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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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Tracking
Jumpy
Highbury Theatre Centre
**** HILARY and Mark have a marriage held
together by apathy and convenience, routine has replaced romance; there
is still affection but passion has long gone and sex is sporadic. While Hilary prattles on Mark finds,”Mmmm” and
“Yes, dear” are sufficient for most conversations, neither ignoring nor
taking any real interest in what she is saying. Having hit 50 she is worried about her job,
whether she is too old to get a new one, and what happens if she is made
redundant and Mark’s business fails. The worry means that even a
shopping trip needs a glass, or two(ish) of wine to recover. Roland and Bea, on the other hand, have a very
emotional relationship, in Roland’s case his emotions, or at least his
ego, are seeking solace elsewhere, while Bea seems to have just two
emotions, angry and very angry, a real harridan of a wife. Sex in their
marriage is but a distant memory, and not a good one at that. The two families have little in common. Roland is
a follower of Thespis, and it shows - “I’m an actor, I don’t know how to
turn off the charm, it’s how I make a living” - Mark has his own shop,
struggling to sell blinds and Hilary manages a literary support group.
As for Bea . . . we never did find out what she did and never dared to
ask. Indeed they would never have met had it not been
for Tilly, Hilary and Mark’s insolent, belligerent, truculent, and all
the other ent words you can think of, daughter who has all the charm of
a scorpion poked with a stick, and, as it takes two to tango, her
relationship with Josh, the son thing of Roland and Bea. The two know each other both from school and, as
it turns out, Biblically. Josh is the modern teenage boy of today, hooded,
face unseen, oversize jeans at half mast, communicating largely in
grunts and with a phone that can only be removed from his texting
fingers under anaesthetic by a surgeon. So the parents meet up to discuss the sexual
adventures of their children, a meeting which in turn has unforeseen
consequences as relationships falter and alter as both couples start to
see the real state of their marriages. It also means Hilary falls under
the ever wandering gaze of Roland who finds in her everything he looks
for in a woman – which seems to be a full set of limbs, more or less, a
pulse and a possibility.. Amid all this we have Francis, who is a
man-hungry, and it seems man-starved actress, who is desperately trying
to defy the march of time with her latest venture being into the gaudy,
risqué world of burlesque. And as a warning, example or role model, depending upon your point of view we have Lyndsey, pregnant and soon to be schoolgirl mum, played, incidentally, by Elizah Mulder from Holland, who gives us her own bit of hysteria as life unfolds. Generations: Tilly (Eden Parke) and her mother, and sparring partner, Hilary (Sharon Clayton) There is even room for a person who is normal,
normal being relative to the rest, in Cam, a psychology student, who is
a friend, back to Biblical terminology again, of Tilly and could well be
the source of her reputation, unfounded as it turns out, for
promiscuity. Hilary, 50, who is hardly a cougar, as the modern
parlance goes, does turn out to be a milf (look it up) as far as Cam,
22, is concerned. Sharon Clayton walks the fine line between being
still sexy and a woman, and being just the wife and a mum, all the while
finding life swirling around her beyond her control with a husband in
tow and two men looking to have their wicked way wth her. It is a huge
part and she carries it well. Eden Parke as Tilly is a great foil, the
truculent teenager who know everything there is to know about
practically nothing Martin Walker’s Mark is a steady sort of chap,
even tempered, a little put upon, with an inclination to take the line
of least resistance, while much the same could be said of Roland, the
egotist lothario played with clinging charm by Robert Hicks, the line of
least resistance in his case being the woman most likely to. Liz Adnitt has a nice line in unsmiling fury, a
fixed frown and a voice barking with hysteria as Bea while Mandy
Yeoman's Francis travels through life on a cloud of hope and sexuality –
she is determined to not grow old without a fight . . . and more sex n a
performance bubbling with life.. We don’t see much of Jack Hobbis as Josh, a few
grunts here and there, but he makes up for it as Cam, the sensitive
seducer. There are some moments of real humour, such as
Hilary and Mark in bed trying to read Dickens while the dulcet tones of
creaking springs under the horizontal aerobics of Josh and Tilly can be
heard, and this 2011 play by April de Angelis will cause a few
uncomfortable moments and flashbacks for married couples and parents of
current and past teenage children although perhaps not as many as you
might expect unless you live in a very strange relationship. Some of the laughs are universal but other
moments bring scattered chuckles, and knowing groans as individual
parents, or even children relive their own personal memories. The play looks at relationships between couples
and between children and parents, and, despite the constant rebellion
and downright cussedness of teenagers, they do care when it really
matters – it’s just that most of the time it doesn’t. We see parents pander to them to avoid
confrontation, then put their foot down and finally reach a sort of
agreement, a ceasefire – we call it growing up. The play was a response to complaints there were
not enough lead roles for middle-aged women and De Angelis adds a little
social spice, stirring in a little women’s lib – Hilary even protested
at Greenham Common – as well as some political comment. The F word abounds and such is its failing
ability to shock all but the most prudish maiden aunt these days it can
only be a matter of time before it appears in ads. It has lost its
effectiveness and value by overuse but the C word still elicits an
audible gasp from the audience, particularly here, when used in an
incongruous political statement which had little to do with what had
gone on before or came after. Malcolm Robertshaw plain set is simple and
effective, lit well by Stuart Sampson, and director Ian Appleby brought
out the humour and underlying conflicts, and individual foibles nicely,
although he had a battle on his hands, as indeed did the cast, to
maintain any pace. The play is episodic, with the narrative
snapshots, almost interrelated sketches, and with 18 scenes the result
is rather like a football match with a whistle-happy ref. As soon as
momentum started to build and a scene found its rhythm, out went the
lights, on came the music and we waited to start again, which is a
matter of structure rather than a reflection on what is a good
performance achieving what it sets out to do. You will have to wait to
the final part of the final scene by the way to find out why it is
called Jumpy.18-04-15 Roger Clarke
07-04-15 |
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weekend break in Norfolk is a gem, followed by the dance of the seven .
. .well, two feather dusters.