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Showing posts with the label Andrea Heaton

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Sex, violence and caviar: Men's Business @finborough

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Life's a dog in Men's Business. It's a nasty, cruel life where amongst the banality of everything, love, or something resembling a bit of it, exists out of a butcher's shop. And in between feeding dogs or chopping up offcuts of meat to sell as pet food, there's always time for sex and violence. The play gets into these dark and disturbing themes, inviting the audience to immerse themselves in this claustrophobic world. It's not a pleasant night at the theatre. Still, the intensity of the piece in the confined space of the Finborough Theatre and the exploration of these ideas make for an engrossing experience.   This is a new translation by Simon Stephens of Franz Xaver Kroetz's work. Initially published in 1972 and would later be expanded in the piece Through The Leaves, the action is set in a butcher's shop.  We're introduced to Charlie (Lauren Farrell), who inherited the shop from her father. Family don't seem to be around anymore. All she has...
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Man Overboard: The Light House @ParkTheatre

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Lightness and dark are in the balance in The Light House, writer and performer Alys Williams's story about the complexity of love. It is a love story about the highs and the lows of falling in love with someone who doesn't always want to be alive. But with some deft storytelling and some inspired audience participation, the piece is an uplifting and funny tale about the joys and otherwise of being in love. After a tour of the UK, it is having its London premiere at Park Theatre as part of their Make Mine a Double season of short plays. From the outset, Williams sets the piece's tone by calling for audience involvement to help shout "Man overboard" or blow whistles. She is a reassuring navigator, so while every show differs depending on who agrees to participate, you get the sense that you're in safe hands with her. And that becomes the story here as well. After falling in love with a fellow acting student, how does she find a way to keep the lights on, deal w...
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