| Clunkers and treacle |
At Hijinx Theatre |
| Hijinx Theatre company- Dreaming Amelia , Aberystwyth Arts Centre , October 31, 2002 |
| In Dreaming Amelia, the latest new play by Hijinx Theatre Company, Amelia Earheart (played by Jessica Sandry) inspires Betty Parry (Sian McDowell) a girl from Camarthenshire who witnesses the American aviatrix’s historic 1928 touchdown at Burry Port, to pursue her dream of becoming a famous dancer. Playwright Sharon Morgan, who claims Amelia Earheart as a strong role model in her own development, explains that her play is about “artistic integrity as a metaphor for personal integrity—‘to thine own self be true.’” Sadly, much of the script is as trite as Polonius’ advice, and includes such clunkers as “I must believe the stars will guide me” and—this from a character who has obviously ‘sold out’—“Don’t follow rainbows, you’ll end in tears.” Betty’s dreams take her to New York City’s Broadway where she finds that The Industry—surprise—is cruel and simoniacal, the showgirl dance routines are uninspired, and the costumes are garish. Morgan also seems to downplay the fact that although Earhart did accomplish a great deal as an aviator on her own initiative, she had been a passenger, of the flight that touched down at Burry Port; a man had been at the controls. All of the characters in this show are one-dimensional types, from long-suffering Mam (Sandry), to the supportive boy next door (David Lyndon), to the ornery, stern French-speaking Russian ballet teacher (Kath Dimery), but the actors, particularly Sandry in her two very different roles, succeed in creating something lively out of the material. The costumes and set, designed by Sid Scott and Allison Callaghan, delightfully uphold the fairy-tale ethos of the piece. Betty’s dances, choreographed by June Campbell-Davies, don’t seem as unique, dynamic, or radical as the characters find them, but are mesmerizing at moments, and McDowell is an at once exuberant and controlled dancer. Lyndon plays both Betty’s exploitative lover and her brutal, alcoholic stepfather, who indicates that he finds his stepdaughter’s talent intimidating because he apparently been castrated by a First World War wounding. This casting decision raises questions that Morgan may or may not have intended. When Earheart is lost in the Pacific on her final flight shortly before her fortieth birthday, we are told she has “found peace” and “gone to total freedom.” In the sad world of this play, a girl can ‘pursue her dreams,’ but peace appears easiest found in death and platitudes. It is great that Hijinx produces new writing, with all its attendant risks, and produces new writing by women, which is rarer. Unfortunately, like Hijinx’s earlier play Tarzanne, Dreaming Amelia showcases the work of some very creative artists, compromised by its text’s didacticism and treacle. |
Reviewed by: Rebecca Nesvet |
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