Cell

For the final night of the Little Angel Theatre's FIRSTS Festival we were treated to 'Cell'. An original production of puppetry, lighting, shadows, live sound and a rather beautiful soundtrack. It is odd for me to be able to engage with a character that does not speak, nor have facial expressions but the brilliance of the physicality of our puppeteers meant that we forgot about watching a puppet, and instead transcended into a heartwarming show about a man determined to make the most of his mobility whilst he still has it, having just been diagnosed with motor-neurone disease.

It was laced with simple humour and feel-good interactions with a fish and a bodiless female puppet. I always find it odd how our minds can fill in the gaps between head and hand without it needing to physically exist. 

Aside from the puppetry onstage, our theatre company also created a visual scene on the back cloth; shadow puppets far from my prior experience (that being crocodiles and rabbits generally attacking one another). The cut outs were stylised beautifully as they represented our main character, Ted, his journeys at home and experiences abroad. We see the advancement of his symptoms from shaking, to tripping, to feeling dizzy. It eeps a sadness - perhaps a time to give credit to the music here. We visited Venice and watched as he and Anette sat opposite one another in a gondola. Again our original music shines through thrusting our minds into the culture of the newest location. We knew exactly how we were supposed to feel at any given time, we knew exactly where the journey had taken us. It was, well, brilliant and all without any element of spoken word. 

Move your head mate!

Granted there was one thing that truly let the piece down and that was the layout at the venue. The majority of the show meant that everything happening onstage was below waist height and the nature of the venue did not allow for this. We couldn't see! Anyone beyond the second row had another head obstructing their view and I was constantly craning to see what those silhouette legs under the table were doing and whether Ted and his Annette ever did hold hands at the cinema. Of course I filled in the gaps, but I wanted to see it for myself. Treading the boards next time it might be useful to get a few helpers to sit in and confirm that they can see. All it needed was a push upstage or a rostrum to ensure we could all witness every tiny bit of beauty in this wonderfully subtle piece. 

myvmc.com

I have to say, although the overall impact on me was slightly impacted by the above - I have to tell you the best part of the show for me. It was just as Ted was having various medical tests and scans to determine what was wrong with him. The stage was filled with the lighting of torches on and off as though they were the connection of information from our brains (or rather Ted's) to our bodies. We watched as the chains of light got faster and faster and as one torch started to shine through a brain scan showing it enlarged upon the backdrop. It was a little unnerving but extremely symbolic of our friends condition. Motor neurone disease, as those connections get slower and slower, and then fail. Some great choreography here!

All in all, it's quite hard to fault the parts I did see. Perhaps I got a little restless when it was just Ted and his fish alone for a second time at home.  That aside, I am thoroughly glad that I forced myself out of the house on my first day-off, having just started my new job and shifting my body clock six hours earlier. It reminded me of my love of travelling and my need to explore the world while I can. The music expressed sadness when it needed to, the blowing of bubbles added comedy when it needed to, the actors provided sound effects and sighs when they needed to. What more can I say?

A really great little show, set for big things!

Are you aware of motor neurone disease? If not, then look it up. Awareness is low and all it takes is a wiki read. Why not check out this website: http://www.mndassociation.org/ 

Thanks to Smoking Apples, Little Cauliflower & Red Threaders for dragging me out of the house!