Wanting Widescreen
Sat, 21 Apr 2001, 02:09 pmWalter Plinge3 posts in thread
Wanting Widescreen
Sat, 21 Apr 2001, 02:09 pmVagabond Theatre's latest production 'Wanting Widescreen' was written by Patrick Spicer (recently seen in the Malcom Crisp trilogy) has produced an excellent script.
The main character Dave 'Filth' (Spicer) is a punk, reminiscent of Rik Mayall's 'Bottom' character, who has trouble finding words in his vocabulary with more than 4 letters. His over the top portrayal of Dave is brilliant.
Dave has one ambition in life - to own a widescreen TV - and he would do anything to achieve this. When his desires are overheard by an on-looker, this person sends along his number one representative Mervyn (Cavan Gallagher) to spell out, in words of dozens of letters, what is required for Dave to own this TV.
This idea works very well, a little editing of the dialogue between the rep. and his 'boss' (Steve Black) would tighten the whole thing up a little. Lots of good ideas, with a wonderful but small cameo by Amber Royle.
Both Cavan - a Curtin student, famed for his hilarious eccentric scripts - and Patrick are described by the very capable director Jo Marsh as 'madmen'. All have worked very hard at this unusual play.
The main character Dave 'Filth' (Spicer) is a punk, reminiscent of Rik Mayall's 'Bottom' character, who has trouble finding words in his vocabulary with more than 4 letters. His over the top portrayal of Dave is brilliant.
Dave has one ambition in life - to own a widescreen TV - and he would do anything to achieve this. When his desires are overheard by an on-looker, this person sends along his number one representative Mervyn (Cavan Gallagher) to spell out, in words of dozens of letters, what is required for Dave to own this TV.
This idea works very well, a little editing of the dialogue between the rep. and his 'boss' (Steve Black) would tighten the whole thing up a little. Lots of good ideas, with a wonderful but small cameo by Amber Royle.
Both Cavan - a Curtin student, famed for his hilarious eccentric scripts - and Patrick are described by the very capable director Jo Marsh as 'madmen'. All have worked very hard at this unusual play.
RE: Wanting Widescreen
Mon, 23 Apr 2001, 03:43 pmWalter Plinge
Wanting Widescreen
At the Blue Room Theatre
It makes a change to go and see a show that you can put your feet up and have a good laugh at (or rather with).
The majority of my time in auditoriums is spent in states of perplexity and frustration, and elation (often at the same time) over some young director's new idea about a stale old work or an old director's stale idea about a brand new work. At last a play that doesn't have to try too hard!
Wanting Widescreen fills that usually forgotten space between Theatre and an episode of your favourite TV program. Because of this it has an easy and familiar feel about it. In fact TV references abound in this play about the consequences of getting a new TV. If you were to cross Red Dwarf with Monty Python and add a dash of The Young Ones you would perhaps end up with Wanting Widescreen. And this is no mean feat!
Patrick Spicer (writer and actor) has concocted a recipe that with a little brewing takes the audience on a journey from the frantic to the hysterical. Not only does he fill the space with the frenetic social ramblings of his 'punked' out character but actually makes two trips around the building before succumbing to the inevitable confrontation that we all have to face in a consumer society - namely; have we actually sold our souls for the lives we live.
Cavan Gallagher very effectively plays the cool headed foil to the manic David 'Filth' of Patrick Spicer. This style of near spoof theatre does not rely upon pristine production values and the rawness of this 'back room' production has produced a enlivening piece of live theatre that even, like its TV brethren has a moral in the end. Equally the technicals by Daniel Madrigali were 'comic-book' clever and very effective.
Directed by Joanne Marsh, Wanting Widescreen rarely releases the audience from its madcap grip. This hour long show feels almost as if it finishes too quickly. But in this time it explores a myriad of ideas about whether we choose to live in certain ways or are just cleverly manipulated by the society in which we live to accept approapriate (or subversive) roles.
This show has had sell out audiences throughout its first week but with its three week run there may still be some tickets available.
At the Blue Room Theatre
It makes a change to go and see a show that you can put your feet up and have a good laugh at (or rather with).
The majority of my time in auditoriums is spent in states of perplexity and frustration, and elation (often at the same time) over some young director's new idea about a stale old work or an old director's stale idea about a brand new work. At last a play that doesn't have to try too hard!
Wanting Widescreen fills that usually forgotten space between Theatre and an episode of your favourite TV program. Because of this it has an easy and familiar feel about it. In fact TV references abound in this play about the consequences of getting a new TV. If you were to cross Red Dwarf with Monty Python and add a dash of The Young Ones you would perhaps end up with Wanting Widescreen. And this is no mean feat!
Patrick Spicer (writer and actor) has concocted a recipe that with a little brewing takes the audience on a journey from the frantic to the hysterical. Not only does he fill the space with the frenetic social ramblings of his 'punked' out character but actually makes two trips around the building before succumbing to the inevitable confrontation that we all have to face in a consumer society - namely; have we actually sold our souls for the lives we live.
Cavan Gallagher very effectively plays the cool headed foil to the manic David 'Filth' of Patrick Spicer. This style of near spoof theatre does not rely upon pristine production values and the rawness of this 'back room' production has produced a enlivening piece of live theatre that even, like its TV brethren has a moral in the end. Equally the technicals by Daniel Madrigali were 'comic-book' clever and very effective.
Directed by Joanne Marsh, Wanting Widescreen rarely releases the audience from its madcap grip. This hour long show feels almost as if it finishes too quickly. But in this time it explores a myriad of ideas about whether we choose to live in certain ways or are just cleverly manipulated by the society in which we live to accept approapriate (or subversive) roles.
This show has had sell out audiences throughout its first week but with its three week run there may still be some tickets available.