March 14, 2007
How much fun can 3 men and a packed theatre have? Peepolykus seem to have set themselves a challenge, and are not afraid to use any trick they can think of in order to meet it. It is not for nothing they have been compared to The Marx Brothers, perhaps for their scant regard for plot. But they could equally be compared with League of Gentlemen in their ability to populate London and Dartmoor with only 3 actors (and a dummy), with Reduced Shakespeare Co for their hi-speed synopsis of The Story So Far... with panto for their audience manipulation, with Midsummer Night's Dream for their play within a play without a play and with Jack Tati for their physical comedy involving height differences and manic mime.
Peepolykus may have illustrious and diverse antecedents but they blend their ideas into a unique style of performance. For reasons too complicated to go into they have to bring the house lights up several times, which just serves to blur the boundary between the play and real life. All the world may be a stage but in this case the stage may also be all the world. At any rate it's very hard to take anything seriously afterwards. The only problem with this is that John Nicholson's announcement at the end is serious, and the Pegasus really would like donations. After so many spoof announcements no-one was sure.
John, Javier and Jason play a total of (I think) 16 characters between them plus a whole host of family portraits. Much of the scene setting is done with deft and well-timed sound effects. The props are made to work extremely hard, especially the sauna bench / gig / train which later becomes the bed. The company ride roughshod over the usual problems of doubling parts - whipping off costumes while still finishing speeches. And yet the world they create is solid enough that hitting a "lamb in a bag" draws Arghs from the audience, and we can distinguish between Barrymore the butler pretending to be Mrs Barrymore (a man dressed as a man pretending to be a woman) and Mrs Barrymore herself (a man dressed as a woman) though the only difference is the absence of a huge false beard.
On a serious note, the relationship between Holmes and Watson is explored more fully than in some productions - Watson is genuinely upset Holmes has used him as bait and told him he talks twaddle. Holmes may not be as in charge of the situation or as insightful as he pretends. While Victoriana may be ripe for lampooning it is interesting to find that we may explore the story more deeply as a result.
Back to the lighter side and here's a list of moments to look out for when you see this (as you surely must!):
the beautiful series of pastiches on the train, the wind swirling leaves when Dr Mortimer enters, the impeccable mime in the opening sequence, the magical appearance of the snooker ball, the repeat of the sauna and the modesty hankies, the animal noises on the moor, Victor the enormous horse, the height difference between Sir Henry and Cecile in the tango at the disco, the broken candle, the slow-mo climax as they face down the Hound, the synopsis of Act 1 which happens so quickly that Sir Henry has no time to reclaim his trousers, and the extraordinary revelation from reading the programme that these people also do serious plays. How can they bear to after this?
There is no better place to be in the Hours Of Darkness When Evil Is Exalted. Beg, borrow or steal tickets. And hope they haven't mended that candle!
Peepolykus may have illustrious and diverse antecedents but they blend their ideas into a unique style of performance. For reasons too complicated to go into they have to bring the house lights up several times, which just serves to blur the boundary between the play and real life. All the world may be a stage but in this case the stage may also be all the world. At any rate it's very hard to take anything seriously afterwards. The only problem with this is that John Nicholson's announcement at the end is serious, and the Pegasus really would like donations. After so many spoof announcements no-one was sure.
John, Javier and Jason play a total of (I think) 16 characters between them plus a whole host of family portraits. Much of the scene setting is done with deft and well-timed sound effects. The props are made to work extremely hard, especially the sauna bench / gig / train which later becomes the bed. The company ride roughshod over the usual problems of doubling parts - whipping off costumes while still finishing speeches. And yet the world they create is solid enough that hitting a "lamb in a bag" draws Arghs from the audience, and we can distinguish between Barrymore the butler pretending to be Mrs Barrymore (a man dressed as a man pretending to be a woman) and Mrs Barrymore herself (a man dressed as a woman) though the only difference is the absence of a huge false beard.
On a serious note, the relationship between Holmes and Watson is explored more fully than in some productions - Watson is genuinely upset Holmes has used him as bait and told him he talks twaddle. Holmes may not be as in charge of the situation or as insightful as he pretends. While Victoriana may be ripe for lampooning it is interesting to find that we may explore the story more deeply as a result.
Back to the lighter side and here's a list of moments to look out for when you see this (as you surely must!):
the beautiful series of pastiches on the train, the wind swirling leaves when Dr Mortimer enters, the impeccable mime in the opening sequence, the magical appearance of the snooker ball, the repeat of the sauna and the modesty hankies, the animal noises on the moor, Victor the enormous horse, the height difference between Sir Henry and Cecile in the tango at the disco, the broken candle, the slow-mo climax as they face down the Hound, the synopsis of Act 1 which happens so quickly that Sir Henry has no time to reclaim his trousers, and the extraordinary revelation from reading the programme that these people also do serious plays. How can they bear to after this?
There is no better place to be in the Hours Of Darkness When Evil Is Exalted. Beg, borrow or steal tickets. And hope they haven't mended that candle!