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| Edinburgh : A&E : Theatre: Reviews |
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Theatre listings > The Nest.
- World Premiere.
What is this sudden interest in mountains all about? Suspect Culture has done it in 8000 metres, and now the Traverse is doing it in this new play by first-time writer Alan Wilkins. It is as if in its search for itself Scottish theatre has turned to Munros for answer. The Nest is a beautifully crafted play. The story flows gently revealing complex relationships and fully-rounded, intriguing characters. There is nothing better to kick-start a good aul' fashioned story than to take a group of strangers and shut them together in a bothy for a night or two. Skeletons are bound to rattle in the closets, and emotions are guaranteed to fly in all directions, give or take a dram or too. So, The Nest is a play about climbing? Perhaps on its surface it is, but underneath it all lurks an intricate exploration of loneliness, inability to communicate and indestructability of human spirit. Campbell captures the play's atmosphere nicely, showing that he is a director to look out for in the future. There is more than a hint of Outlying Islands in this production, both in terms of atmosphere, the style in which the story is told, and the kind of set design it employs, and perhaps such comparisons are inevitable, but both Wilkins and Campbell show that theatre can still produce a hint of magic from the simplest ingredients. The cast rises to the occasion. Candida Benson is a suitably confused, revenge-driven Helen and Matthew Pidgeon creates a fine figure as a guilt-ridden husband Colin. Lewis Howden cuts a fine figure as a hardman with the softest heart, and there is something genuinely endearing about Clare Yuille's misplaced, clueless photographer Jackie. But a true star of this show is Finlay Welsh whose gripping portrayal of Innes has some of the allure of his earlier performance in Friel's Faith Healer. Underscored by understated and atmospheric lighting (Maria Bechaalani) and sound design (John Harris), The Nest would have been quite a treat for the Edinburgh's audiences was it not for Andrew Burt's massive wooden set. What is it with theatre practitioners today that they feel the need to hide behind catchy design? In the past, a bare stage and actors' bodies were enough to create illusion and today it seems that everything needs to be openly spelled out. Burt's design is ingenious, true, and easy on the eye, but one may pose the question whether it is truly necessary, and evenmore, how will it travel, (even in the intended modified form) when the show goes on tour? The overall feeling is, then, that The Nest will be enjoyed, as long
as one does not mind the fact that it brings nothing new, and represents
no challenges, unlike the mountains of Scotland. Cast - Helen - Candida Benson, Mac - Lewis
Howden, Colin - Matthew Pidgeon, Innes - Finlay Welsh, and Jackie - Clare
Yuille. Theatre listings >
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