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| Edinburgh : A&E : Theatre: Reviews |
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Theatre listings > King A.
(Netherlands) - Tour & Scottish Premiere. Hands up all of you who know the story of mythical King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Of course you all know it. But I bet you have never seen it performed like this. Het Laagland ('The Lowlands') bring us a modern rendition of King A, a story about friendship, courage, love and growing-up. Under the resourceful direction by Inez Derksen, a young director who won the TOP NAEFF award for the most promising graduating theatre student at the Theatre School Amsterdam in 1993, the small company of young actors create a playful and imaginative production which will be enjoyed by children and adult audiences alike. The script is engaging, and often very cheeky, allowing the matters of love and life in general to be uttered in a way which is both entertaining and educational. But that is not all. There is acrobatics. There is swordfighting. There is dance. Add beautifully performed songs from different traditions (Dutch, Irish, Scottish) and inspired acting from all involved, and you get a show that bursts with energy and keeps you on the edge of your seats. Vincent Rietveld is excellent as an initially reluctant King Arthur in search of the best way to rule his country in a just and peaceful manner; Misha Ardon shines as his malcontent brother, who is always ready to disagree with everyone and to lead any riot; Maarten Smit will find it that many a girl in the audience has ended up being smitten with his superbly fleshed-out Lancelot; while Anke Engels' Guinevere shows that not only boys can be knights, and steals a swordfighting scene that will have little viewers applaud and shout 'wow' ecstatically. Above all, there is Merlin, good old wizard Merlin, who, in Thomas Boer's unsurpassed interpretation becomes a boy who sees unjustice and wants to grow up strong enough to right it, 'no matter how much energy it takes'. Bas Zuydarland's set design is ingenious in its simplicity. Consisting
merely of seven chandeliers and a bundle of small wooden chairs, it transforms
in a flash from a playground into a battle ground, a rock, a bridge over
a river, and a king's court; and it allows the young performers plenty
of space to play, to dance, to change and to reach their audiences deepest
and most genuine emotions. Come and see this show, it is a true little
gem of children's theatre. Note on Het Laagland (Netherlands) - Het Laagland is the professional
youth and children's theatre company of the county Limburg. It is located
in Sittard, Holland. Their main aim is to use realistic and recognisable
themes in order to produce inventive, professional theatre performances
for children and young people, and in this way guide them in the process
of becoming young adults. The Company strives to introduce performances
aimed at widening participation and social inclusion of the arts sector,
and to provide opportunities for children to extend their knowledge and
understanding of how theatre works by reinforcement and application of
knowledge and skills acquired through active workshops. Company
Website. Theatre Editor, Thelma
Good's e-mail is thelma@edinburghguide.com Theatre
listings >
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