At the Other Room |
| Constellation Street , The Other Room at Porter’s, Cardiff , April 15, 2016 |
I met this lovely lady last night, Ruth, she was the landlady of this little pub; worn carpets and fading wallpapers like many old pubs out in the sticks used to be. This pub was inside another pub, the well-known Porters, great atmosphere there. Behind a curtain there’s an even more dynamic atmosphere to be found, the award winning fringe theatre, The Other Room. That’s where I found Ruth. She started telling us how she likes to do good things. She developed a very helpful relationship, helpful for him that is, with Pete a homeless guy. He hangs out by Greg’s by the station. She also answers the phone at the Sams, SamaritansRuth is a ‘Kardiff’ girl and the wonderful Cardiff born Nicola Reynolds gives us an utterly convincing and captivating performance. As in each of these solo encounters writer Matthews Bulgo perfectly catches the vernacular speech but more wonderfully from within the conversations his characters, no people also unconsciously utter many poignant and wise observations on the world around us. I say people as each one of these experiences, in their intimate settings are much more like listening to someone in the room with you and engage all the more strongly for that. The four players are all consummate artists and are able to give us just that touch of theatricality to add a very rewarding frisson to experience. Ruth has a husband Jim, his behaviour is at the centre of her tale. Things sort of don’t work out. There’s an inner strength to Ruth, she sort of misses him “He’ll be back.” She pulls another pint and life goes on. Get in there and ask her to pull a pint for you. Theatrical nectar. Now I’m being ushered into another room, a hotel room. Designer Amy Jane Cook has done extraordinary things with this very limited space. We are carefully led from place to place by charming ushers. I have a very old-fashion attitude towards all this ‘experimental’ theatre; I like my seat in the stalls and to be able to see everything clearly on the stage in front of me. And I have never felt I could be made to think otherwise. I have now been totally converted. The audience was very much an essential part of the proceedings here, this added to the overall quality of the experience. In the hotel room a very nervous young man is talking quietly to the girl beside him; the weather and what to do with her wet coat. Stephen then brings us all into his story. It’s a deeply moving story, as he takes us back into his family situation. It was a well-deserved tribute to fine actor Neal McWilliams that every eye was fixed upon him. He’s a teacher and his wife is a lawyer, a seemingly successful middle-class family. They also have a baby. Again he absorbs us totally into his life. A life of powerful reactions to human situations. Like Ruth he’s been knocked about a bit and also done his own share of knocking. He offers a kindness to the girl he opened up the conversation with, then leaves. We’re out in the cellar next door now. We can see the trains whistling in and out of Cardiff Station. Teenage Alex is singing on a raised stage. Another room in a pub? Her set finished she’s out in the street soaked and freezing, wandering aimlessly. Gwenllian Higginson brings a wonderful touch of naivety to the role. She conjures up strong pictures of her experiences, we see them clearly inside our heads. She sees a man. Her short experience with this man is one of number of moments of almost surreal beauty that writer Matthew Bulgo brings to the work. Hers is a strong and challenging tale, beautifully and strongly told, there’s no real recovery this time. We leave her, still out in the cold drinking a can of lager. The first three courses of this theatrical supper were all excellent, so enjoyable I felt a little cross that I wasn’t allowed to taste the final dish. Didn’t see the point of this at all. But I had dined well and I am still savouring the many delights. |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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