The Diary of Anne Frank

Staging a theatre production of a diary can sometimes be difficult, as the cast and crew are faced with a need to sustain interesting action, as well as managing to convey the inner emotions and feelings of the author, without resorting to a mere series of voiceovers. The Diary of Anne Frank began with a voiceover from the start of the diary, describing the journey to and beginning of the ‘adventure’ of the secret annexe. Being originally faced with this, I was concerned that this would be what the entire play would consist of. However, despite occasional excerpts from important stages in the diary, the majority of the play was performed in a set, mimicking the claustrophobic setting demonstrating the intense, sometimes antagonistic relationships between the inhabitants, and there was a good balance between Anne’s personal reflections, and scenes described in the diary.

The script and general production were okay, with a good balance between sentimentality and humour, particularly offered by the relationship between Mr and Mrs van Daan (Steven Pinder and Sarah Ingram), whose volatile marriage provided a backdrop for some comic relief amongst the tragedy of the story. The set also was good, minimal props and furniture simulating the closeness of the environment, the actors never actually leaving the stage but merely sitting at the side at times when they were supposed to be out of the main room and the consistent presence of a German soldier poised slightly out of the way, created a persistent underlying threat of discovery. A bicycle and swing suspended from the ceiling, posters of Hollywood movie stars and the bookcase also served to highlight the outside world and the isolation of the characters. These set pieces were however a little obvious, the bicycle seeming an odd addition as opposed to a subtle metaphor for freedom and lost innocence, as did the descent of hundreds of pieces of paper at the end signifying the end of the diary.

The script was honest without being too intense, facilitating simple scenes from the period of the annexe such as Hannukah and Anne’s inquisition into the history of Mrs van Daan’s fur coat and her previous lovers. It is a shame therefore that the script was overshadowed by some rather mediocre acting, particularly from Amy Dawson’s Anne herself, whose teenage immaturity, vivacity and playfulness was far too over the top to the point of irritating leading the audience to a dislike of the protagonist. I even overheard a neighbour describing her at the interval as ‘insufferable,’ which unfortunately detracted from much of the potential for an intense, honest yet poignant illustration of adolescence and humanity. Even the blossoming of Anne and Peter van Daan’s (Robert Galas) relationship was blighted by the insincerity of the performance. Whether the aim was to convey the awkwardness of such a situation or not was unclear, but it did make for rather uncomfortable viewing. Saying this, the relationship between Anne Frank and her father Otto (Christopher Timothy) was portrayed well, though I believe this was due to Timothy’s performance as Otto being the most earnest of the entire production. Victoria Ross’s Margot was unfortunately wet, dreary and uninteresting; the result of these lacklustre performances being that the audience struggled to empathise with the characters, and the penultimate scene of their discovery was weakened by the lack of real emotion showed throughout the play, in spite of the tragedy of the circumstances.

Overall, The Diary of Anne Frank was an adequate adaptation. The set and script provided a satisfactory outlet for just the right mix of tragedy, humour, claustrophobia and adolescent hostility and awakening. It was a shame therefore that quite an average and at times grating cast undermined these aspects, resulting in an underwhelming mediocrity in the wake of such an important work.

Oxfordshire Art Weeks

Oxfordshire Art Weeks is an annual festival in the county of Oxfordshire, with hundreds of local artists and crafters opening their houses to showcase their work, and many local businesses such as restaurants, book shops, galleries, university departments and even the castle holding exhibitions. Not only holding over 500 free exhibitions over the course of three weeks in May, the festival also organises tours, workshops, speakers and forums, their focal event this year being a panel discussion of ‘What is Art?’

