Skip to content

FringeGuru

 
Unconventional Attitudes
Published on Tuesday, 17 July 2012

ImageUnderground Venues, Spoken Word
12-13, 15 Jul, 2:15pm-3:15pm
Reviewed by Carly Bennett

This afternoon I’m heading back underground, for another spoken word event which has roused my interest. “Storytelling in the Western tradition, blending Greek mythology with modern European history” sounds intriguing…and given that the Greek myths themselves have, at the best of times, been over-exposed, I’m hoping for something fresh and out of the ordinary this afternoon.

The Underground Venues here in Buxton are intimate enough to allow a spoken word event to have a real impact on the audience, and (despite sitting somewhat uncomfortably, not to mention a little chillily) I settle in ready to engage with the performer.  She’s on stage already.  Introducing herself, Vicky Ellis reads from a sheet, detailing a bit of contextual information about the characters she will take on and their relevance to each other.  But the first impression is, I’m afraid, a little amateurish; her bags and belongings can be seen stage right, and she often seems to gesture to a friend in the front row, whose camera beeps at regular intervals throughout the performance.

The main theme of the storytelling is of a British woman named Emma Hamilton, and various Greek gods and goddesses. The subject matter is treated lightly and with a musicality suitable to a poetic reading. Ellis handles the dialogue with skill, never faltering in her delivery, and her words are clearly articulated and audible.

Sadly however, I feel that rather too much of the work is underpowered, and therefore never really takes off.  Movements and sentiments are not fully carried through with intention or commitment, leaving a rather underwhelming feeling overall.

There were some clever aspects of the piece, including the way Ellis worked around her sparse stage and limited props, introducing small costume changes to give a sense of different characters. But ultimately, I didn’t feel the story held enough weight or relevance to keep it engaging. If you are a particular fan of Greek mythology then you may feel differently, but at an hour in length I fear that general audiences could find it laboursome viewing.

Ironically too, I left unsure what is “unconventional” about this piece – but in a future version, I do feel there is a lot more Ellis could do with the stories and characterisation.

<< Afterwords   Prufrock's World >>

FROM OUR ARCHIVES

These are archived reviews of shows from Buxton 2012.  We keep our archives online as a courtesy to performers, and for readers who'd like to research previous years' reviews.