SHAKESPEARE, DINOSAURS, hip hop and butoh dancers were among the myriad attractions on offer during week two of the Galway Arts Festival.
The Shakespeare came in the form of the double bill of Comedy of Errors and Richard III from Edward Hall’s superb all-male Propeller company and what a feast of theatrical brilliance they provided!
Throughout the arts festival’s history certain theatre companies have become firm favourites via repeat visits – Footsbarn in the early days and Steppenwolf more recently. Propeller must surely now be added to that select band; having captivated audiences two years ago with Merchant of Venice and Midsummer Night’s Dream they pretty much blew everyone away with this year’s double bill.
Richard III was set in some kind of asylum/slaughterhouse with various murderous blades and instruments hanging from the set’s steel gantries and many of the cast were attired in long coats and face masks, vividly evoking the bloody and tyrannic atmosphere of Richard’s realm.
Richard Clothier was magnetic as the villainous Richard; conniving, pitiless, cynical and yet always sharply witty. Propeller’s production similarly combined grisly depictions of the play’s numerous murders with a delicious streak of zestful black comedy.
Both Propeller plays were characterised by terrific ensemble playing and inspired use of music and song, performed by members of the company. Hopefully this will not be Propeller’s last visit to the arts festival.
Another repeat visitor was Debbie Harry and Blondie who performed at the Big Top on Wednesday night. Harry, still looking glamorous in her mid-sixties, showed she’s not ready for her bus-pass just yet as she and the band delighted the large attendance with spirited versions of classics like ‘Union City Blues’, ‘Call Me’, ‘Hanging on the Telephone’ and, to finish off, ‘Heart of Glass’.
It was interesting to see how many younger members of the crowd, who were probably not even born when the songs were first released, were still singing along enthusiastically with them all.
Featherhead Productions were yet another company to pay a return visit. Four years ago they made an indelible impression with Slat, an astonishing piece of dance theatre/art installation on the theme of feral children.
This year they returned with The Devil’s Spine Band inspired by Oscar Wilde’s 1882 visit to the mining town of Leadville, Colorado. The creative team behind the show included composer Trevor Knight, artist Alice Maher, actress Olwen Fouere, and butoh dancers Gyohei Zaitsu and Maki Wantanabe.
While there were impressive passages with bluesy rock fusing with the butoh dancers and Fouere as striking a stage presence as ever, ultimately the different elements did not combine with the same degree of cohesion and clarity achieved in Slat.
While some among the audience were drawn into the show’s strange atmosphere, it left others with a mix of bafflement and boredom, leading to a number of walkouts before the show ended.
And then on Saturday night it was time to partaaaaayyyy at the Big Top as Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and De La Soul transformed the crowd into one huge cheering, bouncing, arm-waving, drink-spilling, happily raucous horde with their combination of powerful brassy riffs and old skool hip-hop. It all went down a treat and marked a fittingly exuberant finale to this year’s festival. Roll on 2012…