Oxfordshire ArtWeeks facilitates an immense variety of techniques and media. Not only are there the more traditional painters and photographers, but also jewellers, ceramicists, sculptors and woodturners. The festival is divided up into thirds, with each week being the focus of a different section of the county, the north, south and the city of Oxford. Jericho itself provided a large range of opportunities for mid-afternoon artistic browsing and during my excursions to some of the venues I encountered some really interesting artists and was exposed to many different types of art. The Oxford Ceramics Gallery, which is located on Walton Street, exhibited a selection of porcelain pieces from various local ceramicists. Helen Beard’s pottery in particular was charming. Helen drew her inspiration from ‘quirky, individual and curious’ places, which she would then hand paint on to Limoges porcelain and group the pieces together in sets to create a story.

http://www.oxfordceramics.com/

http://www.helenbeard.com/index.html

The Albion Beatnik, is a wonderful bookshop and café that often hosts events and readings, as well as intimate gigs and even bookbinding courses. In their basement for Oxfordshire Art Weeks, Stella Shakerchi exhibited. Stella’s work is based on her academic past where she studied amongst other disciplines medieval mythology. In her own words, Stella wants her art ‘to reflect the fun in life hidden behind what looks serious.’ The pieces were made from a huge range of materials such as iridescent powder, mirrors, holographic card, sequins, coloured glass and there was also a UV light to see in the dark parts of the art hidden song lyrics and poem stanzas. Stella’s work shows an acute attention to detail, the colours are rich, vibrant and the collages provide a forum for texture and emotion. Unlike chain stores, the Albion Beatnik’s ethos is personal and intimate, a perfect place for an art exhibition.

http://www.oxstudio.co.uk/

Hidden in the depths of Jericho, St Barnabas Church housed a wide variety of work encompassing an assortment of materials and pursuits. There were The Ten Potters, ceramicists that included Alison Jones, whose wall vases and unusual designs that worked with shape and movement were fascinating. The careful leaf print designs of Liz Teall were also beautiful, and the process of printing the leaves onto the pottery ensures crafted and refined designs. I also loved the graphic digital art prints of David Harris, the completely contrasting embroidery of Jane Bale and the still lifes of Clova Stuart- Hamilton.

http://www.alisonjonesceramics.co.uk/index.htm

http://www.lizteallpottery.com//

http://www.whitewall.com/davidharris

Venturing further afield and along the Woodstock Road, I visited the exhibition of Katherine and Richard Shock, a painter and wood turner respectively. Exhibiting here as well were the silversmith John Huddleston and the jewellery designer Guen Palmer. John creates delicate jewellery as well as candlestick holders and brooches, including some really unusual cat brooches, using a drawing of Katherine’s.

http://www.jhsilver.co.uk/index.html

http://www.guenpalmer.com/index.htm

Art Weeks allowed the ‘outside Jericho’ adventure and subsequent discovery of new venues most notably The Old Boot Factory in Cowley, unsurprisingly, an old boot factory that has been converted into an arts venue and exhibition space, utilised during Art Weeks by Sarah Mayhew and her installation ‘The Natural Course of Things.’ Having originally studied international relations, Sarah’s art demonstrates the potential for art as a medium for socio-political messages and reform. Her work is ultimately concerned with the ‘psychology of space,’ how people view one another as well as the wider world around them. This particular installation draws from experience of the impact of weather, the environment and nature and how these impact on decisions and behaviour, and luckily I was able to view the exhibition in daylight as well as in the dark, when it looks a lot different. On the final night of the installation, Shelter held a charity gig in the venue where the bands The Half Rabbits and The Scholars as well as the soloists Richard Walters and Phil McMinn performed amongst the art. As well as Sarah, lighting designer Jon Barker’s installation ‘Journey’ was staged behind a black curtain, where walkers became part of the installation themselves, as whenever a Twitter post with the word ‘journey’ in it appeared, the message was projected onto the individual behind the curtain. Finally, in the Old Boot Factory, Joseph Fairweather-Hole’s ‘Chimney’ commanded attention as a dominant concrete structure surrounded by moving lights.

Just off the Cowley Road is The Garden Café, the main office of mental health charity Restore, which works with people who have experienced severe mental health problems and aims to rehabilitate them using skills such as woodwork, gardening, construction, cookery and art. As part of Oxford ArtWeeks, Restore’s Straw Bale Gallery housed some work from the Oxford Complex Needs Service, including poetry as well as paintings, sculpture and mosaic. 

http://www.restore.org.uk/

There was also a sculpture by Tessa Campbell Fraser outside the Museum of Natural History...

