Show: Not the End of the World
Society: Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Venue: New Town Theatre (Majestic)
Credits: Geraldine McCaughrean
Type: Sardines
Author: Chris Abbott
Performance Date: 08/08/2015
Not the End of the World
Chris Abbott | 08 Aug 2015 23:02pm
Theatres on the Edinburgh Fringe come in many sizes and guises, from the minute to the massive, and it is always good to see a company working in a space to which it is suited. Majestic in the New Town Theatre (normally the Freemasons’ Hall) is large enough for the cast of Not the End of the World, an ensemble piece for a cast of forty young people.
Youth Music Theatre UK have a strong reputation, and the standards of performance, stage presence and voice work in this production more than lived up to expectations. Director Charlotte Conquet has adapted the piece from Geraldine McCaughrean’s novel, focusing in particular on those aspects of the novel relating to the role of women and obedience to God, with the animals in the ark largely an unseen presence.
The cast coped well with Sonum Batra’s sometimes difficult music, and Stuart Winter provided choreography for a production in which movement was a vital factor. The well-rehearsed cast showed wholehearted commitment and confident stage presence throughout, and there were no weak links in this production.
Stagecraft was inventive and striking, with the waves of the flood evocatively portrayed by billowing sheets of plastic, beneath which the un-saved could be seen drowning. In such a large cast it seems invidious to mention individuals, but among those who caught the eye were Jacob Dufton and Lauren-Rose Stirland as Noah and his wife, the latter proving to be the one with the strength to move beyond blind faith.
As the youngest couple on the Ark, paired up unwillingly, Olivia Neilsen and James Walden managed to portray not just their characters but their evolution as they achieved greater understanding of their situation and the choices open to them. As central character Timna, Iga Jazdzejewska sang sweetly and acted powerfully, supported superbly by a chorus whose professionalism was stunning to see in those so young.
Among supporting roles, Luca Panetta was unforgettable as the heatbroken Kittam. The whole cast worked as one to create stage pictures of the ark amid the ocean and convincingly conjured up the below decks area by the use of simple frames through which characters could climb.
All involved are to be congratulated for the achievement, including those all too often forgotten such as the chaperones without which youth theatre could not continue to have a presence at events such as the Fringe.
Not the End of the World may not be a conventional reading of the story of Noah, his family and the Ark, but it is a thought-provoking one and is presented in a fine production of which all concerned should be proud.
- : admin
- : 08/08/2015