All I want for Christmas…
The weather outside is frightening, one of those Arctic blasts headed out way last week, Storm Deidre to be precise. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. So warm your cockles and get into the festive spirit with some chestnuts roasting by an open fire. Better still, how about a large helping of human plum pudding. For that is exactly what you get with Simon Callow in a superlative one-man show of A Christmas Carol (Arts Theatre), every word he utters infused with an intoxicating mix of ripened fruit and vintage brandy. “Stop mumbling, use your mouth more…brebi na yemossi do stoma sou“, a theatre director once screamed, chastising me for my laziness in speech. Callow is the antithesis, a rich, mature cadence that brings this familiar story to life, each character seeming to appear before us as he intones and gestures.
Dickens wrote this over one hundred and seventy-five years ago at a time when he was struggling to re-establish himself as the go-to author of his day. He was also an acclaimed raconteur hosting many an evening where he would entertain folk with readings from his work. This performance would definitely have met with his approval for Callow imbibes the spirit of the tale and slowly but surely, over an absorbing eighty minutes, reveals the redemptive transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge – having been visited by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future – from a curmudgeonly misanthrope into a man of extravagant benevolence, much to the surprise, and delight, of those who knew him in his previous incarnation.
There is a beautiful simplicity to storytelling but to do it well requires craft and nuance. Tom Cairns, who directed and designed the show, rightly chooses a minimalistic approach. Subtle lighting by Adam Povey and an ethereal soundtrack by Ben and Max Ringham that evokes Dickensian London street life, offer extra layers of atmosphere, allowing Callow to switch characters with a simple swapping of chairs or swish of a curtain. The narrative appears to move seamlessly from one episode to another, the snow falls, bells chime, chains clank and finally we emerge into light and joy as the unfortunate Cratchits get the best Christmas present of all, their crippled son, Tiny Tim, will not die.
So as you rush around fretting about which presents to buy, what baubles to hang, why the turkey is not big enough and how many goubebia to make – you can never really get it right – task a break and head to Leicester Square for a bravura performance that will settle your nerves but more importantly remind you what you should really want for Christmas. Peace and good health to you all…and a silent night.
One group definitely in a festive mood are The Pink Singers, proudly announcing themselves as Europe’s longest-running LGBT+ choir. I did ask about the plus sign but got lost in non-binary and gender fluidity. Their first Christmas concert in over a decade at Cadogan Hall was well worth waiting for. Titled Sleighing It! the programme was made up of an eclectic mix of seasonal favourites which began with Jingle Bells, ended with Last Christmas and in between the likes of the magnificent O Magnum Mysterium and the winsome White Winter Hymnal. They were joined by the equally amazing and angelic voices of Burntwood Chamber Choir, schoolgirls from a state school in Wandsworth, who provided a contrasting set of choral works such as Hodie Christus Natus Est and Silent Night under the inspiring direction of Debbie Lammin. In the second half both choirs joined forces to startling effect. Some fine comic moments ensued such as a rendition of You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch with an actual grinch threatening to spoil the evening and the Maria Carey song All I want for Christmas is You opened by pink singer’s own Maria- Casey! All in all a splendid Christmas event with sufficient campery for the festive season.
Death is sad but it can also be very funny. Gloria, matriarch of a Jamaican family, is dying. She soon passes. We never see her but her influence can be felt everywhere. Her portrait photograph sits on a shelf as though she is carefully watching all the shenanigans and machinations going on with her offspring and relatives, no different from any other family really. I am no fan of awards but if my hand was forced I would, without hesitation, give the gong for best new play of the year to Nine Night (Trafalgar Studios), the title of which describes a Jamaican wake when a whole heap of people turn up, over nine nights, to mourn but mainly to celebrate with lots of food and drink. Writer Natasha Gordon has penned an insightful, poignant and at times hysterically funny play.
On Rahja Shakiry’s very realistic set, comprised of a typical immigrant household kitchen in South London back in the day (ours was identical) the gaggle of characters come and go, each with an axe to grind or pain to bear. Gordon plays Lorraine, Gloria’s youngest and outwardly the most ‘normal’. But the pages of her book do not match the cover. Her activist daughter Anita (Rebekah Murrell) is more concerned with saving the planet and is apoplectic at the thought of visitors for a continuous nine nights. Enter Auntie Maggie (Cecilia Noble), a woman who knows what is best for everybody. Resistance is futile, it is only met with another put-down, she can cuss for the whole of Jamaica. A show-stealing performance that had me and my companion in stitches.
