Patterns

'Patterns' by Daniel Loveday, Cygnet New Theatre

This play highlighted a key things about live performances for me. Tech when done right isn't usually commented upon because it is a background element, but when it is done wrong then it can ruin a play. For the first half of Patterns the male detective didn't have his microphone turned on so you couldn't hear what he was signing, and throughout the entire play the electric piano was far too loud, it tended to overwhelm the voices of both actors, even with the microphones on.

Anyway, leaving aside technical misjudgments, the play itself was billed as a 'musical thriller'. This made me very wary from the beginning. Musicals aren't usually thrillers for a good reason, it's hard to maintain tension when your characters tend to burst into song. Actually I wouldn't describe it as a thriller, or even a murder mystery. Even for those not raised on a steady stream of Agatha Christie stories as a child, it must be obvious pretty early on who the killer is. So in a way, it is more like 'The Secret History' by Donna Tartt in that you know who the killer is and you're watching the build up to his crime, learning the 'why' rather than the 'who'. There was a slight twist at the end of the story, but not enough to make it truly dramatic.

As for the musical element....don't get me wrong, I love musicals when they're done right. But this one missed the mark. I think the key is to choose your song topics very carefully. There were some good song moments - the wistful explanation of the first murder, but there were also some cringe-worthy moments - a song about fighting over a packet of spaghetti.

Overall, the cast should be given credit for learning the whole thing in less than three weeks (the previous cast members pulled out suddenly), but the whole thing just seemed very amateur.

**

Patterns has one more show in Sidmouth, details here: http://www.patterns.uk.com/ (the fact that music starts playing automatically when you open this website, and there appears to be no way to turn it off, kind of sums up the whole thing for me)

Clark Andrews' Tempest & Wild Thing I Love You

'Clark Andrews' Tempest' by Woodnote, The Bike Shed Theatre

An actor reminisces to himself in his dressing room about his family whilst also practicing his solo performance of Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' mixing the two story's together and hoping for a better outcome than Prospero's.

I think it helps if you've seen The Tempest so you know which characters he is portraying, but I'm not sure it's essential as the pieces he enacts are just vignettes and so you do not see the end of the storylines. You may be content to see the blossoming romance of a young man and a girl, and not need to know that they are Ferdinand and Miranda.

I saw part of this play as a scratch performance in February, some elements have been dropped since then, but what remains is a masterful combination of two stories mixing silent film elements with great acting.

*****
You can next see this on Saturday at 2.50pm



'Wild Thing I Love You' by Ella Good and Nicki Kent, The City Gate Hotel

Gathered around a map under canvas Ella and Nicki tell their story of searching for Big Foot in the Californian redwood forest.

Unfortunately I just found the whole thing a bit juvenile. There was something about the way they spoke in such soft voices, they're 'subtitles' for audio interviews that clearly left large chunks out, the claiming that some audio was of terrible quality when it turned out not to be, and the way one of them put a cardboard box over her head to re-enact a conversation that really grated against me.

I did like the way they used a live camera feed to create a real-time film on a small television with effects via a magnifying glass and paper scenery.

I like travel stories, so I had high hopes for this one, but I guess you can't get much sophistication from a story of nothing really happening.

**
You can see this today (Thursday) at either 7.30 or 8.45pm

www.igniteexeter.org.uk

On Hold & Herons

'On Hold' by Scratchworks, The Bike Shed Theatre

A dysfunctional messy unprofessional promotions team vie for the promotion of office manager whilst bickering and teasing each other over unresolved sexual tensions.

I feel there was a lot of potential here but what could have been the most interesting parts were brushed over. Was Josie actually sleeping at the office long-term? What was that brief mention about some professional misconduct in Malcolm's past about? Why spend so long diagnosing Katie with depression, and then have nothing come of it, especially as one of the characters was a psychologist?

**
On Hold has now finished its time at the Ignite festival



'Herons' by EUTCo, The Bike Shed Theatre

Thuggery and violence sit side by side with compassion and hope on a park bench by an East London canal.

There were a couple of faults. I suppose there's not much they can do about the fact that the ages of the actors are all wrong, but it does detract from the emotional impact of children going through such violent events when they all look like they're in their twenties. I also found it quite unbelievable that the tough thug character would break down so completely and immediately at the sight of a gun.

Overall, not a bad play, but not really to my taste either.

***
Herons is next on today (Thursday) at 2.30pm

www.igniteexeter.org.uk