| SHOUT IT ALL OUT |
Enough is Enough |
| beware productions , Barnabas Arts House - Newport , January 24, 2017 |
This wonderfully talented theatre company of Turkish political exiles is led by the award winning actor and Artistic Director of the company, Memet Ali Alabora. He is a very highly regarded film actor and theatre director in Turkey. Alabora is one of the founders of garajistanbul, a contemporary performing arts institution in Istanbul. He also helped to set up and lead the Actors Union of Turkey. In 2012 he directed and appeared in Mi Minor written by fellow Turkish exile Meltem Arikan. The Turkish authorities claimed the play was a rehearsal for the 2013 Gezi Park protests in Istanbul. A campaign of smear and hate forced both of them to flee from Turkey. With help from British Equity’s Committee of Artists’ Freedom they came to Wales and are now living here in Cardiff. In 2011 the Turkish Government increased a range of restrictions on human rights, most notably freedom of speech and freedom of the press. A growing backlash to this policy grew into the Gezi Park protest. At the time Gezi Park was one of the few green spaces left in central Istanbul. The protests started as an objection to the development of the park. The government’s well-armed reaction was so physical and drastic that the protest grew into a massive protest against all the government’s anti freedom laws. Memet took part in the protest along with other famous Turkish actors. Death threats followed. It was inevitable now that Memet and his wife Pinar and Meltem Arikan would have to flee Turkey. We are the beneficiaries as we are able to enjoy the value the company now gives us as they start with this new and compelling work being given its debut performance in Newport tonight before it starts out on an extensive tour of Wales. As you might expect with this background the play Enough is Enough is dynamic agi-prop. . A thoughtful and at times, very realistic accounts of abuse of women. Representative of Welsh Women’s Aid and several abuse counsellors were in the audience. The play is based on the collected stories of actual abuse suffers. Meltem had originally written a straight play on the subject; now with the addition of an almost heavy rock band the message is even more powerful. As well as the irony and humour in this exciting production the main message is loud and clear. The line-up is four feisty females including Memet’s wife Pinar Ogun, who is in fact establishing herself as an actress here in Cardiff and London. She is joined by Cardiff-based Maddie Jones who is also musical director of the piece, also from Cardiff, Francesca Dimech who blows a mean trumpet and also masters the accordion, bass and Cavachino. mid-wales based Emma Daman Thomas completes the quartet Initially we see a line-up of three guitars and drums but they are all extraordinary multi- instrumentalists. Emma Daman Thomas also does trumpet as well as keyboard and accordion. There’s a clarinet and some tiny atmospheric instruments that were quite new to me. With rousing songs like ‘I love you Patriarchy’ and ‘Fuck, Fuck, Fuck,’ they make the point very strongly indeed. They are also compelling actors. It is with a sincere and quiet beauty they reenact the sad and sometimes terrible confessions Meltem has set down for them. There can be no happy ending to a show like this but there is hope. Musically the show closes gently with a captivating allure that sets us thinking. Tour dates: 26 Jan Theatre Clywd. Mold 27 Jan Monty Club, Newtown 28 Jan Town Hall Welshpool 30 Jan The Little Theatre Rhyl 1 Feb Neuadd Ogwen Bangor-Bethesda 3 Feb The Ucheldre Anglesey 4 Feb Bar 46 Aberystwyth 5 Feb Magic Lantern Tywyn 6 Feb The Guildhall-Great Hall Cardigan 8 Feb Victoria Hall Lampeter 9 Feb Taibach Rugby Club Port Talbot 10 Feb The Arts Wing Swansea 11 Feb The Queen’s Hall Narberth 12 Feb The Parrot Carmarthen 15 Feb Ebbw Vale Institute Ebbw Vale 16 Feb Con Club Aberdare 17 Feb Theatr Soar Merthyr Tydfil 18 Feb Memo Newbridge 19 Feb Clwb Y Bont Pontypridd 8 Apr Wales Millennium Centre Cardiff B |
Reviewed by: Michael Keligan |
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