THE INDIAN TEMPEST

THE INDIAN TEMPEST

Footsbarn at Shakespeare's Globe

01.08.13

An enthralling, magical Tempest "with a strong flavour of Kerala" from India via France and Portugal . A huge tent billows in the breeze from the river – its flimsy fabric will later make a mechanical dissolve from one scene to the next.

The storm gently rocks the little shadow boat; there are puppets, rush baskets, swirling smoke, a rainy storm cloud on a stick, a bird monster and a glorious goddess.

The acting company is eclectic – the noblest Prospero I have ever seen [Reghoothaman Domodaran Pillai ], a French Ferdinand – "D'où vient cette musique ?" [Haris 'Haka' Resic ], a mischievous Ariel – part Shakespearean servant, half temple dancer, [Gopalakrishnan Kundamkumarath]  and a blunt London Caliban from Artistic Director Paddy Hayter.

And Caliban is key to this intriguing production. As the Magician, candle-crowned, leaves the island, the indigenous thing of darkness is left with the undrowned book. Nervous of its power, he sets fire to the pages as the play ends.

FOOTSBARN'S CHRISTMAS CRACKER

at Shakespeare's Globe

23.12.09

It's ten years since I was at the Globe in the depths of winter. That was for the Millennium night, with fireworks and plenty to drink.

This year, for the first time ever, there's a Christmas season in Shakespeare's wooden O. Not a panto, nor yet a full-length piece from the canon. But Footsbarn's unique blend of mayhem and melancholy. A series of moments – Macbeth charades, a mock Nativity scene with a Shakespearean Twelve Days of Christmas, a girl on a tightrope playing a plaintive violin. Not forgetting the excellent mime Nola Rae as the Fool.

Footsbarn are now located in France, and the company is creatively multi-cultural. But I felt that the overall ambience of Patrick Hayter's production was very French, harking back to the work of Le Grand Magic Circus [et ses animaux tristes]. But despite the sadness and the slow moments, the effect was jolly and entertaining, in the tradition of the Mummers and the Lord of Misrule. And the final moments looked forward to the return of the sun and the summer ...