theatARGH
thoughts and frustrations on Melbourne theatre through bright young eyesArchive for Royal Court
Edinburgh Festival Bites: Part 2
The Traverse Theatre is one of many in the UK which champions new writing from primarily local, but also international, playwrights. Performing several different shows a day in the main Traverse One and the more intimate Traverse Two (a feat within itself), their program within the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year is a fantastic demonstration of their attitude towards experimentation, innovation and investment in exciting co-productions in theatre. Below are some reviews of shows that I have managed to see there so far.
Review of The Ugly One, Royal Court Theatre
Debuted alongside the launch of the Royal Court’s 2007 international writer’s season, The Ugly One, by Marius von Mayenburg (and not directed by Benedict Andrews – would you believe?) received a two week remount in June this year in the Jerwood Downstairs Theatre, London. A world away from his darker and more dramatically experimental works, The Ugly One is a fifty-five minute farce and in the hands of Ramin Gray, it represents von Mayenburg at his most straightforward and simplistic. Unfortunately, it’s also his least exciting work, adding little to very well-trodden thematic terrain.
