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“We’ll do the Hokey Cokey and …”

Ms Alzheimer’s is an especially unwelcome presence at Christmas but our first festive season with her recognised in our midst has been and gone without too much angst. There was confusion about what day of the week it was and which day was actually Christmas Eve and Christmas Day but otherwise it went fairly smoothly largely because I was around all the time to troubleshoot.  And as Christmases go, it certainly had its moments.

The best one was at our younger son’s on Boxing Day. It’s a delight for both my loved one and me to have all four of our granddaughters (ranging in age from nineteen to two) in one room and given, geography, logistics, jobs and education it doesn’t happen too often. But there we all were ripping open presents, yelping in delight, chatting, catching up and eating too much in a homely Brighton sitting room.

Then the younger children, excited about a download of action songs someone had found for them, decided that they simply had to do the Hokey Cokey with their Dad. So he moved some chairs to create a tiny dance floor and I stood up to join them – unthinkingly assuming that My Loved One would remain paterfamilias on the sofa where he’d already sat most of the day opening his old codger’s presents such as a Down Your Way calendar and Very Warm Gloves.

But one of our quasi daughters-in-law and the elder granddaughters weren’t having that. Much more thoughtful than I, they helped him to his feet and held his hands in our little circle. So the Hokey Cokey turned into a whole gathering activity – amidst lots and lots of laughter because we must have looked awfully silly. And I had to throw myself into it with an undignified level of energy because I was so moved to see MLO opposite me, trying very hard, feeling loved and enjoying himself but looking an awful lot older and frailer than he did this time last year. Had I not forced myself to  concentrate hard on hopping about I would have broken down and howled.

As it was I’d selfishly spent most of the day rejoicing at being able to have proper, grown up conversations with people. I’m a lifelong professional communicator – first as a teacher and now as a writer. I find it almost intolerably frustrating when I can’t get though to people. And at the moment I seem to be failing to communicate with both MLO and the lovely friend who’s staying with us (hearing problems) about 75% of the time. Yes, I know I’m bad-tempered but I really do try hard to be patient and kind – and then hate myself for failing.

Our younger son thinks the Hokey Cokey should be a new Elkin family tradition and is already looking forward to a repeat run at his brother’s house next year. And I’m sure his daughters will be up for it.  As for me, I dare not think a whole year ahead and reflect on what the ever-present and increasing invasive Ms A will be allowing us to do by then.

 

Cambridge Theatre Company  is a very young company which, for a non-pro outfit, manages to be pleasingly professional and I admire the range of work it is beginning to present.

This enjoyable show uses a cast of five adults, one juvenile lead (James Malpas at the performance I saw) plus a thoughtfully directed young ensemble. It’s a jolly, upbeat piece – not least because veteran playwright, David Woold adapts Roald Dahl’s irreverent grotesqueness and child centred warmth so very well.

The story is so familiar to the children in the audience that they can chorus back the right answers for the cast at the beginning. Orphaned James escapes from his two appalling gaurdian aunts by whizzing off to America inside a giant peach with the five creatures he meets therein. As the titular James, James Malpas develops the character well during the action. This is a bereft child who grows into a enterprising team leader and James Malpas catches that very deftly.

All five adults are good value with Adam Bond standing out as Centipede. He is a charismatically versatile actor. His centipede is gor-blimey and lovably self important. Bond also doubles as the completely different outrageously awful Aunt Spiker and then as a rather delicious ship’s captain voiced like Kenneth More in heightened RP. He really is very talented. Alan Hay’s dour Scottish Earthworm is delightful too – eventually triumphing in an act of bravery which suddenly humanises him.

There’s also some lovely work from the eight children in the ensemble. They have small speaking parts as narrators and they work well as a shoal of marauding sharks and a flock of seagulls – among other things.

Jasmine Haskell’s set is impressive. The stage is dominated by the framing peach and she makes interesting use of the revolve when it swings to reveal the open fruit. There are some sparky songs too (original music by James Ingram) ably accompanied on keyboard from one of the Great Hall’s galleries.

You couldn’t fail to be entertained by this show. It encapsulates all the requisite Dahl-esque quirkiness and is a lot of fun.

This review was first published by Sardines:http://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/reviews/review.php?REVIEW-Cambridge%20Theatre%20Company%20-James%20and%20the%20Giant%20Peach&reviewsID=3072

I have said publicly before that Chichester Festival Theatre’s youth theatre, headed by the immensely talented Dale Rooks, is one of the finest in the country. This splendid show proves my point – in spades.

