Sunday 28 April 2013

Metamorphosis


Last Thursday I went to see a local production of Metamorphosis by Stephen Birkoff adapted from Kafka's novel about a man who suddenly changes into a beetle and how his family reacts. It was amazing, it's what's called 'physical theatre' where gesture, mime and movement take precedent over sets, costumes and props. 

It was in a really intimate venue, staged above the George Hotel in Tideswell (a really beautiful peak district village with its own Cathedral!) and very raw with a trained actor playing Gregor/Beetle who scamped all over the scaffolding effortlessly, making feeler gestures and strange bettle noises, you really thought he'd turned into a grotesque dung beetle to be scared of! And a 12 year old girl who was absolutely amazing (having only taken up the part a month before hand!) playing the sister, Greta, my mum's cousin played the Mother/Mrs Samsa with beautiful gestures, posture and didn't miss a note, and Father/Mr Samsa was just the right amount of angry, specially when he threw the 'apples' at the beetle!

Here's Stephen Birkoff talking a bit about Metamorphosis, but more really about his book Meditations on Metamorphosis, which has Mikhail Baryshnikov (who did the Broadway play in 1989) as the Beetle on the cover!


and here's a few pics from the play via Tideswell Theatre's Facebook Page where you can see the movement/gestures beautifully, it was like performance art with a story.

 
   

What plays have you seen recently? {This year I've seen a few already My Fair Lady, The Daughter-in-Law, To Kill a Mockingbird)

Next up? I really want to see Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Royal Exchange, Manchester


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