BEST PRODUCTION: HANSEL AND GRETEL, TEDDY HALL

Review by Paul Hardwick

“there was little disagreement that it was between ‘Hansel and Gretel’ and ‘The Lovers’. Both were near faultless and considerably better than much of what is put on at the BT.”

10.00 a.m. Snake in the Grass, Regents Park: “a dialogue of monologues that saw Ruby Thomas pick up the Best Actress award for a darkly disturbing under-played Miriam”

10.45 a.m. Top Girls, St Johns: “the pacing and choice of scenes hampered the actresses noticeably”

11.30 a.m. Hansel and Gretel, Teddy Hall: “a triumph of comedy and style”

12.15 p.m. Great Course Acting – Julius and Cleopatra, Oriel: “a Shakespearean-cum-Am Dram parody of dauntless ambition and energy”

14.00 p.m. Fugee, Somerville: “seemed to lack a little lustre and err too far towards the political.”

14.45 p.m. 100, Brasenose: “one of the best pieces of the day with strong acting, directing and lighting throughout.”

15.30p.m.  Superwoman, Wadham: “new writing that split the judges down the middle.”

16.15 p.m. Bouncers, Merton: “Full of one-liners, cracking vignettes and some highly creative ‘blue films’”

18.00 p.m. The Lover, Oriel: “the most bizarre adaptation of Pinter that you will ever see.”

18.45 p.m. A Real Summer, Merton: “even the polish of the actresses was not enough to sustain interest in the story.”

Best of Cuppers 2009

Review by Paul Hardwick

And so, as the lights go out in the BT, the champagne corks are collected in Magdalen Bar and the solitary footlight given one last good kick, Cuppers 2009 draws to a close. Though the final day of Cuppers – ten plays in ten hours – can be something of a marathon for all involved, the range and quality of the productions this year was remarkable and kept the judges debating furiously until the final fade. What did they argue over? Read on.

The bill started strongly with ‘Snake in the Grass’, a dialogue of monologues that saw Ruby Thomas pick up the Best Actress award for a darkly disturbing under-played Miriam. Though the almost impossible task of cutting the original left a few too many plot threads loose, the performance itself was captivating.

Top Girls suffered from the same issues of cutting, though more so. Whilst at moments the production shone, I felt the pacing and choice of scenes hampered the actresses noticeably.

Gone were issues of pacing in the next play, an extremely funny rhyming re-telling of Hansel and Gretel. Almost every aspect of the production was a delight, from Ollo Clark’s superb narration – for which he justly received the Best Actor award – to the inter-play of the protagonists – the facial expressions of each as humorous as the other – and the chiming of Vic Sanders. Not to mention the wonderful make-up, costume, set and live music. It was a triumph of comedy and style.

Moving to a very different, though no less effective humour Oriel’s ‘Julius and Cleopatra’ epitomised the Spirit of Cuppers, reputedly involving a quarter of the Oriel Freshers in a Shakespearean-cum-Am Dram parody of dauntless ambition and energy. Though some of the jokes were repeated perhaps once too often, the vast array of humour on offer had something for everyone and greatly entertained.

After the break ‘Fugee’ was first to be performed. I must admit to being disappointed by a production that greatly impressed me earlier in the week. It seemed to lack a little lustre and err too far towards the political. Yet the characterisation was still solid and the production perfectly balanced to fit half an hour.

There followed ‘100’, an experimental piece (somewhere between Solaris and the Cube) with some highly intelligent and original physical theatre; staging a scene in bed standing up and another lying down with three actors simulating the bed were highlights. Though there were one or two moments of cringe-worthy scripting the performance stood out as one of the best pieces of the day with strong acting, directing and lighting throughout.

‘Superwoman’ followed, an intriguing piece of new writing that split the judges down the middle. Though the play faltered at times where the day before it had not, the reaction and heated debate it prompted among the judges proved that something set it apart. In the end, it shaded a few excellent pieces for the ‘Best New Writing’ award.

The final play of the session was a wonderful ensemble piece of comedy called ‘Bouncers’. Full of one-liners, cracking vignettes and some highly creative ‘blue films’ (‘Gladiator Out’, ‘An Ity Bity Gang Bang’ and something to do with a yeast infection too terrible to print) the production was tremendously good fun.

Then came the penultimate play, ‘Lovers’ and perhaps the most bizarre adaptation of Pinter that you will ever see. Superbly strong from start to finish the directing was excellent and the concept, the two-character original sub-divided into five ‘fragments’, a triumph. The use of hand-held light sources rather than conventional lighting combined with Twilightesque make-up to evoke a memorable atmosphere.

The evening rounded off with a rather odd play, ‘The Real Summer’ in which nothing much happened between several monologues and dialogues. The standard of acting was very high, and the production austere yet effective, but even the polish of the actresses was not enough to sustain interest in the story.

Judging is far from an exact art; every judge had a show that they felt had merited a place in the final ten (The Musgrove Ritual) more than others (…). Yet when it came to the decision for the Best Production there was little disagreement that it was between ‘Hansel and Gretel’ and ‘The Lovers’. Both were near faultless and considerably better than much of what is put on at the BT.

34 plays, 25 judges, 13 bottles of champagne, 10 short-listed productions and one winner later, Cuppers 2009 has closed. Though it is always sad when the madness finally ends, the quality across the board promises much to look forward to in the coming months and years.