All the action takes place in the kitchen, much noise and hullabaloo are heard offstage but as with Gloria’s passing we see nothing. Director Roy Alexander Weise paces it just right giving us time to reflect on the generational conflict, inter-racial difficulties – Lorraine’s s brother Robert has a white girlfriend- and the inevitable joker in the pack. She being Trudy (Michelle Greenidge) long estranged daughter of Gloria, left behind in Jamaica years ago. With some urging from Auntie Maggie she arrives “unexpectedly” and in a whirlwind entrance soon takes over, bearing gifts for all, including several bottles of rum.
The final scene is classic tragi-comedy as Maggie goes all psychic and will have you not knowing whether to laugh or cry. Amazingly this is the first play by a black British woman to be produced in the West End and it is a gem. Now let’s talk unconscious bias and institutional prejudice…the pathetic Windrush legacy continues.
Meanwhile Vivat Stactou is swept away by elegance and strength…
Make no mistake about it Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake (Sadler’s Wells) is one of the most innovative and brilliantly executed pieces of choreography of modern times. It is outstanding in every way with my only concern being how those new to the story might struggle to follow the narrative. That said they would probably get lost in the athleticism and elegance of the extraordinary corps de ballet swans, all men with rippling torsos, who added to the drama of the piece with loud hissing sounds. Swans do that.
The solo artistes all had their spot in the limelight. Katrina Lyndon gave a very regal and polished performance as the Queen while Carrie Willis (The Girlfriend) was not only a terrific dancer but also an excellent comedy actress. The pampered Prince, a spoilt mummy’s boy shone a light on Dominic North’s very accomplished technique and eye-popping elevation on his jumps. As wonderful as they were the major headlines will be grabbed by Will Tozier, a Swan who brought tears to the eyes of many such was his portrayal, a combination of prowess and sensitivity. I was also struck by the colourful design which included giant sized beds, classic royal regalia and a seedy nightclub. Stupendous. Unforgettable.
And Rubina Sarkou enjoys an adventurous advent programme…
The Choir of New College Oxford (St John’s Smith Square) are one of many exceptional choral groups to take part in the 33rd Christmas Festival at this beautiful venue. Founded in 1379, they enjoy performing a diverse repertoire with a particular scholarly focus on renaissance and baroque music. Their Advent to Christmas programme reflected this with traditional seasonal melodies to more recent pieces, encompassing music of several centuries.
Their voices are fine as cut crystal and their choirmaster Robert Quinney conducted with great precision and fluency though he did not greatly enamour himself to me with his sustained effort to advertise the choir’s Friends’ programme. I forgave him that musical faux pas for the overall concert was wonderful. So many gorgeous pieces, such variety and they sang in several languages with some very creative arrangements. The swete roose, a 15th century folk hymn by Toby Young, was my favourite and a lovely discovery. I also enjoyed the way they used the space, spreading themselves out which created a marvellous polyphonic surround sound. An Advent delight.
Finally Susanna Efthyvoulou gets the message in glory…
Christmas at Cadogan 2018, as you have already heard above has a delicious mix of events but believe me when I tell you this was the most glorious of all, The Sixteen with a programme entitled The Little Child, lest we forget why we are celebrating at this time of year. It included Kirbye’s dramatic Vox in Rama, wave after wave of lamentations which made the silence so much more pregnant and evocative. As ever the two Byrd pieces, This day Christ was born and Lullaby my sweet little babe, included mellifluous harmonies while the carols It came upon a midnight clear and the Coventry Carol added a traditional flavour to proceedings.
The Sixteen arose from its Founder and Conductor Harry Christopher’s formative experience as cathedral chorister and choral scholar, launched in 1979 and almost 40 years on they have become one of the premier vocal ensembles around. Unlike many others he says nothing and allows the dulcet tones of this magnificent group to do all the talking which they do with precision and expressive intensity. By the time we reached s coruscating climax the message had been received loud and clear; Christ is born, Christ is born!
NINE NIGHT by Natasha Gordon ;
Directed by Roy Alexander Weise ;
Set Design by Rajah Shakiry ;
Lighting Design by Paule Constable ;
National Theatre;
Dorfman Theatre, London, UK ;
21 April 2018 ;
Credit & Copyright: Helen Murray ;
A Christmas Carol – 020 7836 8463
Cadogan Hall – www.cadoganhall.com
Nine Night – 0844 871 7632
Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake – 020 7863 8000
St John’s Smith Square – www.sjss.org.uk
Barney Efthimiou
