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Emily's House
- Tour & World Premiere .
Going to be at Imaginate's Bank of Scotland Children's Festival 2004.
See special feature.
Writer - Isobel Wright.
Director - Kate Bailsford.
Dramaturg/Co-Artistic Director - Douglas Irvine.
Designer - Evelyn Barbour.
Lighting Designer - Paul Ancell.
Composer - Marion Christie.
Company - Visible Fictions Theatre Company Company Website.
Cast - here .
2003 Tour Dates and Times - here .
Seen to review at Tron Theatre Glasgow on 1 May 2004.
Run Time - 50 mins no Interval .
Reviewer - Thelma Good.
Haunts and consoles.
At the age of six I was scared out of my wits by older cousins, a ghost
story and a sheet, I've never lost my belief though that there maybe a
world beyond this one we know. Ben and Gill have strange encounters when
they are brought to live together in an old house because of the relationship
between Ben's widowed Dad Steve and Emily's Mum Liz.
Ben and Gill aren't too struck on the idea and try to avoid becoming a
new family, Ben often retreats to a small room up in the roof with a fireplace.
We see the story through Ben's eyes and ears, early on when he calls up
the room's chimney Emily replies. Using lots of dramatic devices and furnishing
many of the sounds themselves the well chosen and directed three actors
hook us into that state of mind where you want to believe what you are
seeing or hearing. Malcolm Hamilton's Ben is an ordinary boy trying
to cover up the loss he has suffered too young, Kate Brailsford's
Gill is a young girl painfully missing the Dad she has rarely seen and
Claire Read is Narrator, Steve, Liz or spirit as the play requires.
Sometimes when theatre companies make plays for children they over simplify,
talk down or gloss over emotional reality. This production and Isabel
Wright's text makes no mistakes. It treats its audience with understanding
and care, inviting them to use their imaginations and intelligence. In
an audience which had quite a few under its target age of 9+ for the opening
performance it went down well. Too often nowadays we neglect to talk about
what happens to us whatever age we are and children here really apperciate
their and their friends' lives' losses and difficulties being brought
to life.
Designer Evelyn Barbour has given the production a very simple set ensuring
nothing gets in the way, just enough of a canvas to create theatre on.
This show goes to the International Childrens' Theatre Festival in Edinburgh
in late May and tours in Scotland. As well as performances in theatres
this company are going into schools with a full theatre experience. They
convert spaces into theatres with the pupils investigating all, including
marketing, that goes into the making of theatre today. This production
from a company who has toured abroad with previous productions looks ready
to go abroad to haunt and console international audiences - cherish it
when it gets to you.
© Thelma Good 1 May 2004. - Published on EdinburghGuide.com
Review of another Visible Fictions' Production Song
From The Sea I Beethoven's
Brother | The Pearl
| Bill's New
Frock.
Cast: Gill - Kate Brailsford, Ben - Malcolm
Hamilton and Narrator - Claire Read.
2004 Tour Details of Visible Fictions' production
of Emily's House .
Tour begins Public performances (there will be perfomances in schools
within a specially brought theatre space.)
29 April - 1 May at Glasgow Tron Theatre Glasgow 0141 552 4267.
4 May at Paisley Arts Centre 0141 887 1010.
8 May at Stirling macRobert 01786 466666.
14 May at Livingston Howden Park Centre 01506 433634.
15 May at Dunfermline Carnegie Hall 01383 314000.
19 May at Kilmarnock Palace Theatre 01563 554900.
20 May at Cumbernauld Theatre 01236 732887.
22 May Selkirk Victoria Hall 01750 724901.
25 & 26 May Edinburgh North Edinburgh Arts Centre 0131 315 2151.
30 May Edinburgh Garage Theatre 0131 228 1404.
2 June Fraserburgh Dalrymple Hall 01346 518 761.
4 June Invergordon Arts Centre 01349 868487.
Tour ends
Theatre Editor, Thelma Good's e-mail is
thelma@edinburghguide.com
Although every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the
information presented in these pages, no responsibility can be accepted
for any errors or omissions.
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