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Peer Gynt
- Tour & World Premiere of the new version by John Harvey.
Ibsen's dramatic poem was first published in 1867. It was first performed
in 1876 accompanied by Grieg's musical score.
Playwright - Henrik Ibsen (1828 - 1906).
Adaptor - John Harvey.
Director - Peter Clerke.
Designer - Karen Tennent.
Costume Designer - Hilary Macdonald. Assisted by Susan Hutcheon,
Aileen Sherry and Colette McNeill.
Lighting Designer - Paul Sorley.
Composer - Steve Kettley.
Choreographer - Christine Devaney.
Company - Benchtours. Company Website.
Cast - here .
2003 Tour Dates and Times - here .
Seen to review at Brunton Theatre Musselburgh on 27 May 2004.
Run Time - 3 hours including 15 mins interval.
Reviewer - Thelma Good.
Sucessful fusion.
Peer Gynt - Benchtours Production.
Peer Gynt - Peter Grimes and Aslak- Sean Hay
© Marc Marnie 2004
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Peter Grimes gives masterly and mischievous charm to Benchtours'
Peer Gynt. While a set of superbly infinite flexibility with ladders,
a lop sided table, a red hulled model yacht, a well directed chorus and
two itinerant musicians all add to the strong core cast.
Peer is a boaster, a spinner of tales. His mother Åse wants him
to stay home and regain the family fortunes squandered by his father.
But he elopes with a bride, Ingrid just after he falls in love with a
young girl, Solveig. What follows is the fantastic story of his life as
he falls into the company of trolls with their tails, two-headed King
and his irresistible daughter (at least when you first met her) a filled
out Tim Licata.
There are further adventures in Egypt and in a lunatic asylum, and in
the desert including an encounter with the Sphinx. With John Harvey's
script the astonishing modernity of Ibsen's play is striking. Peter Clerke's
skillful fusion of the professional actors with the chorus, drawn from
colleges and community is rich in imagery including the delights of the
kilted, red haired trolls, the undercurrent of the disturbed humanity
of lunatics and a spectacular sea storm. The action follows fast and furious,
at times you can lose the thread, a second interval or a little more cutting
might help audiences who are growing less and less used to lengthy dramas.
Central to the production is Peter Grimes' Peer Gynt, hardly ever
off stage, his failure in life to ever be himself is a tragedy you feel,
and Catherine Gillard as Åse, his exasperated but loving
mother. Throughout, the atmospheric music is a mix of traditional and
modern structures with more than a nod to Grieg's Peer Gynt and the many
and inventive costumes include Norwegian and Scottish notes.
It has been suggested that the National Theatre shouldn't always use only
professional talents in productions. Benchtours' Peer Gynt more than hints
that when it comes to large cast productions, a core of exceptional professionals
working in a distinctive style can provide an enriching experience to
the audience out front and to those who have worked alongside them as
cast members.
© Thelma Good 27 May 2004. - Published on EdinburghGuide.com
Cast:Peer Gynt - Peter Grimes, Åse/Strange
Passenger - Catherine Gillard, Solveig - Claire Lamont, Aslak/Troll King
- Sean Hay, Button Moulder/Green Clad - Tim Licata and Ingrid/Troll King
- Christine Devaney.
Peer Gynt Chorus in Edinburgh and Musselburgh (at other venues
the chorus will also be drawn from drama colleges and local community
groups.)
Mary Begg, Rachael Clerke, Rodger Darke, Anne Forsyth, Mike Gillan, Katia
Hervy, Greg Holstead, John Loughton, Susan Rattigan, Shona Sharp and Michelle
Wood.
2004 Tour Details of Benchtour's production
of Peer Gynt .
Tour begins
27 - 28 May at
Musselburgh The Brunton Theatre 0131 665 2240.
2 June at Edinburgh North Edinburgh Arts Centre, 0131 315
2151.
10 - 12 June at Aberdeen The Lemon Tree 01224 642 230.
17 - 19 June at Glasgow The Tron Theatre 0141 552 4267.
24 - 26 June at Lerwick Garrison Theatre 01595 692 114.
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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