Theatre in Wales

Theatre, dance and performance reviews

Exhilarating Adaptation of a Unique Writer

At Hijinx Theatre

Hijinx Theare- Gulliver , Arad Goch Centre, Aberystwyth , December 3, 2009
At Hijinx Theatre by Hijinx Theare- Gulliver “I've told you before” says Brendan Charleson's animated, very English Jonathan Swift “You should never believe the critics.” The words are those of playwright Kit Lambert but the sentiments are Swiftian through and through. His hilarious assault on critics in “A Tale of a Tub” vies with Sheridan's 1779 “the Critic” as the funniest spoof on critics ever written.

The idiot savant academics of Gulliver's third journey with their weird goggles and flapping coats are brilliantly choreographed by director Louise Osborn. The dramatic verve of the presentation of the floating island of Laputa (“la Puta” being Spanish for “prostitute”) and the grace of Zoe Davies’ Houyhnhnm highlights the imbalance in “Gulliver's Travels.” The first two adventures are far more familiar, partly owing to their wholly undeserved and bowdlerised transference into the domain of children's literature.

Kit Lambert tackles Swift's scatology head on. James Ashton as the Blefescuan Emperor comes on stage drenched in Gulliver's urine. In Brobdingnag Gulliver spots on his protector Glum warts the size of soup plates and lice the size of hedgehogs. James Ashton's bent-over Yahoo presents him with a freshly minted turd.

Trying to compress Swift into an hour and forty minutes is no easy task and Kit Lambert has come up with an imaginative structure. The author is back in Ireland after his fall from favour- the play does not cover his one-sided adherence to the Tory cause nor the disaster for him of the Whig accession. In an illness he is visited by Michael Wagg's personified character of Doctor Gulliver who is half physician, half writer offering him the manuscript of his travels. Swift himself then assumes the part of Gulliver on his adventures.

The term “our modern day Swift” is the highest term of praise that journalists like to confer on one of their fellows. Christopher Hitchens has been the most recent to be so praised. Such a dominant figure is bound to be dramatised. By sheer coincidence Timothy Spall was playing him in John Sessions' radio play the day that Hijinx came to Aberystwyth. The last time Swift appeared on a stage was in 1977 in “Yahoo”, co-written by director Alan Strachan and Sir Alec Guinness.

It is not just that Sir Alec's sonorous tones were utterly different from Brendan Charleson’s wonderfully animated performance. That script centred on Swift’s relationships with the two Esthers. Kit Lambert entirely gets rid of one of them. In “Yahoo” the Lilliputians were played by the actors shuffling on their knees, with an effect more amiable than faithful to their spirit in the book. The Hijinx approach, as might be expected, is very different. The Lilliputians are split between actors and puppets and caught with all the small-minded malice of the original.

The Struldbrugs are presented by the ever versatile cast with a visual flair that characterises Louise Osborn’s direction throughout. Swift’s immortals are changed here to be Strudlbrugs. No reason is given but possibly easier pronunciation by the actors might be one. It might be viewed as pedantry but fidelity to an author is an absolute.

If there is a critique to the writing it is its tendency to the nineteenth century view of Swift as spearheaded by Thackeray. Swift's vision is less one of chaos and absurdity than that of passion and commitment. Touches of topicality like the Laputans’ complaints of illegal immigrants or greedy banks are unnecessary. The programme notes even make claims that he worried over climate change. In his outspokenness on behalf of the Irish poor, the colossal sums he donated to charity, Swift is as modern as can be and has no need for an extra manufactured topicality.

Hijinx are characteristically lean on actor numbers but as expected the technical aspects are outstanding. Carl Davies' design is as complex and multi-faceted as can be done for a set that is travelling to thirty or forty venues. James Williams’ music and sound design is a challenger for the best of the year. The speed of Zoe Davies’ costume and make-up change suggest she was working as hard offstage as on.

Reviewed by: Adam Somerset

back to the list of reviews

This review has been read 2504 times

There are 78 other reviews of productions with this title in our database:

 

Privacy Policy | Contact Us | © keith morris / red snapper web designs / keith@artx.co.uk