Y Storm
National Eisteddfod Wales
8th August 2012
Ystorm is Gwyneth Lewis Welsh language translation of Shakespeare’s
The Tempest. A tale full of power,
jealousy and revenge: Prospero was the
Duke of Milan but his love of the dark arts and his library led him to invite
his brother Antonio to share the power. Antonio then conspired with the King of
Naples Alonso to usurp Prospero and send him to a far flung island. It is Gonzalo
who allows Prospero to take supplies and his books. It is on this island that
the story starts, where Prospero has used is powers and servant Ariel to shipwreck
his enemies on his island where the lets them wander, tormented by dreams and spirits.
Ferdinand is split from his father Alonso and thinks him dead but at sight of
Miranda (Prospero’s daughter); Ferdinand falls madly in love and submits to Prospero’s
servitude to prove he loves her. It is Prospero’s aim to regain his Dukedom and
teach his enemies the lessons they deserve yet it is Prospero who also learns
lessons – to treat his enemies with honour and to be the better man.
Directed by Elen Bowman
Ystorm is part of the World Shakespeare Festival, in conjunction with the London
2012 celebrations.
As a first language English
speaker and admittedly only Welsh language learner, I walked in concerned as to
how much I was going to understand but within moments the performance took over
and entranced the soul.
The continual movement and use of the whole space as
the cast mingled in amongst the audience added another level to the performance.
The surtitles were good for keeping up where the story was when you couldn’t
quite remember the next part but the non-fluent audience did not have to rely
on them - just listening to the language was a pleasure.
Members of the acclaimed
Citrus Arts are part of the cast, lending their unique physical brand of circus
theatre to the performance, using the tent scaffold to its full potential, as
spirits flying around the sky (with aerial equipment) and adding a carnival atmosphere
to the scene (using fire and floor equipment) when Prospero uses his powers to conjure
up a fantasy for Miranda and Ferdinand and Ariel calls forth the Gods of the
land.
Ariel is a character trapped
by the lure of freedom and Meilir Rhys Williams plays him perfectly, he is at
once the unearthly, playful mischievous spirit and the loving servant. Along
with his team of spirits the choreography was fantastic, playing with the human
characters minds – working around them as if invisible with perfect timing and
grace.
The performance space – a purpose
built tent - was a warm sandy island in the middle of an ocean of mud,
replicating the remote island Prospero was cast out to and transports the
audience into the Shakespearean world as they took their seats on tiered platforms
around the tent.
Trinculo (Hugh Thomas) and
Stephano (Siôn Pritchard) were
the perfectly pitched comic relief against the more powerful, emotional turmoil’s
played out by the larger characters with their brilliantly timed drunken antics
and petty greed putting their own
instant gratification above all else. When they come across Caliban hiding from
Prospero they turn him into a willing drinker as he happily submits to being
their servant not Prospero’s. Caliban’s character also provides a different
angle to the story: after all he is the original inhabitant of the island – given
the role of the brutish uncivilized slave he is another innocent in the equation,
used harshly by Prospero for his own ends.
A brilliant show I would definitely recommend and I look forward to further
productions by Theatre Genedlaethol Cymru.
Y Storm is at the United Counties Showground, Camarthe 18-21 September and
Faenol Estate, Bangor 2-6 October
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