon finds that you can’t stay hiding forever when he must learn to navigate his own course, and to discover the world is full of treasure, if you’re brave enough to look.
Inspired by the classic tale by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Review

Ahoy Me Hearties!!! I dared to be whisked away on the seven seas in this new re-telling of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, adapted for all the family from 5 years plus.
There’s a great balance of entertainment for both adults and children alike.
I took a look around the audience and people seemed enthralled and happy.

The audience were greeted with sea shanties filling the auditorium, which definitely set the scene perfectly well and gave a great atmosphere.

You’re placed inside Robbie’s imagination. He’s go the Biggest Imagination Ever!!!

He’s also had the Worst Day at School. EVER!!! It’s so relatable to children and adults alike. He just wants to curl up and disappear. He reckons he can’t possibly sing the song for the school play. So, he hunts through his books and finds Treasure Island and you see him act out scenes, before we are immersed onto the ship ourselves. It truly married up book, the escapism they give with stage too as soon, his bed becomes a ship and we meet familiar characters, most notably like Jim Hawkins, who as we are reminded, is the Strongest Boy Ever!, Bones, Captain Flint and the infamous, Long John Silver.

All the cast were strong, playing several parts, with my favourites being Long John Silver, the part was played superbly with just enough scariness for children and no more. It was pitched just right and acted strongly. The character of Jim Hawkins was played very well, going between anxious and playful states.

The mix of spoken word and song, in the form of sea shanties was fabulous fun and arranged very well.

There is mild trepidation, humour, swashbuckling sword fights and uplifting messages about the power of stories and imagination, that it’s okay to be scared and more, throughout.

And what do the black spot and tattoos mean?
Can he find the treasure? What happens to Robbie?
You’d have to go and see it to find out.

It may not all be completely the original story, but is certainly inspired by it and is still recognisable as being Treasure Island, so a worthy adaptation. I felt that it hopes that maybe one day children will read the novel and escape with their own imaginations into the full story too, like Robbie does.

It’s a great night out for all the family and I urge you to go and then have your own pirate adventures on the high seas of play and bookish imagination.

Quote from the writer:

“I am delighted that audiences across the length and breadth of Scotland will have the chance to take to the seas and share in the adventure. I always wanted to adapt Treasure Island and I am over the moon to be working with such an incredible team to bring this magical story to life in a unique adaptation. I hope this show inspires people young and old to show that with a bit of bravery and a dash of imagination treasure can be found anywhere.”

Writer, Ross MacKay

Quote from the director:
“Our Treasure Island centres around a young boy who has locked himself in his room and goes on a journey to discover what bravery means for him. In this version of the show, everything you see on stage could be found in his bedroom. We would love to inspire children to go home and create their own adventures in the bedrooms, this show reminding audiences you’re never too old to use your imagination.”

Director, Jordan Blackwood

Tour Listing:

Places it is still touring are:

Tuesday 15 Oct 2024, 6pm – Festival Theatre Studio, Edinburgh

Thursday 17 Oct 2024, 2:30pm – Lemon Tree Theatre, Aberdeen

Saturday 19 Oct 2024, 1pm – Platform, Easterhouse

#Review By Lou of Squidge @whitenoiseth @edfringe #FringeEdin #WhatsonEdi #Edinburgh #Fringe #Edinburgh #TheatreReview #UnleashYourFringe Venue 33

Squidge
Performed By Tiggy
By White Noise Theatre

Pleasance Courtyard 1:50pm (1hr)

Review by Louise

Firstly it is worth noting that Squidge is shortlisted for the Popcorn Award 2024. This is a big deal at the Fringe.

Squidge is meaningful and darkly comical. Daisy, played by Tiggy is a teaching assistant who is with a small group of children with additional needs. She captures a moment in time perfectly as she enters the room and out comes Squidge, an interesting tool used in the classroom to talk about feelings etc. She works primarily with Paddy and you see their working/professional relationship in-action. It’s heart-warming and life-affirming. Through this, she makes some significant decisions about her life and about what direction she wants to go in.
The bursts of the soundtrack of Count On Me by Bruno Mars, but children’s voices is well-placed and has more significance than just being a song that schools use. The song choice and the play connect very well together. You may well come out of the play with it in your brain for a while longer than the bursts of song, but it is intelligently done to show a deeper meaning in the context of the play.

