Galway Advertiser 1993/1993_07_22/GA_22071993_E1_020.pdf 

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F o o t s b a r n ' s R o m e o and J u l i e t L i t t l e J o h n I n Nuns' Island (Footsbarn Theatre at the Dyke Road)
It could be imagined that Footsbarn actually are the company of travelling players which appear in Shakespeare's "Hamlet". And it is their karma to wander through the twilight world of Shakespeares for all eternity. Sometimes, to con tinue this fancy, they emerge and bring us into their dreams. Afterwards, as we, the audience, make our separate ways home, they strike their tent and move on into their world again.
The most beautiful act in any Shakespeare play has to be the Orchard scene in " R o m e o and Juliet". Here Footsbarn leads the audience on toe through the trees and into the hearts and minds of the two young lovers. Footsbarn let loose all their magic. They use all their theatrical tricks such as effective lighting, a moon on a pole, shadow puppets, trjes, and a fountain that lives. Their use of the mask ed chorus, however, is brilliant. These expressionless creatures act as the sub conscious for both the au dience and the leading players. Whispering their fears or encouragement, they serve to heighten the drama and intensify the sense of tragedy. Apart from their murmurings, they play a varie ty of musical instruments. Music is always important with Footsbarn. At one stage, when the lover's hopes unravel and terrible tragedy now seems in evitable, the chorus raise their trumpets to their lips underneath their impassive masks. The effect is a line of hideous cathedral gargoyles. It must be understood that there is nothing sentimental or artificial about the love between Romeo and Juliet. It is profound, urgent and real. Juliet exclaims in her first interview with Romeo, ' 'My bounty is as boundless as the sea; my love as d e e p " . In the Orchard scene, when Juliet apologises for her maiden boldness the tenderness sets your heart a-flutter. From then on we are hooked. There is no cast list with the Footsbarn programme, and there is also no interval. The whole play moves with enormous energy and force. The speed with which they change costumes gives the impression of a cast of thousands. Yet barely a dozen emerge at the end of the show. The story, of course, con cerns the warring Capulet and Montague families of Verona. They have been forbidden to fight again under "pain of death" by the ruling Prince. But all sorts of passions fume in the hot S u m m e r days and nights. Tybalt, a cousin of Juliet, is nastily dangerous as he swats his sword and fights like a spider. Mercutio, a friend of Romeo whom Tybalt kills, is full of bawdy suggestions, and his parody of the balcony scene con trasts with the warmth and wonder of the two lovers who later meet t h e r e . Juliet's nurse and Romeo's Fr. Laurence recognise the couple's helpless passion. Their well meaning attempts to help them, however, on ly contribute further to the tragedy. R o m e o and Juliet themselves were very young and a d m i r a b l y p l a y e d . Romeo may have been a bit indistinct at times but there was never a moment's doubt about his moodiness or his reckless despair. Juliet has all the best lines: " C o m e , gentle night, come, lving, black-browed night,/Give me my Romeo; and when he shall die,/Take him and cut him out in little stars,/And he will make the face of heaven so fine/That all the world will be in love with night/And pay no heed to the garish s u n . " It is impossible not to be deeply moved by this pair of "star-crossed lovers". Footsbarn also have a char ming intimacy with the au dience. They climb amongst them as naturally as they would move through a crowded street. Even late comers (who should be ashamed to be late!) are shown to their seats by the characters on stage. Of all the groups who have visited Galway through the years, Footsbarn stands out as the most i m a g i n a t i v e presenters of classical theatre. Galway has been lucky to have them so consistently. Editor) A Wild Wooly Field in the West, Little John's show for the Children's Arts Festival, sees LJ leav ing town for the country. He must go, he feels, because he has so many friends to talk to, he never gets to do anything. He sets off with his huge rucksack, laden with pots pans and tins of beans, to live the simple life. But as always, complica tions follow Little John. He meets a bear, he meets a bear hunter, and-he meets a girl, and his plans change somewhat. Along the way, he tells his audience about his friends, he manages to include a " g r e e n " moral, and he comes up with a plausible argument to prove that dinosaurs drank milk, and that thev had a milk delivery

"Blues in the Night"
(The Big Top)
Billed as "Blues in the Night", the package of Albert Collins with Otis Clay and John Hammond looked too tempting to miss. I got past the Gestapo at the gate. No smiles. Some didn't make it. I've not seen them since. Beer in the tent was two pounds at plastic litre. No smiles. Getting served was very easy. However, things were looking good. A genunine hammond organ, the sign of the true blues, graced the stage.
First on was John Ham mond. Armed with only an acoustic guitar, harmonica and a fine blues voice, he filled the huge BiG Top with sound. His thumb thumping the bass line while he pick ed licks and riffs with his fingers. Switching guitars, he played a cool bottleneck slide. Chat was kept to a minimum. He let the music do the talking. His version of " S p o o n f u l " was a highlight of a fine acoustic blues set. Come back any time, John. R T E ' s Marcus Connaughton was on hand to in troduce the evening's acts. "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Icebreakers!" Albert Collins's backing band - brass, organ, drums and bass, blasted out some old Booker T. tunes that got the crowd bopping. Then Albert ambl ed out on stage, laidback, eyes full of impish fun, plugged in and off we went on a whirl of electric blues guitar. This was what I had come tr> hear. Sounding not unlike a fast B.B. King, he keeps a capo halfway up his guitar neck. Then things began to go down hill. Fast. Some showman antics involving a drunk test broke the spell. He began to look less B.B. King and more Chuck Berry. 1 was afraid he'd play " M y Dingaling". Why this sudden shift from blues to play-acting? And worse was yet to come in the shape of Otis Clay. Yes, Otis can play and yes, he can entertain, but Blues he ain't. A medly of middle of the road hits such as "Dock of the Bay" pleas ed the corporate crowd, but then so would Sonny Knowles. I thought I saw Bi Bi (Baskin, not King). It was time to leave. Verdict? John Hammond was Bluesman of the night. Albert Collins is a great guitar player, but why the showmanship? He doesn't need it. Otis Clay? file under E...for Englebert. G.H.)

