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Theatre listings > Laurel And Hardy. Playwright - Tom McGrath. Director - Tony Cownie. Designer - Neil Murray. Lighting Design - Jeanine Davies. Pianist/Musical Director - Jon Beales. Choreographer - Rita Henderson. Company - Royal Lyceum Theatre Company . Cast - here . Venue - Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh www.lyceum.org.uk for on line booking 0131 248 4848. Dates - Free preview 22 April at 7:45pm. 23 April - 14 May 2005.Tuesdays - Saturdays at 7.45pm also matinees Wed 4 & 11 May and at 2:30pm , Sat Mats on 30 April and 7 & 14 May at 2:30pm. Reviewer - Marisa de Andrade. Slapstick escalates, so do performances.
Steven McNicoll enters a makeshift grey and white sound stage in a puff of smoke looking like a replica of Oliver Hardy.Once joined by his silly side-kick, Barnaby Power's Laurel, the pair ease into Tom McGrath's plot. At first, the audience hesitates - well I certainly did. Only minutes before we've been graciously ushered to our first-night seats after waiting in the cold as the theatre was evacuated. Nothing major - just a small cloud of smoke. But three fire brigades and half and hour later, the show went on for a unsettled audience. The first fifteen minutes come across as a warm-up act - well-rehearsed, but not completely comfortable in its own skin. But as the slapstick escalates, so too do the performances of the perfectly cast double-act. The initial scenes stumble over one another, but grow seamless as the duo describe details of their past. With a couple of life-sized baskets, a step ladder and a pianist, Jon Beale, who gives the performance extra lift, Laurel and Hardy embark on a collage of memoirs. They're depicted through a series of manipulated mediums - a silent movie, so cleverly created through light filters and shadowy silhouettes where crackling audio and the fine-tuning of an old-fashioned radio sets the tone for the black-and-white scene introduced by the signature sound of a Laurel and Hardy film. Jumping in and out of characters interrupted by convincing cameo roles, Barnaby Power's Laurel and Steven McNicoll's Hardy are most charming when they're being someone else. For Hardy, it's when he's donning a feather boa, faking a flawless Australian accent and assuming the role of Laurel's performer girlfriend. Whilst adding colour to the piece, breaking in and out of character doesn't reveal much of the budding relationship between Laurel and Hardy. We catch a glimmer of truth in one scene when the pair are portraying the off-stage Stan and Ollie. It's the truth I believe writer Tom McGrath attempted to recreate as he explored the honesty behind the two icons. The glamour of showbiz dissipates as 'stupid' Stan becomes the serious one, while Ollie too abandons his boisterous antics to comtemplate the meaning camouflaged by their clowning. In another, where Laurel and Hardy attempt to complete a DIY project together, the modern double act don't quite manage to demonstrate the consumate level of natural clowning about that made the originals comic icons. And although in this scene, a silent movie is masterly created on stage with flickering lights and a well choreographed act, something is missing. However, the dynamic duo manage to capture the essence of the two kings of comedy and Tom McGrath's cleverly crafted script breathes life into the characters. McNicoll and Power work well together as Laurel and Hardy, but haven't yet mastered the impeccable comic timing of the ingenious pair. Still, it took Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel decades to perfect their silent routines and Steven McNicoll and Barnaby Power look set to do the geniuses' justice well before the end of this three week run. © Marisa de Andrade 23 April 2005 - Published on EdinburghGuide.com Cast:Barnaby Power - Stan Laurel and Steven McNicoll - Oliver Hardy. 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. Theatre listings >
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