tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post5037793809212737278..comments2024-02-18T19:36:43.844+11:00Comments on theatre notes: Review: Kafka's MonkeyAlison Croggonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-39883428470206822412009-05-12T09:40:00.000+10:002009-05-12T09:40:00.000+10:00Lovely review... though I agree with the comment t...Lovely review... though I agree with the comment that this show was unsettling. I am glad that you felt the light and sound were out of place. I felt they were grossly misplaced and took you out of the piece rather than hooking you. I did stay for a Q&A with Kathryn and the Director after the show and he hinted that these moments were 'memories' that that ape was reliving. <br />Also Aaron Patersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05288305505028189774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-52030433173514071672009-05-06T12:00:00.000+10:002009-05-06T12:00:00.000+10:00Indeed! But it's Dale Ferguson who's sweeping the ...Indeed! But it's Dale Ferguson who's sweeping the pool in the nominations fields - I think his design has been nominated in practically every award, and he's up for two Tonys...Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-35292035809210808282009-05-06T11:34:00.000+10:002009-05-06T11:34:00.000+10:00On the topic of Australian sound design culture - ...On the topic of Australian sound design culture - congrats to Russell Goldsmith for the Tony nomination for Best Sound Design on Exit the King. Not a bad debut.Chris Kohnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-23081775810105234492009-05-05T18:10:00.000+10:002009-05-05T18:10:00.000+10:00I'm sure you can...! And I admit, that was the pit...I'm sure you can...! And I admit, that was the pits. But not untypical (if worse than most) of some of the stuff I've seen, Kafka's Monkey included... Andrew Dickson wrote a Guardian piece a while back after seeing Barrie Kosky's Poppea about how unusual it was to hear music used in the theatre in that way that made me wonder a bit. Kosky is a particularly musical director, he's always directed Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-82394119433373990192009-05-05T17:26:00.000+10:002009-05-05T17:26:00.000+10:00Oh the McKellen Lear... painfully literal and/or h...Oh the McKellen Lear... painfully literal and/or hammy on so many levels (apart, I thought, from McKellen himself) that I'd hate you to take it as representative of Brit theatre. Doggy sound effects were the least of the problem. Honestly, Alison, we can do better...David Jayshttp://www.artsjournal.com/performancemonkey/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-91001601560423942082009-05-05T09:28:00.000+10:002009-05-05T09:28:00.000+10:00It's an observation from random shows I've seen, b...It's an observation from random shows I've seen, both in London and touring - RSC, Royal Court... but maybe I saw ones with indifferent sound design (eg, the McKellen Lear, with dogs barking when the script called for it). Yes, that kind of dimension is more standard here than otherwise... but it's hard to generalise about cultures without an intimate knowledge of both of them.Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-50741182916878072102009-05-05T08:00:00.000+10:002009-05-05T08:00:00.000+10:00As you say, Alison, it's exciting to have a chance...As you say, Alison, it's exciting to have a chance to discuss the same show (though do two people ever see the same show, even if they're sitting side by side...?). Interesting point about the sound, and to be honest I've no idea whether Britain is ahead of the curve or lamentably behind the times. It's certainly true that sound design has crept up to become a major player in many productions. David Jayshttp://www.artsjournal.com/performancemonkeynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-34652805050113849422009-05-04T14:11:00.000+10:002009-05-04T14:11:00.000+10:00Bizarrely, I just did post on the Logies. (Like sw...Bizarrely, I just did post on the Logies. (Like swine flu, I am insidious...) I'm sure my many TV Week fans will be mailing in their votes for me next year... meanwhile, the sound at the Logies was absolutely shocking. Poor Ms Lennox sounded as if she were singing in a toilet. Maybe it was better if you were there.Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-29083983800417819472009-05-04T13:49:00.000+10:002009-05-04T13:49:00.000+10:00Not to mention Gretel Killeen's comic eddies...Not to mention Gretel Killeen's comic eddies...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-21385570459358244742009-05-04T13:47:00.000+10:002009-05-04T13:47:00.000+10:00Hi Alison,
I can't wait to read your thoughts on...Hi Alison, <br /><br />I can't wait to read your thoughts on the Logies! <br /><br />I have a thing (or two!) to add, but I'll wait for you to have your say first. <br /><br />I was quite surprised you weren't nominated for your recent foray into television...! Nevermind. <br /><br />Maybe next year!<br />Beth<br /><br />p.s. I know this page is about the monkey show, pardon my gate-crashing!<br Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-19590709861322264272009-05-04T10:53:00.000+10:002009-05-04T10:53:00.000+10:00Great review; expresses what I was trying to say, ...Great review; expresses what I was trying to say, really.<br /><br />"her arm twisted up behind her in an ape-like gesture that thrusts her torso forward" - I could write an essay on this. It was the key to the piece, in my eyes, and its biggest problem. It's a very un-ape-like gesture to me and the only way I could reconcile it was to imagine it as the performing ape twisting itself into an Born Dancin'https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526760383290674186noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-56388941944265780292009-05-04T09:41:00.000+10:002009-05-04T09:41:00.000+10:00An afterthought which might be completely chance s...An afterthought which might be completely chance speculation - I am wondering if we have a very different production culture here, although I haven't seen enough English theatre to say that with huge confidence. For example, very often when I see English shows, I wonder about the sound design: it's rare here to see a main stage show that doesn't have a thought-through and completely integrated Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-35053304958707826602009-05-04T08:52:00.000+10:002009-05-04T08:52:00.000+10:00Thanks David - nice to be able to discuss somethin...Thanks David - nice to be able to discuss something we've both seen, for once! The handshake, the moment where she asks us to smell her, and the line about the female chimp were all moments where the show began to move into another theatrical register for me - but that possible moment was so fleeting, it somehow didn't weave back into the rest of the performance, as if the production flinched Alison Croggonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08398213223487458758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7202906.post-39821885173032347532009-05-04T07:56:00.000+10:002009-05-04T07:56:00.000+10:00As ever, a beautifully ruminative review, Alison. ...As ever, a beautifully ruminative review, Alison. But I'm not sure I agree exactly that the performance (which I saw at the Young Vic) is a comfortable one. True, the voice in Kafka's story is (at least, in the translation I have by Michael Hoffmann) urbane to the point of arrogance. And part of the point, surely, is that on the page the ape can pass for human - how could we tell the difference? David Jayshttp://www.artsjournal.com/performancemonkey/noreply@blogger.com