fluellen

FLUELLEN THEATRE COMPANY

in association with

GRAND THEATRE SWANSEA

presents 

"Mesdames et messieurs...ladies and gentlemen..I give you..your own...beloved...Piaf"

Piaf 

 by

PAM GEMS  

REVIEW in SOUTH WALES EVENING POST

SONIA BECK stars as Edith Piaf the legendary French singer otherwise known as the "Little Sparrow" in Swansea-based Fluellen Theatre Company`s latest major production, directed by Peter Richards and written by Pam Gems.

It is a sad state of affairs when a singer is probably best remembered by mainstream audiences for just one song (Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien) which was infamously employed to leadenly ineffective comic effect in a dreadful TV ad for a chain of opticians; there was far more to Piaf`s life and varied repertoire than this, and the play sets out to fill in the gaps about the performer`s turbulent and eventful life.

Beck`s performance in the title role is mesmerising, capturing Piaf`s slow but steady rise from her humble beginnings as a Parisian street singer to the dizzying heits of stardom, having been discovered by impresario and nightclub owner Louis Leplee (Ian Darlington-Roberts). Tragedy is never far from the surface, as is Piaf`s increasing reliance on alcohol and drugs.

Piaf was a difficult, troubled and, ultimately very unpleasant figure whose sole redeeming quality was her magnificent voice, and Sonia Beck`s portrayal encapsulates all that is good and bad about the character.

The supporting cast, including Kevin Johns (Bruno), Charlotte Rogers (Toine) and Claire Novelli (Marlene Dietrich/Madeleine), with Dan Jones, Edward Llewellyn, Huw Richards, Robert Surman and Fran Kelly appearing in a variety of roles, are uniformly excellent, and indeed manage to flesh out characters whom - due to the writer`s idiosyncratic and superficial style - could so easily be little more than cliche-ridden cyphers.

It is worth noting that while music plays an integral role in the story - with musical direction by Deborah Allen and live music from Florin Lazar and Josh Stokes - this is by nno means a musical in the accepted sense, but rather a play with music.

An intriguing piece of theatre, whose author seems to have brought her own idiosyncracies to bear upon the life of a legendary entertainer.

 GRAND THEATRE 
SWANSEA

JUNE 1ST - 5th  2010

        sponsored by

PETER LYNN & PARTNERS

and

DIAMOND ACCOUNTING GROUP 

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