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Would You Like A Cup of Tea?
Verdict: Short and unclear
Edinburgh 06 - Augustine's - 7-28 August 06 - 14:45 (0:45)
Described as contemporary music theatre, the cast of four (Liz Carter, Louise Greater, Helena Lloyd, Jonathan Scratchley) sing, dance, and play their way through this production. It is intended to ‘confront your thoughts about lifetime, tradition, corruption and the expectations you have of others’.
It starts with a loud bell, before noise in the dark. The cast sing Happy Teatime to one person in the front row, then one offers biscuits around. They dance with a variety of teapots.
They occasionally use an unusual approach to tea-making - pour the water, then the milk directly into their mouth, dunk a teabag, spit the results into a cup - always all at once.
The four play a family - brother, sister, aunt, child - though this takes a while to be fully clear. This family frequently have tea together, but their other mutual pursuits aren't so pleasant. Clearly the message is that not everything in life can - or, indeed, should - be smoothed over with a nice cup of tea. And that families are the worse for causing emotional scarring on each other, with members even covering for each other.
When the piece ends, surprisingly, after 30 minutes (earlier than the 45 minutes stated in the Fringe Programme), the technical operator at the back of the venue has to start the clapping - eventually pointing out to a bemused audience that ‘that's all you're getting’.
This piece is devised collectively by the cast. Helena Lloyd on oboe and Louise Greater on flute can't be faulted for their musical ability. Having to hand out flyers to departing audience members to ensure they understand what it's all about isn't a good sign. Nor that, on reading it, nothing becomes clearer.
Cast Credits: (alpha order): Liz Carter. Louise Greater. Helena Lloyd. Jonathan Scratchley.
Company Credits: Devised by the cast. Director - (uncredited). Lighting Designer - Andrew Laidlaw. Technicians - Andrew Laidlaw, Susanna Lloyd. Company – Semantics Playground. Producer – (uncredited).
END
(c) Gill Smith 2006
reviewed - Saturday 19 August 06 / Augustine's
Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2009
