Full Circle |
| Hijinx Theatre company , Llanover Hall Arts Centre, and on tour , June 19, 2003 |
| Last night I climbed Everest then returned to my home with a warm feeling of satisfaction and achievement, all through the charming auspices of Hijinx Theatre. I have always felt they have a ‘real life’ down to earth, no nonsense quality about their work, real theatre for real people. At the same time they are equally able to apply all the skills of the art of theatre at the highest level. Art and culture are there to help us uplift our spirits and strive for better things. At least that’s what I was always told they were for. Not only does this bit of art do that but it does it by telling us a true story of a successful striving, driven forward by humanity demonstrating its best qualities. You won’t find any of that on the Tele! ‘Full Circle’ the company’s latest production comes from Artistic Director Gaynor Lougher’s ongoing commitment to adults with learning difficulties or special needs. This production, devised and written by Glenys Evans, has been prepared primarily to be presented to audiences of people with these difficulties. Apart from a small ring of condescension in some of the opening lines the performers soon settled into the story and for ninety minutes held us all wrapped delightfully in it. It's Andy’s story. Andrew Williams is a young man from Cardiff with learning difficulties. He’s a bright young man with a determination that he finds difficult to articulate. Gareth Lloyd Roberts gave a well observed, sympathetic and extremely convincing performance. It’s a strange lonely world to us, so called, normal people. There are people to help, Andy has visitors, his ‘circle’ and, of course he has his brave and bewildered Mam. Dora Jones gives us all the love, passion, joy and frustration that we all recognise. At the beginning of the play the circle has just come together for one of its regular meetings, Mrs E, articulate, middle class, genuinely doing her bit for the community. Catrin Aaron plays the role delightfully, she knows she’s not to be taken too seriously – it’s difficult to play good people on stage! And then there’s Wilf ‘the friend round the bend’. We can soon see that they have developed a great fondness for Andy’ and that he enjoys their company. They play a game that will help Andy develop his speech. Nathan Sussex’s Wilf is very down to earth. Because of Andy’s limited speech he feels he has to talk extra loudly to him. The actor brilliantly captures a character that we have all met and at the same time shows us he has a heart of gold. All the time there is something Andy wants to say but he can’t get it out. Paula Gardiner’s music takes us inside his head and we share the frustration with him. He gets taken to a football match then to church, finally we get the message. He wants to climb a mountain. Not any old mountain but the highest mountain in the world. He knows that there is a ’Spirit of Adventure’ expedition being organised and he wants to be part of it. There’s money involved, his mother’s against it and it all seems impossible. He gets there, it’s tough going but the circle is completed. At times the story is told with compelling realism but also many theatrical devices are employed. The audience is used, a degree of stylisation is employed, we are never allowed to forget our theatre environment, though that’s not very difficult in the unsophisticated, though none the less effective surroundings of Llanover Hall The feel good factor coming out of all this should not detract from the fact that this is on the edge theatre and it will appeal to everybody. |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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