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| Edinburgh : A&E : Festivals : Fringe Reviews |
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Rating Guide None = Unmissable 
= UnwatchablePage number refers to the Fringe programme The Race. (Page 71). Drams None needed. Venue Aurora Nova (Venue 8). Address St Stephen's Street. Reviewer Barbara Bryan. The upbeat music on the sound system reflects the mood of the audience who came to see The Race. And from start to finish the show - an exploration of the frenetism and mania surrounding modern life - exuded non-stop high octane energy. Moments of contemplation, of solitude, were rudely interrupted by aspects of life. The show opens with a man walking on a treadmill, a metaphor for many people's working lives. Simulating his busy life he hurriedly passes by familiar people, never having the time to stop and chat. This is the pace of the show throughout the performance. The five members of the company, with innovative imagination, keep us in a state of constant flux. The stage setting is very inventive. They make brilliant use of chairs and moveable panels at the back of the stage to create the window of a café; a busy club scene. With extraordinary athleticism and no slackening of the pace, the central character appears to have a very busy life and is preparing himself for the arrival of a first child. While he is awaiting this event he engages in several scenarios. Being 'smothered' by friendship; his arms and legs handcuffed as he is manipulated like a puppet; silenced for his lack of achievements. The Race is exceptionally good physical theatre by this relatively new British company. They combine provocative ideas with powerful movement. © Barbara Bryan 26 August 2005 - Published on EdinburghGuide.com Runs at 12 noon until 29 August not 28. Company - Fuel Theatre Company. Company Website - www.fueltheatre.com
Ren-Sa. (Page 71). Drams None needed. Venue Aurora Nova at St Stephen's. (Venue 8). Address St Stephen's Street. Reviewer Ksenija Horvat. From the outset, Ren-Sa, a new installation by Darren Johnston, promises to be a memorable experience. Having arrived at the front of Aurora Nova, the unsuspected audience are transported in blackened out buses to an unidentified warehouse space. There they witness a disturbing tale of isolation and inner struggle being played out before them by four ghostly performers, against the backdrop of simultaneously alluring and alienating scenography, soundscape, and video projection. The overall feeling is that of helplesness, as the audience is manipulated into witnessing a strange laboratory experiment without any possibility to intervene into the performers' nightmarish, surreal reality. There are glimpses of various influences such as Hideo Nakata's uncanny cinematic world, Japanese folklore, even Butoh. One might also note that the recent passing of Hiroshima Day might put a new slant on the production's themes and intentions. However, all of these seem incidental. Any semblance to Nakata's films may or may not be relevant, and the show is stripped of all temporal and cultural signifiers, bar the nationality of its performers. An overall image is that of a protean artist committed to pushing the boundaries of what is possible. In this sense, Ren-sa may be seen as a continuation of Johnstons exploration of human isolation in virtual/physical space, that marked his earlier works Electasticelasticity (2000) and Silicon Sensorium (2004). Eerie, surreal and intense, this is Johnston's most provoking piece so far. Warning: Make sure you dress in comfortable clothes and preferrably sneakers when you go to see it. Also, the show includes strobe lighting. Note about the artist - Darren Johnston is one of the fast-rising stars of British choreography. Born in 1975 in Essex, he spent three years training in the world famous Laban Centre for Movement and Dance in London. In 1999 he received Laban Centre London's Award for Outstanding Choreographic Achievement, and shortly after he formed Red Dragon Company who is committed to creating live contemporary work through the fusion of movement, light, electronic sound and multimedia. In 2000, the company won the first prize at the First International choreography Competition in Borenam, Belgium. © Ksenija Horvat 8 August 2005 - Published on EdinburghGuide.com Runs to 29 August at 19:30 and 22:00 (not 9th, 16th, 23rd). Company - Darren Johnston (array). Company Website - www.array.uk.com
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