Daisy lives alone and we get to know more about her life as she sits on her sofa. She tells of a man called Arthur. It’s in flashbacks and some of this is also represented by a black coat, which becomes a strong, cleverly used prop where you can see and feel Daisy’s feelings. It shows that even school staff have lives outside work and it isn’t always linear. It can be messy and full of different emotions, mostly strong ones.

School staff, especially those working closely with children needing extra support will absolutely be able to relate to this play. I work with a school with children in the SEND category, although not within one, but it connected very well with me It is easy to care about Daisy and to will her on through the challenges in both her professional and personal life as she grows and works life out. For those not working in a school, it’ll be a fascinating insight. Daisy is a character who is interesting to explore and is thought-provoking in the direction she goes, her pain and her determination.

By the end of the play, the overall feeling was one of being uplifted. The conclusion is very powerful. Squidge is intelligently written and better than what I expected and is acted very convincingly and compellingly, so I was glad I managed to squeeze it in.

You can find Squidge here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/squidge#

#Review of One Sugar Stirred To The Left #FringeReview @edfringe #FringeEdin #WhatsonEdi #Edinburgh #Fringe #Edinburgh #Theatre Venue 43

One Sugar Stirred To The Left

The Space Venues Surgeon’s Hall, Grand Theatre
11th to 17th Aug 2:15pm 1hr 10 mins aged 14 plus

Set in a hospice, One Sugar Stirred to the Left isn’t as grim as what it sounds. This is a clever and thoughtful written play that also has music. There is humour to be found, sometimes light, sometimes dark, in the conversations as well as poignancy and inevitable sadness, but that sadness comes with a certain amount of peace, which I wasn’t expecting. This is based on award-winning composer, Jon Lawrence’s own experiences and it transfers very well onto stage for all to see.
The acting is brilliant by all the actors involved.

Bronwyn is a palliative care nurse and there’s an assistant who makes the tea and insists everyone has some, even though she is terrible at making it. There are a few laughs to be had at the misunderstandings. Underneath all that, there’s some wise, philosophical and are more useful than her tea as she helps Bronwyn through the challenging days of working as a palliative care nurse.

Bronwyn, meanwhile is taking care of Justin’s dad in his final days and is asked to produce songs from his book that tells a story of him and his wife and after years of it being stored from anyone else’s view, he now wants something done with it. She sings and writes music, but hasn’t in a while and this coaxes her into doing so.

There is also another man and his daughter, who talk about how things really were between them, before the end of his time.

This shows what a calm death look like. There’s also something quite inspirational in some of the lines between the 2 men as they converse.

It’s all thought-provoking and is sure to spark conversations around death, preparing for it as it opens the doors a bit into a world that isn’t often spoken about, unless you’re in this position. It provides a little corner of hope for the future, beyond someone’s death too, as well as seeing it.

The mix of humour and poignancy is greatly balanced, all wrapped with warmth and empathy.

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/one-sugar-stirred-to-the-left

#Review By Lou of Serious Theatre For Serious People EdFringe24 #WhatsonEdin #WhatsonEdinburgh Venue 24 #EdFringeReview

Serious Theatre For Serious People
By Charlotte Anne-Tilley and Mabel Thomas

Gilded Balloon Patterhouse 1pm (1hr) Aug 10-11, 13-18, 20-26
Suitable for 8 plus

Review by Louise Cannon

I took a chance on Serious Theatre for Serious People. I wasn’t certain it would be good, but sounded worth taking a punt on. It’s absolutely worth taking a chance on. This two-hander is incredibly good fun for an entertaining hour in an afternoon.

Arousing the audience before anyone is on-set ‘Our House’ played, until Charlotte Anne-Tilley and Mabel Thomas begin this satirical comedy play about youth theatre.

Taking place in At Bet On Youth Theatre (a reference to High School Musical) Charlotte and Mabel immediately engage the audience with their antics and a bit of audience participation.
They play many people between them who attend the youth theatre and are wanting to make it to the big time. They want to have their performances shown at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Each character introduced and played was done well, a slight change of prop here and there, a certain way and place of standing made it easy to distinguish who was who, making it easier to follow the storyline.

It of course doesn’t all go plain-sailing, there are the theatrics in behaviours and , the near fallings out, the working on separate shows in secret, until it’s all let out, which leads to near catastrophe and a cancelling of everything the students desire. How it plays out is very funny and a little shocking, Fire Starter, anyone? You need to attend to see what I’m referencing. They give The Gilded Balloon managers some grief and hard decisions to make and emotions are running sky-high.

