Prodigal Theatre’s Urban Playground

24 July – Parkour Fusion – Watch This Space, NT

“Urban” will sell any old rubbish to the suburban these days. Remove the “urban” and replace the ‘urban’ music with, say, “Greased Lightening” and this show was simply very bad dance that wouldn’t survive for ten seconds in the West End. The men did some mildly impressive moves, my particular favourite was one fella standing on his head and making a show of falling over, but mostly they postured like mtv gansta rappers posing as Mussolini (you know, arms crossed, hands gripping elbows, chin pushed forward and up).

The Gandinis

17 July – NightClubs – Watch This Space, NT

A juggling show at Watch This Space. Well, I’ve got to say, my expectations were low. Very low. So low that only a last minute call to work, rather than any sense of justice, prevented me reviewing Thursday’s rained-off dress rehearsal. A juggling show at Watch This Space must be worse than a damp, cold morning on Brighton beach. I couldn’t have been more wrong. This show was entrancing.

Millenium String Quartet

17 July – Level 5 Function Room, RFH

Comrades, despite heroic efforts, this night our revolutionary struggle suffered. We took the fight to the enemy but treachery was our down fall. So we may learn to win the war, let me recount, in all truth, the Battle of The 5th Floor Function Room. The rain was decisive. A silent disco, moved indoors, forcing us from the Clore into the 5th Floor Function Room. Our numbers far exceeded the fire limit of this smaller room and many campaneros were locked out. We were all ages and all colours, all eagerly anticipating revolutionary instruction. The hoity-toity, their gowns and robes, sat amongst us unmolested.

Upswing

9 July – Loved Up (dress rehearsal) – Watch This Space, NT

I am an old fart uncle who finds joy in embarassing my teenage neices with, amongst other things, my rubbish disco dancing. They talk in alien tongues and wear clothes I consider too skimpy. This is the way things should be. Its the generation gap, an old gap not to be bridged. And here’s the rub: youth culture, by definition, cannot belong to essentially middle-aged national institutions. Youth culture will not be subsidised.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

4 July – Behind the Royal Festival Hall

We all know the story of the ancient mariner as told in one of Englands greatest poems. Don’t worry, neither did I. But here’s what I gleaned: Long ago a ship sailed at sea. Everything goes tits up when a sailor shoots an albatross. Only he survives to land during a wedding. Thats about it. A ripping yarn by a respected english opium eater.

Circus Space

2 July (19:00 preview performance) – Watch This Space, NT

A lone trapeze artist is a difficult act to dress up, to make less dull than something as boring as, say, a lone trapeze artist simply swinging on a trapeze. And this lone trapeze artist, a 3rd year graduate from Circus Space, “the UKs premiere circus school”, really is simply swinging on a trapeze. No thrills, no frills, no somersaults, not once letting go of the trapeze –  just simple, plain old boring swinging on a trapeze.