Killing Hitler

The opening night performance of Killing Hitler began as technically and visually impressive as it was to continue. Taking our seats after walking through the set, the audience was faced with the still image of the characters in their default positions, with a woman shuffling scores at a piano, a man in a suit pondering the newspaper in an armchair, and someone standing on a table, transfixed on a wall. The set had a refined authenticity, complete with candles and a 1930s rocking horse. The effort put into the sounds and lighting was noticeable but despite these technical accomplishments, the writing could have explored human fallibility, the choice between ‘commission and omission’ in a more effective and sensitive manner, with much of the impressive set seeming a shield for rather underwhelming and at times static writing.

Based on the July Plot to assassinate Hitler, the play used scenes from alternating time periods to illustrate the different aspects of the relationships of the individuals involved in the plot, such as Adam von Trott, his secretary Missie, Adam and Claus von Stauffenberg, Anthony Eden and the Bishop of Chichester. While giving an honest performance as Adam, Christopher Williams failed to achieve the sincere and sympathetic performance required from a protagonist whose encounters with others involved in the plot constituted the focus of the narrative. The best performances were by those who made shorter appearances. David Shields gave an imposing yet moving stint as von Stauffenberg and Miles Lawrence’s Bishop of Chichester conveyed an urgent innocence in a confrontation with Anthony Eden, despite being only briefly on stage. Self-confessed on the programme, the only invented character was Hans Lohmann, a prison officer, who whilst providing a good presentation of a retrospective look at the July Plot, was an unnecessary creation and merely distracted from the other characters with clichéd considerations and confessions of guilt at not being as brave as those executed.

While the premise of the story, as well as impressive sets and ambitious lighting meant Killing Hitler had some strong potential, the show did not deliver quite in the same way that its historical background and production could have done. There were far too many sound effects – at times they were also too loud – with dialogue in the opening scene being drowned out by background chatter simulating a court room. For some reason as well, whenever the cast needed to facilitate a door opening or closing, there was an action by the cast member accompanied by a sound effect, which added nothing to the story or setting, and instead was a false, almost slapstick approach to changing scenes. Saying this, Andrew Sachs's voiceover as Hitler, and some piano music providing a sweet contrast to the graphic torture scene of von Trott were a good use of sound as an instrumental addition to the story.

Killing Hitler was a good production, and presented a different aspect of the war with an examination of human relationships with scenes from before and after the execution of the plot. If the writing and the performers had lived up to the promise offered by the set, Killing Hitler would have been great, but unfortunately the performance was essentially underwhelming.

The Rain Starts A-Fallin'

When I recently asked my 11 year old brother if he knew what he wanted to do with his life he replied that all he could say was that he would like to do something memorable. As he said this I remembered that at his age, and even right up until A-Levels when you are still clinging on to the last remnants of childhood, my friends and I wanted this as well. Despite not knowing in what direction, everyone wanted their lives to take them somewhere, and for the majority, university was where they would discover that. Almost two years through, with still no idea where your life is going yet no childhood excuse to fall back on is a sentiment embraced by many a second year student, and encapsulated in The Rain Starts A-Fallin, a story of a group of people at a school reunion, with flashbacks to their schooldays and demonstrating how far they had come since their classroom musings of ‘what is good, if it is not to change the world?’

Despite using the rather predictable setting of a school reunion to channel the retrospective feelings of a group of graduates having left school, the play was a relevant look at the issues that face many young people today. It was a very relatable play, with many references to the dreaded UCAS applications, internship recruitment posters and the mysterious realm of management consultancy, but I can’t see that it would have had as much impact on someone who had not been faced with those decisions. It is a play that will be very much of its time, but in spite of this was a witty and honest representation of student life.

It was a great strength of the play to use Bob Dylan and his work as a consistent metaphor throughout of defiance, rebellion and a desire for change. ‘The Wall’ at the back of the set, which had at its centre a large photograph of Dylan, as well as fliers from other indie bands, demonstrated the ideas and concepts that when at school, people want to talk about and which to inspired them to change the world, and its removal by the time of the school reunion ten years later was an effective manifestation of the destruction of hope and aspiration. As well as this, a passionate speech about ‘what happened in 1965’ by resident rebel Quinn, played well by Thomas Oliver and some classic Dylan tracks in-between scenes brought the play in line with an edging on polemic look at choice, conviction and irony.

