The Saint
Stage
The second coming...
Anne Murphie reviews a new way of living.
The publicity campaign for iGod involved a website, twitter page and a YouTube video, all of which claimed with absolute seriousness that the Second Coming had arrived. This was not a regular play. iGod reached out beyond the confines of the stage. It infiltrated its audiences reality and went on to make them part of the evening's events.
Sam Fowles played iGod, a sinister, flame-haired saviour, who promoted indulgence and depravity as a new religion for the modern world. He surrounded himself with the Flora, a group of female disciples, each of whom mysteriously disappeared after a year of service. While focusing on this melodramatic murder mystery plot, iGod was also an exploration of faith, fanaticism, fear, power relationships and the hedonistic attitudes inherent in modern society. The play was clever, sardonic and full of biting truisms. Fowles played the lead role with intensity and unpredictable energy, which was genuinely terrifying.
It was a highly stylised production. The John Galliano inspired costumes were pure macabre fantasy, particularly the Floras sparkly top hat fascinators. Unfortunately the decadent atmosphere did not extend beyond the stage. Seating was not provided and resourceful audience members had to find chairs. The resulting clusters of ugly, mismatched furniture detracted from the overall ambience of the production.
However, the acting was strong. Louise Hemfrey gave a confident, well judged performance as a disillusioned Flora and Joe Potts and Ashton Montgomery made an excellent malevolent pairing. Montgomery excelled as a witty but wicked PR man.
iGod was let down by the general shabbiness of Venue 1 and a poor turnout. The exorbitant ticket price (£9) may have been a deterrent for some, though it did include entry to the somwhat empty rave after the show. Nevertheless it was a play which offered both style and substance.
The play ends with iGods death, however it has been rumoured that he will be resurrected in a similar event in the coming weeks. Something tells me that it will be a spectacle worth seeing.
Over the rainbow or over the hill?
Emma OBrien on the new search for a West End starlet...
First he solved a problem for Maria, opened a door for Joseph and did anything for Nancy. Now its Dorothys turn to get the Webber treatment, as the Lord of the stage begins a nationwide talent search for a new West End star. Saturday night television will once again become the arena of musical theatre, as the chance to take to the West End stage in Webbers brand new adaptation of the The Wizard of Oz is up for grabs.
You know the drill by now; Lord Webber and his band of merry judges will take 12 young ladies on a journey to try and find what exactly makes the perfect Dorothy. Its a formula that has worked well in the past, making instant stars out of previous winners Connie Fisher, Lee Mead and Jodie Prenger.
However, doubt has already begun to rise over whether this years show will capture the hearts and minds of the public in the way that the previous three did. Television talent shows are everywhere these days, so surely the public has to be getting sick of these shows, right?
Needless to say, Webber has a lot riding on these shows. His new Phantom sequel Love Never Dies is due to open in the West End around the same time that Webber will take to our screens every Saturday night, providing him the perfect opportunity to plug the show. He is also keen to prove the critics wrong. On the announcement of what show Webber would be tackling for the talent search , many commented that he should be sticking to what he knows best: his own super successful shows. Others moaned about the search being for a female lead yet again, even though the one male search, Any Dream Will Do, was arguably the most successful and popular.
However, one of the biggest obstacles that Webber has standing in the way of success is the multi-award winning sister show Wicked, which is currently one of the most successful West End shows of all time, and is still pulling in thousands upon thousands of people every month. Many have commented that The Wizard of Oz may turn out to be a bit of a turkey in comparison.
Pair this information with the dubious judging panel this year and Webber could be on a road to ruin. Gone are the usually brilliant John Barrowman and Denise Van Outen, and in come a past-her-best Charlotte Church, an all dancing Ex-Eastender, and part time singing nun Sheila Hancock. Not to mention the fact that the normally delightfully crude Graeme Norton is being put back in his pre-watershed cage as presenter.
Of course, final judgment should be left till the show begins at the end of March. The saving grace might be the fact that everyone knows The Wizard of Oz like the back of their hand, and Dorothy is one of the most heartwarming characters ever (not to mention her little dog too). Webber himself should provide more than enough entertainment in his vast array of facial expressions, and hopefully the girls will be a talented bunch as well. I guess well just have to wait and see
Take note...
Now that semester two has well and truly begun, its time for the theatre loving public of St Andrews to start getting excited for the annual student arts festival On the Rocks, which will be taking over the town from the 18th April till the 25th April 2010. The festival combines theatre, comedy, film, art and live music, and this year the schedule is already fit to burst with events to please all.
This year's websitewas just launched recently to give people a sneaky peak at what is to come.
Above are some of the plays that are already well into their rehearsal schedules. These include the sombre Woyzeck and Antigone, as well as musical comedy Reefer Madness and the raunchy biopic The Libertine.
These join a vast list that include classics like Shakespeares The Tempest, as well as more recent greats like Samuel Becketts Waiting for Godot.
