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Latest items? Unedited? Fringe Report Uncut
The Playactor
Verdict: Masturbation and Philadelphia cheese
The set is such a realistic Philadelphia apartment that it evokes a Tracey Emin installation piece. The meticulous attention to detail is a triumph for set designer David Degreef-Mounier, who manages to convey the strange world of Charlie (Josh Cole) the oddball who manages to entice Margo (Charlotte Pyke) - his internet 'lover' - to travel from afar, in the vain hope of developing the relationship for real.
Reality in this production, however, is sadly absent on every other front, in what amounts to nothing more than an indulgent piece of farcical nonsense.
There are bizarre and totally implausible events, and emotive and embarrassing acting - which clearly owes much to the heightened idea of method seemingly imposed on the unfortunate actors by director Julio Maria Martino.
Julio Maria Martino demands that every character internalises every thought, emotion, gesture and vocal deliberation to such an excrutiating extent that - for the most part - it is little more than masturbation on stage. Do 'real' characters - even if Charlie supposedly exists in a deluded world of half-truths - shout, shake, strut and externalise every part of their being to the point of near hysteria? So much for motivation.
The real shame, however, is that Charlotte Pyke (Margo) - who miraculously manages to turn in a restrained and honest performance - is made to look at odds with the rest of the competing actors. Her character finds herself in a world of torture and unbelievability; the actress must surely feel the same.
Cast Credits: (alpha order): Josh Cole - Charlie. Dagmar Doring - Judy. Maria Golledge - Helena. Charlotte Pyke - Margo.
Company Credits: Writer - David Hauptschein. Director - Julio Maria Martino. Set Designer - David Degreef-Mounier. Lighting Designer - Dan Large. Sound Designer - David Hunt. Stage Manager - Vicky Eames. Press & Marketing - Mobius. Production Photography - Peter Everett. Programme Photography - Matthieu Grospiron. Programme Design - Anthony Austin. Company - Secret Life Theatre.
END
(c) Mike Miller 2007
reviewed 15 February 2007 / Old Red Lion
Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012