This year’s Brighton Fringe offered a handful of productions that could be viewed from home.
I will be reviewing three productions of which Evangeline and The Shape of Things Undone are the first two.
Evangeline by Three Chairs and a Hat
In this hour-long mix of drama and cabaret, written and accompanied by Nia Williams, we meet showbusiness survivor Evangeline, the archetypal performer who was born in a trunk – or in her case, a cardboard box – and is here to tell us the tale.
Guy Brigg takes on the role billed as “Ms Teeth ‘n’ Tits”, a person as much a part of the stages on which she walks as the paint or the floorboards.
She has been everywhere from the pits to the West End. As Sondheim’s creation Carlotta tells us in Follies, “I’m Still Here”, and Evangeline really embodies that sentiment. She’s a trouper in the old-fashioned definition of the word, and Williams writes her beautifully.
Punctuating her story with songs is a tried and tested way to get the audience’s sympathy in these solo shows, and it works well with Evangeline. You don’t have to like her, or even believe her, but you can’t look away. Every success, every failure, every character she encounters – and Brigg plays them all – pushes this story along like a juggernaut.
The songs are sensational, and Brigg’s delivery is perfect. This woman is a portrait of a rocky road with lots of pitfalls, with every drink, role, or encounter. It’s just two people on the stage – the performer and her pianist – but they bring the world with them.
4 stars.
The Shape of Things Undone by Lita Doolan
This latest audio drama by Lita Doolan runs just 35 minutes and presents a monologue by a 40-something carer, Christine. She has a lot on her mind as work is changing, her father no longer knows who she is, and she is feeling that there is no longer a place for her.
Julie Broadbent offers a strong and sensitive performance in a story that reflects on how medical and scientific advances sometimes forget the people who matter. While Christine talks about a mug, a biscuit, a checklist, the high-ups are planning to completely transform the care facility where she works.
Doolan’s play is taut and full of observational touches that place us squarely in Christine’s world. It touches on moments many of us will recognise as we age and offers a relatable figure at its core. I would normally avoid the subject of dementia for personal reasons, but this is not as downbeat as some other plays focusing on that diagnosis.
3 stars.
Both productions were part of this year’s Brighton Fringe.
Read my previous reviews of work by Three Chairs and a Hat and Lita Doolan.