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Platero Y Yo by Juan Ramon Jimenez
Published on Sunday, 05 August 2012
4

4 stars

Valvona & Crolla (venue website)
Theatre
3, 25 Aug, 5:45pm-7:05pm; 4, 7-11, 14-18, 22-24, 27 Aug, 1:00pm-2:20pm; 21 Aug, 8:30pm-9:50pm
Reviewed by Ellen Macpherson

 Family-friendly. Suitable for all ages.

Perhaps I should preface this review by warning that Platero Y Yo is a dramatic realisation of long, descriptive and hyperbolic free-verse poetry. As such, it won’t be for everyone. But for me, a hopeless literary nut, this production was an unexpected little slice of magic.

I can safely say that this is the first time I have ever experienced theatre in a deli. While it was definitely a bit odd to be doing my shopping at the same place I was seeing a show, the smells and sounds of Valvona and Crolla were a perfect lead-up to a production that attempted a sensory journey through the cobbled roads of Moguer, Spain.

Platero Y Yo provides a creative theatrical look at a compilation of short stories written by Nobel Prize winner Juan Ramon Jimenez. Translated “Platero and I”, these short stories move through the seasons, describing the experiences of a Spanish poet and his donkey (Platero). The magic of this production really does lie in the beauty and simplicity of the stories themselves; while I can’t read a word of Spanish, the tales translate beautifully into English. The abundance of adjectives at times seemed a little flowery, but the words largely succeeded in transporting my senses to southern Spain.

The production itself rode the line between theatre and spoken word, which is really not a bad thing. One of the reasons why I love living in Scotland is because every Scot I talk to seems to be a captivating storyteller, and Mike Maran is no exception. At times his dialogue seemed stilted, and there were a few too many dramatic pauses for my liking, but I’m going to cautiously put that down to the fact that it was the first show of the Fringe; when he got it right, he was utterly engaging.

Perhaps the most stunning part of this production is its use of props. The handmade puppets and a spinning wooden set show an incredible attention to detail, and the use of puppetry enhanced the whole performance, rather than distracting from the storytelling as I feared might have. Platero, the little puppet donkey, is especially charming, and he’s so expressive that he’s really a second actor. The staging is the highlight of the show – especially when the stories revolve around to the season of spring and the whole set is covered in roses. 

I’m going to be honest. I was expecting this production to be a little stuffy and (ahem) age-specific, but I’m delighted to be proved wrong. Not everyone will love it – if you despise Romantic descriptions of nature, stay away! – but the mastery of its puppetry, the clever use of classical guitar, and the ultimate intimacy of it charmed me. And on a day with typical Scottish weather, it offered a nice sunny Spanish interlude to balance the rain and wind outside.

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FROM OUR ARCHIVES

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

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