service. This show differed from his previous festival perfor mances, but John captivated all present. His crises became everyone's crises, and in his effort to erect a tent and open a tin of beans, he received lots of advice from y o u n g and older members of the audience. The b a c k d r o p , which featured hills, cattle, sheep and the occasional house, is perfect. Several cast members, inlcuding Dermot Arrigan assist ably. By the end of the show, a good number of the audience were on stage with Little John. This is a regular oc curence at his shows, and is an indication of the way he can weave a spell on his audience. Judy Murphy

"Fiorille^-The Taviani Brothers
Promised Land/Terra Promessa (EV1I Buildings, UCG)
This is really the story of a rock which rolls into place billions of years ago and ends its days as a prized speciman in a city museum. From the rocks perspective the Earth can be a pretty miserable place. It is used as a weapon, as a hammer to break chains, as a resting place for soldiers at war. Yet it also sees the first flowers and fruit of the Earth. It is used as a mill stone, to clean fish and scrub clothes, even as a table on which a love letter is written. The curtain is only raised a few feet. No words are spoken. Instead, sensious music by Michael Rodidoux ac companies a series of powerful images as the fragile Earth struggles for survival around this rock. Sometimes the curtain is fully raised to reveal a barren landscape of sand. More effectively, the audience can expand their vision of the horizon when it is only slightly raised. The whole production is an ingenious idea fostered between the Canadian Theatre del la Marmaill and the Italian Teatro dell 'Angelo. Whether it was their first night in Galway or not, the show seemed to drag a lit tle until the humorous golf scene. There's nothing like humour to get things moving. The museum scene which was the climax of the one-hour presentation was ab solutely perfect. Editor " F i o r i l e " was the third Taviani B r o t h e r ' s film shown during the Film Fleadh and their very latest. A father takes his wife and two children on a journey from Paris to visit his reclusive father in Tuscany. On the way he tells them a story about his family, who are called Beneditti (the blessed) but have become known in the Tuscan region where the family has its roots as the Maledetti (the cursed). This was because during the late 18th century when Napolean was invading Ita ly a handsome young officer was left in charge of a pay chest containing a large amount of gold coins; while he made love'to a local pea sant girl the chest was stolen and, when it was not return ed by the local people, he was executed. And the one who had taken it was the peasant girl's brother. As the father retells the story to his family as their car comes closer to the Tuscan farm house where his father now lives, it b e c o m e s clear that a " c u r s e " has followed the Benedetti family down through the generations. Paolo Taviani, who was at the screening in the Claddagh Palace on Saturday night, said the basis of the story was true, and that he had heard it often told when he was growing up. Many of the films made by the Taviani's explore the lives of the peasants living in rural Italy. The title of the film, " F i o r i l e " , means Spring, and was the name given in the new Revolutionary calendar to the first month of Spring; it is also applied by the doomed young officer to the peasant girl he falls in love with. The Taviani Brothers tell their story with astonishing simplicity, humour and passion. The screen fills with unforget table images and, altogether, is a very remarkable, excep tionally beautiful film. (Editor)

Punchbag's " T h e L i f e of Stuff"
Punchbag Theatre Company's latest play, "The Life of Stuff" by Scottosh playwright Simon Donald is set in a disused warehouse, which is being converted into a nightclub.
Ostensibly, it deals with the story of Willie Dobie's efforts to establish a successful business in the face of considerable adversity. More importantly however, this is a play about drugs and money, savagery and brutality, and the people caught in the middle. All of the characters are on the wrong side of the law: crooks, conmen, drug-dealers. Each has his own set of dreams and frustrations; but whatever their individual differences, they are all on the same ultimate path: shuttling head first for destruction. The play is studded with tragic characters, some seething in quiet desperation, others erupting into terrible violence. Willie Dobie's side-kick, Leonard, is the most destructive, and most vulnerable, of these. Tommy Tiernan's performance in this fascinating role is never less than mesmeris ing. He captures superbly the endless energy and tragedy of this character, as he is used and abused by all the other gangsters. Simon Donald's play is filled with humour, irony and insight. The atmosphere in this production is chillingly authentic, but perhaps the play would benefit from perfor mance in a more seedy environment, like a backstreet Dublin nightclub or empty warehouse. Direction, by David Quinn and Sean Evers. is sensitive and assured. The play portrays an underworld from which there is no escape, no hope of redemp tion, no chance of a new beginning. The realism of the story is intense and unrelenting, and the ultimate message of the play is frightening. It is that these characters are not cardboard cut-outs and this story is not just a nightmare. This situation and this tragedy do exist: this is the real tabasco.