Words on stage

Frankenstein_sketch_3_by_Dumaker COMING SALONS IN London

17th April LIT IN PIT— Salon special in collaboration with Wendy Meakin and Pitfield– an evening of food, wine and The Wasteland

April 1st or April 2nd: 10 week study of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick begins

April 28th: Five week study of Faulkner’s Absalom, Absalom! begins (Mondays 8-10 PM)

April 24th: ONe meeting study of Eliot’s poem “Four Quartets”

 

With renewed commitment to get out and enjoy cultural London rather than (simply?) living in the realm of words, parenting, teaching and running through the Heath with a muddy dog – I enjoyed two theatrical productions this past weekend (thanks to inspired friends).

Olwen Fouéré  in her solo stage interpretation of James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake becomes the language she speaks. Without plot, character, consistent setting nor event, we are left with pure language which is often just sound played and expanded.  Fouéré uses her body to convey meaning while the language tends to elude interpretation—and we travel the river’s meanderings with her, flashing through our own memories that her chants and rhymes evoke, occasionally meeting the Irish world of rich traditions and song that she swims through. Salvation morphs into Salve Ocean –I know that song.

The next evening was in the layers of the Lion and Unicorn—part pub, restaurant and tiny theatre—for a version of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. This work has been the source of many interpretations over the years: one might argue that the interpretations have eclipsed Shelley’s stark and complex tale. Those who know the story primarily through its film versions are surprised to discover how the story itself focuses on intimate relationships, the struggle between work and family and the responsibility of the creator for the one created. Any theatrical or film production of the work must make choices about what parts of the story to illuminate and in so doing changes the focus of Shelley’s complex vision. The performance at the Lion and Unicorn reduced Frankenstein’s relationships with his family and loved ones and the careful education—in both books and human relations—that the Monster undergoes.  This version highlighted the way Victor’s creation of the monster destroys him psychically and physically: but I found his character less compelling with the lack of context.

Both of these experiences have me humming on the nature of language and story: what makes a story worth telling- worth re-telling? I think about how we each hold our particular version of a beloved story—that has as much to do with our own ideas & history as it does the text itself and its placement in time and perspective. How I would love to make my own production of Ulysses—to help the language leap towards an audience, to make the beloved and appalling characters dance out their story. As our study of The Magic Mountain nears its end, I see that the unfolding of a work with a group of minds deeply engaged gives us each an entrance to the vision of the writer. We make our own production.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Item added to cart.
0 items - £0.00