The three main characters Ellis, Anna and Colin, (played by Andy Butler, Emily Stewart and Jack Levy respectively) had good chemistry, although the best performance was Ben Currie as Miles, who despite only fleeting appearances, had an instrumental stage presence that managed to convey much of the sentiment, without the need for any dialogue, which at times from other characters felt a little long-winded and contrived. On the whole, it was a good production, the music and sets providing an appropriate background for the characters. There were some amusing one-liners, but much of the comedy and appeal was situational and I think would have only been interesting if like me, you could pick up on all of the cynical comments for example about A-Level education, my personal favourite being the suggestion that in an essay on Wilfred Owen, Colin just write that there was an ‘underlying current of homosexuality.’

The Rain Starts A-Fallin’ was the attitude and emotions of current students incarnate, and writer Rory Platt’s observant writing is commendable. As a second year undergraduate, you will enjoy this play, if only for the assurance that someone else is experiencing the same doubts and pressures as well. 

The Garden Show

Amongst the punting, the croquet and the Pimms on freshly shaven lawns, the garden show is one of those phenomenon that represents an Oxfordian summer. Classically intellectual and brimming with ‘thesps’ the audience absorbing the play whilst enclosed in cloisters, columns and clematis are immersed in a time warp; all one need do is imagine yourself in a white cotton dress or some tweed with a parasol or a pipe and as the sun sets behind the stage and the fireflies dart between the spotlights, your fingers reach for the hired blanket shortly after the interval. Any play in Oxford takes part of its triumph from the space it works with and the experience it leaves the theatre-goer remembering; a play after all is much more than words and costumes, and setting a Shakespearean tragedy or Edwardian comedy in a garden does add a touch of class. After three weeks of consistent rain to begin my exam-free (and thus supposedly glorious) Trinity, it did seem appropriate that the first garden show of the year was The Tempest, the blustering trees of Magdalen and the whistles of the wind almost drowning out the speech in the opening scene, conveniently set during a storm. It was almost as if the weather knew that what it was faced with was a group of undergraduates, desperate for some redeeming features of a Trinity that has so far been rather miserable. An average of three year long degrees without any sweltering quad reading or leaping into the Cherwell would leave many middle aged Oxford graduates desperately wishing that they had spent that one day of sunshine outside rather than underground amongst the dust or for modern times, the constant brain bashing alterations of Nexus… Luckily however, despite having to move the opening night into an auditorium, the rain held off for the Thursday night performance by The Magdalen Players of The Tempest and if we weren’t mistaken, there was even a dash of blue sky; get the swimming togs out everyone!

The show decided to convey Prospero as a ring-master, in command of his Island circus, Caliban almost a dancing bear and Ariel the fairy a magician, hopping around the stage and causing mischief at Prospero’s command. There were also the clowns, the comic characters of Stephano the drunk and his friend Trinculo were evocative of court jesters transported from the Globe itself. The costumes and props were the main medium of communicating the circus theme however with bright diamond baggy trousers, waistcoats, bowties and even leather trousers for Prospero and there was a lot of work with umbrellas, appropriate for the circumstances and inventively used by Trinculo mainly to illustrate his confusion at just having been shipwrecked and discovering the beast Caliban. There was definitely something trippy about the whole performance, but it worked. If that show was anything to perform, it was a lot of fun. The whole performance had an energy and a vibe; it was zany, quirky, at times a little weird… the morph suits and water pistols were an interesting interpretation, but at times it did all feel a little immature. Miranda’s constantly pitch changing voice and much of the mockery made some of the dialogue feel unnatural, the characters forcing the meter and the sounds, reciting Shakespeare rather than taking on the persona of their character. Contrasted with the RSC’s globe tour production of Henry V at the Playhouse, The Tempest was noticeably a student production. The actors of Henry V on the other hand, were outstanding. King Henry was domineering, noble and at times chilling, Princess Catherine weak, innocent and impressionable and the comical Pistol, Nym and Bardolph were a brilliant supporting cast. The production, despite being confined within the walls of the Playhouse, created a mesmerisingly realistic Elizabethan atmosphere with lyres and drums playing inbetween scenes, and the actors walking amongst the aisles and marching back on to stage for the battle scenes. I left desperate for more, overwhelmed by the entire performance. Mere phenomenal acting, traditional sets and costumes and passionate speech meant there was no need for eccentricity or unusual interpretations, something that many modern adaptations of Shakespeare plays feel the need to include, in order to make their performance original.  

