LYSISTRATA

LYSISTRATA

ARISTOPHANES

in a new performing version by

Francis Hardy

The government is fighting an everlasting overseas war. The women at home want it all to end. But what can they do? Their answer is to go on a sex strike until their men not to promise not to fight any more. A perfect solution.

Or is it?

Lysistrata is the world`s first anti-war comedy, and is still as outrageous and thought provoking as ever after two millennia.

LAURALEE NICOLE plays the title role in a great cast that includes DAVID DOOLEY, CHRISTOPHER HALE, PATRICIA MORGAN, CLAIRE NOVELLI, DUDLEY OWEN, CHARLOTTE ROGERS, JAMES SCANNELL, NIA TRUSSLER, KATHERINE WEARE and ROWAN WHITEHEAD

SPONSORED BY

PETER LYNN & PARTNERS

REVIEWS

Having seen some poor productions of Greek comedy in the past, I was a little reticent about paying good money to see another. But my love of all things Greek won in the end and so I splashed the cash at the Grand Theatre Studio in Swansea to see Fluellen Theatre Company`s new translation of Aristophanes` Lysistrata.

An hour and a half later I walked back out into the damp and depressing February drizzle with a broad grin and a warm glow. For this production of Lysistrata was not only the most enjoyable piece of theatre I have seen for some time it was also, hands down, the best production of Lysistrata I have ever seen.

Updated to something that resembled the present day, Peter Richards` production of Francis Hardy`s translation crackled with wit and, whilst staying remarkably faithful to the Aristophanes original, added some well-judged gags at present-day foibles. (At one stage the senior Athenian politician was admonished for spending public funds on his duck pond!)

The plot about a group of women going on a sex-strike until their menfolk stop fighting wars was very well handled staying the right side of crudity whilst keeping the double-entendres flowing at record speed.

Lauralee Nicole was outstanding in the title role. She galvanised her colleagues as well as the audience into a sincere belief for change. Here was one male in the audience who cheered her to the echo. Nia Trussler Jones and Charlotte Rogers were excellent as two of her initially doubting followers and there was a great turn from Katherine Weare as Lampito, the Amazon, here cleverly and hilariously transformed into a terrifying punk with enough face metal to rebuild the Titanic.

The Chorus of Old Men was transformed into beautifully realised Dads Army types (actually rechristened George and Godfrey). David Dooley and Dudley Owen were terrific, and the latter`s hapless pantomime with a crowbar was hilarious.

The Chorus of Old Women was equally well realised. Claire Novelli and Patricia Morgan portrayed them as two hideous cleaning ladies who wielded their mops like weapons of mass destruction.

There was hardly a letup in the frenetic action, slapstick and verbal comedy throughout the performance. At times things became almost pantomimic, with an eminently hissable villain in the Magistrate (very well played by Christopher Hale) and even an "Oh no you won`t!" "Oh yes we will!" stand-off between the Choruses.

In a production where there were so many sexual puns, to say that the production had a great climax is, perhaps, very appropriate. And it really did have a great climax in which the entire company gave us a terrific and very funny version of "My Way". The perfect ending to a superb production, and one that restored my faith in the ability of Brits to stage Greek comedy well.

JOHN P. LEWIS

Theatre-Wales

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Aristophanes` classic tale of how women band together in a desperate attempt to stop their men from wasting their lives in warfare by denying them sexual favours has given rise (no pun intended) to several lacklustre productions - the one that stands out in my memory dates from some years ago when Swansea University Drama Society staged a puerile and crude adaptation of the play which included more knob jokes than one could shake a stick at - but happily, Fluellen Theatre Company is remowned for its high quality and from the outset it was evident that the play would be in safe hands.

A twelve strong cast - led by the excellent Lauralee Nicole as the feisty title character - aquitted themselves superbly in their respective roles, and breathed life into the characters, each of whom was beautifully drawn. This was a production set loosely in the present day (with a few artistic liberties thrown in here and there), cleverly referencing everything from Sex and the City through to Dad`s Army, with smart topical asides clearly meant to embrace contemporary political shenanigans such as MPs` expenses and the war on terror,

Claire Novelli and Patricia Morgan were a hoot as the old crones who comment upon the action and taunt the two Dad`s Army-style soldiers (David Dooley and Dudley Owen), while Lysistrata`s buddies Colonice (Nia Trussler Jones) and Myrrhine (Charlotte Rogers) could have stepped out of an episode of one of those glossy TV shows featuring shopaholic WAGs with one-track minds. Katherine Weare also contributed a splendid comic turn as the feral Lampito, whose bark and bite were equally deadly.

The hapless males - including Christopher Hale and James Scannell - fared brilliantly in a production dominated by female characters and managed to convey their collective frustration with recourse to overt crudity: for me, one of the problems with this play has always been that the men seem to have no means of relieving their desire and behave as if under a spell. this was very much the case here, but such was the heightened nature of the piece that it worked well and if one was able to suspend one`s disbelief then the whole thing pulled together very effectively.

A terrific piece of theatre, intelligently directed by Peter Richards and adapted by Francis Hardy, and by far the finest version of this work that I have ever had the pleasure to see.

GRAHAM WILLIAMS

British Theatre Guide

GRAND THEATRE ARTS WING

Singleton Street Swansea SA1 3QJ

Tuesday 8th - Thursday 10th February 7.15pm

Wednesday Matinee 2pm

BOX OFFICE 01792 475715

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THEATR GWAUN

West Street, Fishguard SA65 9AD

Saturday 12th February 8.00pm

BOX OFFICE 01348 873421

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THE GATE ARTS CENTRE

Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW

Thursday 17th February 2pm & 7.30pm

BOX OFFICE (029) 2048 3344

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