It’s clever how they reference, and more, other shows at the Fringe Festival, as clever how lots of music is referenced from pop to Disney. They burst into song every so often with different words to well-known songs that just adds to the comical side of this and is skilfully placed in the play.

The play turns into a play within a play, which is equally entertaining and brings the discussions from before, together.

This is a very fun, humorous and clever play that I recommend taking a punt on.

Tickets and more Info here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/serious-theatre-from-serious-people#

#EdFringe News – A Montage of Monet #Theatre #Play #Drama #Monet #UnleashYourFringe #AMontageOfMonet #ThreeDumbTheatre

In this new show about Monet, we become privy to his private life, his lovers, and the Impressionist movement of the 19th Century. Discover more below and how to get tickets.

Threedumb Theatre presents A Montage of Monet

Claude Monet lived from 1840-1926 and is often hailed as ‘the Founder of Impressionism’. This brand-new solo show examines the complex inner thoughts of the man behind the paintings. The audience joins an aged Monet in his studio at Giverny. He is suffering from unsuccessful cataract surgery and burdened with a daunting commission to create his – what will be – world-famous Water Lilies. With the innovative inclusion of multi-media projection and sound design, Monet (played by prolific solo show creator, Stephen Smith) takes the audience on a journey through his life. We become privy to his thoughts on fellow impressionists; gain insight on his ground-breaking artistic techniques; absorb an education on the development of the Impressionist movement; and learn controversial and sordid details regarding his private life.

Both Stephen (Performer/Director) and Joan Greening (Playwright) have an artistic background; Stephen being a portrait artist, and Joan an art historian and lecturer. “I am delighted to be working with an award-winning actor, and to be returning to the EdFringe this summer” says playwright Joan, who has presented many new plays at the festival. After meeting Stephen at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe, where he played Steve Jobs in Apple of My Eye (Bobby Award-winner), she decided to start writing this new solo show for him. “It’s a new challenge for me” says Stephen, “as the character is not only much older than me, but also another nationality! In the true spirit of impressionism, I am keen to offer an expression of Claude Monet to our EdFringe audiences, which will encourage viewers to delve further into Monet’s influential and revolutionary artwork.”

A Montage of Monet arrives at the Edinburgh Fringe after two preview shows: at Pump House Theatre for the Watford Fringe on 20th July, and at Macready Theatre on 28th July.

Reviews of previous solo shows:

★★★★★ “What you will take away from Dog/Actor is Smith’s inimitable talent ” Broadway Baby on Dog/Actor

★★★★★ “Stephen Smith is a hurricane of talent ” – Everything Theatre on Dog/Actor

★★★★★ “Smith is real, raw, emotional, and worthy of an Olivier Award, in my opinion ” LondonTheatre1 on Harry’s Christmas

★★★★★ “An intimate and spellbinding performance by Smith ” North West End on One Man Poe

Written by Joan Greening

Performed and Directed by Stephen Smith

Music by Joseph Furey and Projection Design by Stephen Smith

Produced by Threedumb Theatre (www.threedumbtheatre.com / @3dumbtheatre)

Venue: Mint Studio, Greenside @ George St, 22-26 George St, Edinburgh

Date / Time: 2nd – 17th August (not 11th) / 14:00 (55 mins)

Tickets: £12 / £10 concessions (£7.00 previews on 2nd & 3rd August)

Ticket Link: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/montage-of-monet

Box Office Phone Number: 0131 226 0000

#Theatre Post By Lou of – Strong Wind @SCENATHEATRE #StrongWind

Strong Wind
By Jon Fosse
Artistic Director, Robert McNamara

In US Theatre Now

The temperature is dropping, the nights are drawing in and there’s moment of lull. All the fun of Trick or Treating is over and it isn’t quite Thanksgiving or Christmas, the solution may just lie within theatres. So, why not take a moment to pause and treat yourself to a night of premier theatre performed by SCENA. There is even a sale on until November 9th, 2023. See details below, including a link to tickets.

Strong Wind – November 2-26 2023 at DC Arts Center, Adams Morgan.
Wed – Sat 7:30pm Sun – 2:30pm
2438 18th St. NW Washington, DC 20009

Strong Wind is a surreal, tragicomic tale. A man who has been away a long time peers out the window of the flat he shares with his wife. But is this still his home… and is this still his life? Or does he belong to the past — a spectator of his own abyss?