And before we go any further let me commend CFT as warmly as I possibly can for its investment in its youth theatre which regularly takes over (and pretty well fills) the main house for two weeks over Christmas. This enlightened policy provides the city and its environs with an outstanding Christmas show supported by full production values including Simon Higlett’s mysterious, gothic set whose dark arches – lots of wow factor – swing round on the revolve to reveal a plethora of nooks, crannies and opportunities.

Anna Ledwich’s reworking of this thorny (literally) folk tale gives us an imaginative framing devices in which 1940s evacuees are housed – effectively incarcerated – in a large mansion. There, in an attic, they entertain each other by telling and sharing a story. At the end there’s a surprise packed in to the apparently Miss Trunchbull-like owner and her husband.

I’ve seen Hal Darling – the titular beast on press night – in action before and he’s definitely a young actor to watch. Hidden inside an astonishing horned exoskeleton he looks like the minotaur crossed with ET and seasoned with a strong hint of a War Horse-style Handspring puppet. His voice booms on echo from within the costume until he gradually softens as he gets to know Beauty (Mia Cunningham-Stockdale on press night). Darling’s deep voiced beast is powerful, personable and vulnerable. The end is deeply moving.

Cunningham-Stockdale is delightful as Beauty – no insipid, fairy tale pawn in Ledwich’s version. This Beauty is a feisty gardener in dungarees but prettily feminine in spite of herself. She exudes feminist strength though and refuses to wear a flouncy dress to dine with the Beast. Instead she looks stunning in a golden trouser suit (costumes by Dawson Laight). She has a sweet but assertive singing voice and a smile which sets the stage alight.

George Bailey, as Mr Villeneuve on press night, finds very convincing paternal age and wisdom or lack of it. There’s entertaining work from Crispin Glancy as the outrageously, friskily camp Kiki. But it’s actually invidious to name check too many individuals in this super show because, so well directed are these young people that there isn’t a weak performance to be seen anywhere on stage.

The ensemble numbers are glitteringly professional. Dale Rooks is very good indeed at mobilising large numbers and making interesting use of the space. She also finds ways of individualising characters so that everyone has something specific to do.

Richard Taylor’s music – there’s a fair amount of operatic sing through – is vibrant and aurally arresting especially when he gives the chorus counterpointed melodies. And with MD Colin Miller leading a six piece band, it’s in very capable hands.

Three (or four or five) cheers then for Chichester Festival Youth Theatre and everyone involved with it. They really have surpassed themselves this time.

This review was first published by Sardines: http://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/reviews/review.php?REVIEW-Chichester%20Festival%20Theatre%20(professional)-Beauty%20and%20the%20Beast&reviewsID=3069

Trinity Theatre artistic director John Martin negotiated for four years for the rights to John Kane’s lovely version of The Wizard of Oz which uses the original music from the 1939 MGM film.

The talented cast – professional principals along with members of Trinity youth theatre – do it terrific justice.  The fantasy elements are effectively spliced with realism. Imaginative use of projections and archive footage conjures a struggling 1930s Kansas farming community …

Read the rest of this review in The Stage: https://edition.thestage.co.uk/2017/12/20/the-wizard-of-oz-review-at-trinity-theatre-tunbridge-wells-immaculately-performed/pugpig_index.html

At our last appointment with the consultant My Loved One and I agreed, in principle, that we would – if asked – be willing to take part in Alzheimer’s research.

A few months later brought a phone call telling us about a Cardiff University project called Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics. It was all painstakingly (laboriously) explained to us verbally and sent to us in writing. The eventual upshot was the arrival last week of, let’s call them Leila and Naomi,  who work at Kings College, for a long information gathering/sharing session. It took most of a morning with the two of us working with the two of them in different rooms at our home.

I answered dozens and dozens of questions about his family and changes I’ve noticed in his behaviour, attitude, mood, comprehension etc (it might have been quicker to direct Leila and Naomi to these blogs!). MLO was, meanwhile, doing cognitive and other assessments in the dining room. Predictably, he couldn’t remember much to tell me about it afterwards except to say fairly cheerfully “I had to do that copying thing with the squiggles again. And of course I messed it up as usual.”

