Freshers - New Century 1

Blinded by the Light - Pure/Funktion

Dancing to the Sound of Crunch of Snails - Pure/Funktion

Only into Day 2 of the 24:7 Theatre Festival, and the craik is great.  The Hub at New Century House is the perfect place to meet up for pre- and post-show drinks, and tomorrow (Wednesday) there’s a free short film night from 10pm. 

This evening I kicked off at New Century 1 with Freshers by Steve Pearce, author of 2007’s popular Rose Cottage.  The premise promises comedy mayhem: Scarlett arrives in halls on her first day at university, only to find that her dad Miles has also enrolled as a student and is living on the floor below - with hilarious consequences! (I assumed).  In fact my expectations were thoroughly subverted because the encounters between dad and daughter are dark and emotionally charged due to heavy family stuff from a few years before.  The funny, sexy, studenty bits are flashbacks to the same room 20 years earlier, when earnest ecologist Hephzibah unwittingly bursts in on the sleeping Miles. 

Steve Pearce has created a brilliant role in Hephzibah, a very funny and extremely confident young woman who is superbly played by Christine Clare.  And while Miles may be slobbish, irresponsible and emotionally immature, Richard Hand manages to make him utterly charming and lovable.  They spark off each other like a contemporary Beatrice and Benedick - I definitely want to see these two actors working together again.

Over at Pure/Funktion the seating plan which served perfectly well for Working Title had been rotated by 90^o, to the detriment of both sound and lighting.  Fortunately Blinded by the Light by Karl Voden is such a strong piece that it manages to survive these hostile conditions.  This is a character-led drama which focuses on three press photographers-cum-paparazzi who are camped outside the home of a disgraced celebrity, hoping to capture the first pictures of him following his downfall.  Weasely Ray (Reg Edwards) is on the staff of an unsavoury tabloid, while Gobbi (Tom Tunstall) has set up his own agency and drives around in a Jag.  Then brash young freelance Mitch (Adam Diggle), son of an old pal, joins them for the stake-out, and while they’re waiting and reminiscing and philosophising their careers gradually come into conflict with their private lives. 

This is one of the strongest scripts I’ve seen this year: the characterisations are spot on, the dialogue rings true, the story unfolds in a very satisfying way, and on top of that the three main actors are absolutely excellent.  Blinded by the Light has been produced by Liverpool-based LAX Theatre Company, which on the evidence of this show is a seriously talented outfit.

When I walked into Joe Graham’s Dancing to the Sound of Crunching Snails I was delighted to see that Pure/Funktion had been reconfigured yet again, this time into a three-sided thrust-type staging - definitely the most audience-friendly set-up I’ve seen this year.  However, my next thought was: they’re going to have to find more chairs by the weekend if it’s already full on a Tuesday night. 

Dancing to the Sound of Crunching Snails is about one of those fraught family Christmases that make atheism such an appealing lifestyle choice.  Divorced father Howard (Michael Starke) is trying to rebuild long-burnt bridges with his adult daughters Sara (Gemma Wardle) and Katie (Catherine Kinsella), while son-in-law Sam (Andrew Grose) thinks that everything can be solved by sitting around the table and playing board games.  The highlight of this show is the chaotic game of Monopoly, skilfully choreographed by director Joyce Branagh, where Sam attempts to make them all play nicely together while the other three have an enormous row without saying anything to the purpose.

Although I had been expecting more of an out-and-out comedy rather than a family drama, this is the kind of feelgood show which has you coming out with a soppy smile all over your face, and the acting is top notch.

www.247theatrefestival.co.uk has all the show information including video trailers

Tickets: £8/£6 (conc): book online from the 247 website or ring 0870 428 0785 (or turn up at the venues)

Venues: Pure at the Printworks, off Withy Grove/Corporation Street; New Century House, Corporation Street (200 metres from The Printworks)

Both venues are a stone’s throw from Manchester Victoria Station