Under Milk Wood - Review - Northern Stage

Under Milk Wood
Northern Stage 
6th November, 2018

Direction: by Elayce Ismail
Cast:  Christina Berriman Dawson, David Kirkbride

Listen - you will hear the lyrical words of Dylan Thomas spoken, not in his native lilting Welsh but in a soft cadence of North East England. Would this work? Surprisingly, yes it does. Dylan Thomas's words lend themselves well to the softness of a northern accent.

Listen - you will hear the sound of the sea, waves breaking over the rocks, and the sound of the wind, sighing through trees and howling across fields. You will hear bells ring, and clocks tick and birds sing. And you will hear words - an unstoppable stream of them spilling out from the mouths of two actors, playing a multitude of characters, weaving stories and dreams around a room filled with people - listening, listening, spellbound.


Listen - Christina and David will take you on a journey through the lives of a village, transforming themselves into characters - quirky and strange and sinister and forlorn - with the droop of a shoulder, the tilt of a head, or the lowering of a voice. From daybreak to dusk you will love with them, laugh with them, be surprised by them, be shocked by them. You will share in their joys and their sadnesses, their hopes and their dreams.

Picture credit Pamela Raith

Listen - and concentrate! Look at the images projected onto the walls but don't be distracted by them.  They will draw your attention away from the words, with their mosaics of blinking eyes and disembodied talking mouths - as strange as the dreams of the people of Llareggub.
 

Listen and you will hear and feel and live the life of a village.



Listen, because this play is all about words, and sounds, and feelings.
Listen, because the rest is dressing, clever and interesting and surprising, but ultimately distracting.

Under Milk Wood plays at Norther Stage until 17th November.        

Denise Sparrowhawk

Under Milk Wood - People's Theatre - Review

Under Milk Wood

People's Theatre
June 13th 2017


Staged as a radio play within a play, the People's Theatre production reproduces the original recording of the play by the BBC.  On stage we have a set designed as the recording studio, with organ and piano, sound effects crew, and the cast of 12 actors who will voice 45 characters from the imaginary welsh town of Llareggub.

As the audience arrive the cast are already taking their places on stage, as if they too are just arriving for the show. (in fact we saw some arriving in the bar, before we even got to the auditorium). They chat quietly together until a very plummy BBC announcer draws our attention and introduces the play. The lights dim and the recording of Dylan's "play for voices" begins.

And what a tour de force it is. We are instantly drawn in to the sleepy dreamworld of the inhabitants of Llareggub, as First Voice Frank Coles begins to recite Dylan's lyrical words. The town sleeps, dreaming of wild and and wonderful things, strange and mysterious thing, of love and lust and death and life. And gradually the sun rises and we meet the good people of the town.

The play flows through a day in the life of this little town, narrated by Frank Coles and Steve Hewitt, We meet its characters, we see glimpses into their past and their present, and perhaps their future, as heard by blind Captain Cat (Mike Smith). The words flow, beautiful and musical with lilting welsh accents and the images appear in our heads as the loving, and plotting, and gossiping carries on around us.

Photo by Paula Smart

There would not be much action to hold our attention in the reproduction of the recording of a radio play, you might think. But as the actors come forward to deliver their lines, they flounce, and slink, and creep around, casting knowing looks to the other actors, and to the audience, so we know what's going on, both in the town and in the recording studio - there are little rivalries and friendships. Ho ho!

The play is enhanced with sound effects - some recorded - bird song, cows lowing, a cart trundling by, while others are produced on stage by the actors - the rubbing of a brush against a box, the tapping of a pen against a glass.

The small details make the play. Inevitably there are some stumbles over lines - Dylan's words are almost tongue twisters at times, yet even this was skillfully fielded with a wry aside to the audience.
All of the cast do a remarkable job of remembering and delivering this beautiful, sensuous play.

Lyrical words, enhanced by a beautiful musical score, and soulful singing. Come along, lose yourself for a day in Llareggub.
You'll laugh, and love, and maybe cry a little. You may not understand all of it, but you will not forget it.

Under Milk Wood plays until 17th June. Time hurries on. Don't miss it.

Denise Sparrowhawk