There is definitely something about open air performances that suits Shakespeare and particularly a play such as The Tempest gained a lot from being performed outside. It is set on an island and its focal point is the storm, a natural wonder and even if it was only a light breeze, fluttering leaves did enhance the magic. The garden show format does not however work for everything. Players should not make the mistake of thinking that just because it is set outside, it will automatically convey an enchanting atmosphere. Like The Burton Taylor studio, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Pygmalion, my first year garden show experience and also set in Magdalen did well to transform the stony walls of the President’s garden into a stuffy Edwardian living room and a dusty Covent Garden pavement, with the clusters of trees providing an effective offstage area, as did Arcadia, the surrealist Tom Stoppard piece performed in Frewin Court, with a live tortoise on a oak table providing the main prop.

In spite of our excursion to The Tempest requiring a remedy of a mug of hot chocolate or brandy to warm our insides, outdoor theatre is a wonderful experience. Under the sun or the stars, the performance feels natural and hopeful, even if that hope is for that suspicious looking cloud to drift away towards Cowley… Henry V demonstrated that Shakespeare works best when in open air, when the cast can move around the audience as opposed to appearing statically on a stage. It was due to the quality of the performance that allowed the audience to feel like they were in The Globe in the early 1600s, despite being inside on what turned out to be the first sunny afternoon in Oxford this term. The experience of theatre is far more important than just the script. Henry V was exciting, energetic, witty, tragic, compassionate and dignified; the walls of the playhouse proved no barrier to conveying that; a play is much more than just words and costumes after all, but I will not deny the satisfaction felt at seeing a Shakespeare play under the stars. 

Court

The Burton Taylor studio was the ideal location for this ingenious and imaginative expose of the meaning of the phrase ‘court room drama.’ Written by a second year undergraduate, Court is set in a courtroom minutes before the commencement of a trial, the characters compiling of the defendant, the defence barrister, the prosecutor and two others, the latter’s involvement in the lives of the lawyers becoming apparent through the hilarious narration of the is he or isn’t he a mad murderer, Suleyman Jones.

The psychological analysis of the relationships that was created by the excellent comic timing and use of meta-theatre, or ‘mental theatre’ as described by Jones, as played by Tim Schneider whose impeccable wit and delivery was apt for the role, was intensified by the intimate environment and direct audience interaction. This began immediately with Suleyman taking the role of a stand-up comedian, introducing the audience to his story and its unravelling, unveiling by the end the bare bones of human morality and the burden of striving for justice.

Cliched metaphors and analogies between the legal system and other phenomena revolving around waste, toilets and cleanliness were removed by the ideal casting of Ibrahim Khan as the sinister defence lawyer, whose relationship with Suleyman provides some of the best on stage chemistry seen on an Oxford stage, the pair creating an amusing yet chilling rapport, which swells as the back story is revealed, straining the relationship of the defended and the defender. Also wonderful was Gabriel Nicklin’s stint as an aggrieved prisoner, who managed to entice sympathy from the audience whilst communicating the darkly humorous farce of the legal system.

What carried this production was the comedy, which managed to convey the message of the play without ruining its sincerity. Schneider was perfectly cast and performed his role with sensitivity and intelligence. If anything, he was almost too good, as any other scenes where he was reduced to a mere bystander as the confrontations between the other characters occurred, fell slightly flat in comparison to his previous monologues and banter with the audience. This was highlighted further by the fumbling of words by the other characters at important moments in the play, which altered the flow of the narrative slightly, but should be put down to opening night nerves and not the lack of ability or potential in the cast.

Court was one of the funniest and most creative plays I have seen at the Burton Taylor. The production’s experimentation with lighting and form, which incorporated a weird yet brilliant parody on modern religious conversion for example, was inspired and the writing, by Hanzla MacDonald should be commended as one of the most intuitive and perceptive commentaries on the human psyche and the role of law, and particularly its moral impact on the lives of people embroiled in its consequences. Overall, for a short student production, Court was brilliant. It induced a lot of laughter through satire and parody, but sustained an intensely sincere explanation of human relationships through original and artistic production and acting, and is thoroughly worth a visit.