Wednesday, May 14, 2008

"Zarraberri" & "Limbo" - May 2008

This week's "A Play, A Pie and A Pint" at Oran Mor is a departure from the usual format in that it features two short plays of just under 30 minutes. They are by Spanish authors - Maite Perez Larumbe (Zarraberri) and Victor Iriarte (Limbo) and both pieces have been translated by Chris Dolan. The results are somewhat mixed.

"Zarraberri" sees John Kazek as Alfonso, trying to persuade the residents of small town Zarraberri to accept an iconic new building - and to come up with a tourist attraction to fill it. But the locals represented by Simon Scott and Ros Sydney may have their own plans for the building. Unfortunately the whole piece falls rather flat - the Spanish setting/characters really don't work with the Scottish language and it feels like a decent 5 minute sketch extended far beyond it's capacity to entertain. At times it's more like a successful improv session than a play that's been carefully crafted - it did get some laughter in the audience but it was pretty subdued and I only managed a single chuckle myself.

Fortunately "Limbo" is very much a return to form and Iriarte and Dolan have created something which despite retaining it's Spanish 'setting' doesn't overplay it and reaches out with themes familiar to it's audience. This time Kazek finds himself recently deceased and being evaluated by administrators (played by Scott and Sydney) to determine his eternal fate. It's cleverly written with some very amusing dialogue at the expense of the Catholic Church (although there's plenty to go around other religious groups too). It's bright, sharp and pacy, and despite an ending that's a bit of a let down, it's certainly entertaining.

"Zarraberri" and "Limbo" run at Oran Mor until Saturday 24th May

Image by Leslie Black used with permission

2 Heckles

Anonymous said...

Disculpa que no me exprese en inglés, pero quiero darte las gracias por haber incluido una reseña de nuestras obras al haber sido programadas en Glasgow.

Un abrazo desde Pamplona.

VÍCTOR IRIARTE y MAITE PÉREZ LARUMBE

Statler said...

Gracias.