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Amanda Wilkin as Chess, front, and Gbemisola Ikumelo as Serena. Picture: Graeme Braidwood Hopelessly Devoted The Door, Birmingham Rep *** WITHOUT a doubt,
anything that attracts a young audience into a theatre is a good thing.
Kate Tempest; the acclaimed Rapper, turned poet ,turned playwright,
seems to have added as many elements as possible to her new play,
Hopelessly Devoted, to entice a whole
University campus into the building. She admits that she is new to theatre and is
still learning. She may well in the future deliver something
outstandingly different but this still feels like she is indeed finding
her way in the space and with her writing. With so many visual and
performance experiments all at once you feel at times like a willing lab
rat. Hopelessly Devoted tells the story of a
convicted murderess, Chess ( Amanda Wilkin) finding her salvation to
broken relationships and her long term incarceration in prison, with
cellmate Serena ( Gbemisola Ikumelo ), through the newly found
expression of her singing and poetry. This is aided in the form of
reformed addict, now music producer, come life coach, Silver (Martina
Laird). Played out in a simple white square on the floor
representing the confines of the cells, together with an exposed
lighting rig , visible stage manager and
video projection, Director James Grieve seems to have left too
many things out in the open that distract from the
core of this hard hitting tale. It feels like everyone’s just a little
trying too hard to be `cool’ with the setting when in fact just the
words and performances are more than enough. It is perhaps one reason why the audience seemed to
be divided and left footed in their reactions with some laughing at some
very intense moments out of misplaced intent. At one point Chess is
verbally threatened violently from an inmate above her room that she
will `cut her throat for singing in her cell.’ This seemed to get a big
laugh and even a slight round of applause which was curious to say the
least. This continued to happen in several other
places and I was aware that others were checking around them to make
sure they had not missed something that was making the others laugh. Even with these cue curiosities though Amanda
Wilkins performance as Chess cut through the technical overload and
elevated some very basic songs with her intensity and great singing
voice. With Ikumelo & Laird doubling their respective
roles as musicians and support vocalists the trio managed to deliver the
multiple elements of this comprehensive dark tale in a very minimalist
style. The final curiosity was a `curtain call’ style
performance of the closing song with cast members entering into the
audience space as if we were to all meant sing along and clap. This was
a little out of place for me as the play ends with Chess triumphantly
conquering her performance fears and as the action all takes place in
the white square representing the confines of the prison, it seemed like
one jailbreak too many. It may in the end seem a little naive that an
abused emotional sprit, even one like that of Chess a convicted killer,
can be corrected somehow with a release of creativity and a few beats.
It’s not altogether a new theme and this is not exactly Sister Act but
all the signs are there that with some experience Kate Tempest will
build upon her continuing track record and add to her public acclaim. To
05-10-13. Jeff Grant
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