The first thing which really interests me about this work is that the aim of project is to indentify environmental, biological and genetic factors which influence the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Yes – genetic. I did a double take too. For a very long time medics have been telling the public that late (that means at age 65+) onset Alzheimer’s is not hereditary, although early onset forms of the disease are. We’ve been personally assured of this several times by our consultant and others in the last few months too – and that’s information I’ve been relieved to pass on to our sons.

Now, I gather, this project in Cardiff has found 20 genes which are related to Alzheimer’s and, by implication, staff there are beavering away in search of more. So much for a disease which is not inherited then?

Leila and Naomi, who went off with blood and DNA samples (his, not mine) as well as huge sheafs of info, have ten sets of research interviews to do. We were their fifth. Others like them are doing similar ground work all over the country and then it all goes to Cardiff for analysis We’ve been promised newsletters and so forth to keep us up to date with activities and findings.

If it is eventually established that genes are partly or wholly responsible for allowing Ms Alzheimer’s to devastate people’s lives then surely – in time – there is hope that ways will be found of blocking whatever triggers this horrible illness? Gene therapy and all that.  It isn’t, at this stage, going to be any help to us of course but it comforts me a little when I think what the future might hold for our sons and grandchildren.

PS. Even Ms A sometimes has a sense of humour. “While you’re out could you go into one of the ethnic shops and get a bag of cinnamon?” I said when MLO was off for a stroll. “The supermarket stuff is stale and useless”. An hour later he came back proudly bearing a packet of cumin. Well I suppose it’s brown powder but it won’t taste good on my porridge …

Written & produced by Tim Webb. Created by Oily Cart and based on character designs by children’s author and illustrator, Nikki Pontin.
society/company: Oily Cart (Professional productions) (directory)
performance date: 14 Dec 2017
venue: artsdepot, North Finchley, London

Oily cart performers don’t just act, sing and dance (although they do all of that – expertly). They play with children in some of the most thoughtful, immersive theatre for the very young you’ll ever see.

The latest show takes us into the trees. The lobby which leads into the studio theatre performance space at Arts Depot is full of tiny tree houses at infant height – look inside to see eggs. How many birds can you hear singing?

The audience is then led by talented, skilled cast members – resplendent in multi layered silky costumes to represent feathers and with arms flapping – into the performance space. Children sit at three arc-shaped benches where they embark on building a nest.

Everything is multisensory, as in all Oily Cart shows. They use fluffy feathers, crinkly bits of shiny paper and aromatic herbs in the nests. And the cast are working with them continuously as well as performing simple songs within the space encircled by the children’s benches. When there’s a storm and it rains we are lightly sprayed in perfumed water and given leaf umbrellas. Then the eggs hatch and there are baby birds to look after. The scene in which worms have to be found to feed the chicks is very funny. Finally– the show is called “Hushabye” after all – a baby appears. By implication she’s the one who is asleep “in the tree top” and there’s an element of “when the wind blows the cradle will rock.”

Griff Fender and Katherine Gray are Oily Cart regulars and their performances are, as ever, warm and inclusive. The music is beautifully played on kora by Kadialy Kouyate who also co-wrote some of it with music director Max Reinhardt. Kouyate also sings some of it in his own West African language, Manding.

Tim Webb who founded Oily Cart wrote this exquisite show, which is directed by Anna Newell, is really on top of what works. His decades of experience shine through. And the attention to detail in the creation of the hands on set and props (head of scenic construction: Hannah Sharp) is second to none.

This fine show, which touring through spring 2018 comes in three versions: for babies and toddlers (6 months to 2 years), for young children (3-5 years) and a relaxed version for young people aged 3-8.

This review was first published by Sardines: http://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/reviews/review.php?REVIEW-Oily%20Cart%20(Professional%20productions)-Hush-A-Bye&reviewsID=3065

The innate glitziness of the Orchard Theatre – with its strips of multicoloured, flashing neon lights around the auditorium – makes it ideal for panto.

This Qdos show has  expected high production values. The Fairy Godmother (an entertainingly coarse-voiced Suzie Chard) flies in on a crescent moon …

Read the rest of this review in The Stage: https://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/2017/cinderella-review-orchard-theatre-dartford-glitzy/

 

This is how this is how you produce a decent local panto on a very low budget. With a cast of eight and a recorded musical accompaniment, Jonathan Ashby-Rock’s production is strong on storytelling. His script contains a couple of unexpected, original twists and the many fresh and funny jokes keep everyone smiling …

Read the rest of this review at The Stage: https://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/2017/dick-whittington-review-arts-centre-hounslow/