• Advertise
  • Request Review
  • Write for Us
  • Privacy
  • Login

Theatre Bubble

The UK Theatre Network

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Reviews
  • News
  • Features
  • Spotlight
  • Opinions
  • Interviews
  • Guides
  • Ed Fringe

Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons – A Reimagining at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

March 18, 2018 by Alex Wood Leave a Comment

Review of: Vivaldi's The Four Seasons – A Reimagining at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse
Price:
From £10

Reviewed by: Alex Wood
Rating:
5
On March 18, 2018
Last modified:March 18, 2018

Summary:

A quietly brilliant evening of music and puppetry.

More Details

The last new show to open as part of Emma Rice’s final season at the Globe was always going to appear unconventional – a puppetry-chamber concert hybrid based on Max Richter’s reimagining of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, created by the famed company Gyre and Gimble (responsible for the likes of The Elephantom, and the puppetry in the current production of The Grinning Man). To some extent, the piece feels like the successor to All The Angels (based on the music of Handel) which ran at the same venue in both 2015 and 2016.

But mixing a distinctly recognisable score with a new story is a tricky act to balance. Co-directors Toby Olié and Finn Caldwell are tasked with having to make sure that the refrains and leaps of Vivaldi’s music never interrupt the narrative being played out by their puppeteers on the forestage, while at the same time making sure that the concerti themselves are done justice. The pairing has to justify itself.

To that end, as a creative juggling act, the company succeed in spades. The Four Seasons, performed by a brace of string musicians, ties wonderfully into Gyre and Gimble’s nimble story, creating a varied thematic tone from movement to movement, pausing for melancholic clarity before leaping into frantic energy. It flows marvellously. Neither the music nor the stage performers vie for our attention; they co-exist, mutually constructing a loose narrative.

And it is the narrative where the piece comes to life.  Having begun the week by watching a disturbing, boisterous discussion on the life of refugees in Buggy Baby, here a similar story is created in an entirely different way – with a small family of wood-finished puppets (about a third life-size), grappling with the severe effects of war, displacement and loss. What this production does is, rather than just showing the very literal brick-and-mortar terrors of conflict, explore the psychological impacts of this trauma – the ramifications decades down the line when those who had to experience such events then have to deal with their legacy. It’s nonspecific, broad and intensely human, told without words, without real characters.

The production design, sparing where necessary, ties into this idea of a latent, spasmodic depression perfectly – the beauty and wonder of butterflies, created by simple sheets of red paper draped with gold leaf, reappear later in the show as darkened, clouded symbols of melancholy. The same objects that can appear enchanting are, all of a sudden, re-cast in a different light to become malevolent and intimidating.

Pared back, the production lets the physical gestures of its characters come to life in the candle-lit hall of the Sam Wanamaker. As befits the company, this is puppetry at its finest. Inspired by Japanese Bunraku figures, Gyre & Gimble’s performers know every ligament, every innate reaction of their characters. It becomes a dance, puppeteers flitting behind the characters yet always allowing the two-foot high puppets to lead the story. Olié and Caldwell also have a few powerful flourishes – when a child is wishing their mother back to life, we as an audience are aware that there is no puppeteer nearby ready to reanimate the dead. The piece melds the corporeal and artificial perfectly.

Seeing Vivaldi’s piece not simply reimagined, but also recharged and refocussed, adds a tense clarity, a tragedy to proceedings. An age-old classic brought to shed new light on a contemporary issue. As far as final shows in Rice’s season go, it’s a quietly brilliant evening.

Alex Wood

Author: Alex Wood

Alex is the former reviews editor at Theatre Bubble, but since changing position now contributes occasionally. He has been writing reviews for a number of years, as well as seeing his own shows performed. He has produced and marketed a number of performances at venues in London, Oxford, Edinburgh, including the world premiere of Philip Pullman's The Ruby in the Smoke.

Filed Under: Featured, Review Tagged With: Globe, Gyre and Gimble, Wanamaker

Join the discussion Cancel reply

NEWS / Living Record launches digital venue at the Brighton Fringe

The Living Record has launched as one of three new digital venues at the Brighton Fringe this summer. The first [Read More]

NEWS / Waiting for Lefty by Two Lines Productions Announce Cast

Clifford Odets’ 1935 agitprop play about cab drivers fighting for fair pay, has been adapted for 2021 and is presented [Read More]

INTERVIEW / Gavin Maxwell and William Townsend talk Anthropocene

Launching on this year’s World Earth Day (Thursday 22nd April), Anthropocene: The Human Era is a digital choose-your-own adventure from [Read More]

NEWS / Thick ‘n’ Fast announce new show General Secretary

Who run the world? A satirically comic journey through power and diplomacy as two highly unqualified women are suddenly landed [Read More]

Guides / 5 Tools for Actors to Enter the Theatre World like a Pro

Becoming a successful actor is no small feat. Fortunately, for those interested in improving their acting skills, plenty of tools [Read More]

Top Posts & Pages

  • Waiting for Lefty by Two Lines Productions Announce Cast
  • 10 Tips to Help You Prepare for Your Reality TV Auditions
  • Writing the Perfect Press Release
  • Crowdfunding In Theatre - An Overview
  • Katy Owen: Auditioning for Oxford School of Drama
  • How to Applying for Arts Grants and Funding
  • Bull - Young Vic
  • 5 Stage Elements to Consider for a Rousing Theatrical Production
  • Is this the real location of Ambridge?
  • Narnia star Georgie Henley to star in new Philip Ridley monologues at Southwark Playhouse
  • Alex Wood

    Alex Wood
    Contributor

  • March 18th, 2018
  • comment iconNo Comments
  • Facebook1TweetLinkedInEmail

    Newsletter

    Enjoyed what you've read? Get even more great content directly to your inbox - Completely Free

    About Theatre Bubble

    Theatre Bubble is the news, review and blogging site created by Blue Pie Media and run by a dedicated team of outstanding editors and writers: we're always looking for new contributors - to find out more click here.

    Contact Us

    News: news@theatrebubble.com
    Reviews: reviews@theatrebubble.com
    Website: webmaster@theatrebubble.com

    Privacy Policy

    Copyright © 2021 · Blue Pie Media

    Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

    Email sent!