Author: Mike Whitton

LITTLE WOLF GANG at the Tobacco Factory, Bristol

In just under an hour the four members of Little Wolf Gang give vivid and lively accounts of three musical folk tales from Russia. The show opens with A Daring Fiddler Meets a Devilish Stranger at the Crossroads, a supernatural story that gives violinist Fiona Barrow plenty of opportunity to display her expressive and idiomatic skills, ably supported by Eddy Jay on accordion. Narrator Martin Maudsley revels in the devilish details, and makes it clear that audience participation is expected.

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Toby Hulse’s WAR GAME at Bristol Old Vic

It is a formidable task to create a play suitable for a family audience that nevertheless conveys something of the realities of life and death in the trenches of the First World War. Director Toby Hulse has responded to this challenge by devising a production inspired by Michael Foreman’s beautifully illustrated novella War Game, the winner of the 1993 Nestle Children’s Book Prize. This features the Christmas Day truce of 1914, when soldiers from both sides sang carols, exchanged gifts and played an impromptu game of football.

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COASTAL DEFENCES at the Brewery, Bristol

“. . . All the action takes place in front of a striking backdrop: a red brick wall, emblazoned with the unmistakable Coca-Cola logo in Cyrillic script. There are just three actors, each of them playing a number of roles and quickly changing from one costume to another at the side of the stage. Jill Rutland is particularly affecting as the Bulgarian woman who is not quite sure what kind of relationship she wants with her Facebook friend, and Nic McQuillian is excellent as the young, idealistic visitor from England . . “

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SATTF presents The Conquering Hero at Bristol University

“. . . Why is this play not better known? Like Sherriff’s much more familiar Journey’s End, Allan Monkhouse’s The Conquering Hero seeks to expose the sordid reality of warfare and attack the shallowness and ignorance of jingoistic, death-or-glory patriotism, and it does so with great conviction. . . The Conquering Hero is a fine, brave play, with perhaps greater depth than Journey’s End, and Shakespear at the Tobacco Factory and Bristol University are to be congratulated for giving us this rare opportunity to see it.”

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DRACULA at Bristol Old Vic

“. . . Jonathan Goddard’s interpretation of the title role is entirely free of cliché. No swirling cape, no Christopher Lee, no Hammer horror. Instead, in a performance that skillfully conveys both muscularity and vulnerability, he portrays a creature trapped and tortured by the very powers that make him so dangerous. . . Dracula is dance theatre at its very best, full of memorable images. The first night played to a packed house, and I suspect that tickets for the few remaining days will be scarce, but do get to see it if you can.

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