Showing @ Summerhall, Edinburgh until Sun 25 Aug (not 19) @ 12:15
Children attending this performance are invited to sit on the floor, but when, only moments in to the show, three ghostly faces appear by candlelight, most of those decamp to the safety of their parents’ laps. It is a fitting start to a show which claims to be inspired by Tim Burton.
The performers of Scarlattine Teatro are excellent: every gesture is imbued with a sort of grotesque physicality perfectly suited to this sort of tale. There are also some inventive touches that work very well, most notably a flock of white balloons to effectively represent schoolyard bullies and an animated dream sequence projected onto the sheet as the main characters sleep.
One can imagine that in its native Italy, this little fable could be something really quite special. Sadly, some of the impact is lost in translation. The decision to use rhyming dialogue, whilst stylistically appropriate, means the language suffers. The strong accents and occasional mispronunciation by the cast don’t help matters and it does seem that children, whilst enjoying the quirky visuals and clowning, may struggle to grasp the full message.
Comments