Below The Belt
Bewleys Cafe
From US playwright Richard Dresser, this is the story of three factory officials working against a deadline in a tiny compound in the desert, pressured to produce vast quantities of unspecified "units", caught in a cycle of power-tripping and paranoia that is successfully played for laughs yet also achieves disturbing effects. Seamus Allen is suitably deranged as Merkin, the supervisor who has supervised one unit too many, with Declan Mills and Gavin McCaffrey as the subordinates who have sacrificed everything for the job, sleeping in their suits on the hard rungs of the career ladder. Mills is impressive as the resentful Hanrahan, hypersensitive and fiercely possessive of his petty space, but McCaffrey falters through the role of Dobbitt, the idealistic newcomer who gains Hanrahan's trust only to be cornered into betrayal by the gleefully malicious Merkin.
Signing on the dotted line, he brings what is essentially a fable of corporate soul-selling to an unsettling, if predictable, conclusion.
Belinda McKeon
Runs until Saturday.
Aerowaves
Project
Aerowaves presented three varied dance pieces at Project. K÷per Terrain is a duet from Germany, choreographed by the two dancers. This is a very slow piece inspired by the spirals of grapevines. While this may be an interesting compositional starting point, the dance never develops. Although the dancers create interesting body shapes, they fail to provide dynamic changes. This piece would benefit from an outside choreographic eye.
Moment to Moment is an impressive solo choreographed and performed by Fin Walker from the UK. The work is emotional and athletic with a lot of angular movement, strong focus and good use of the space. No One, Just Your Friend is from Finland with choreography by Susanna Leinonen and performed by the choreographer and two other dancers. This is an exciting, high-energy piece. The dancers are superb and manage to be at once sensual and emotional, building to an exciting finale.
Paul Clancy
Casanova
Samuel Beckett Theatre
Style meets substance in Suspect Culture's shifting of the Casanova paradigm. Historically known as the seducer of more than 1,000 women, observers have always placed the power firmly in Casanova's, er, lap. The Glaswegian company begs to differ, and in its tale of desire and fulfilment (or lack thereof), it's the women who take what they want and move on. Indeed, Casanova serves as the springboard from which his lovers leap into the void of their true desires, leaving him to search for the one "perfect" woman before he dies. These exploits are exploited by a local art gallery, and the world's most famous objectifier finds himself the object, his memories on display, his intentions misunderstood. The company investigates its point of view with innovation, flair and an even hand with regard to the sexes. A beautifully lit, sleekly designed set contains five outstanding performances, and David Grieg's script asks and answers some very challenging questions about the nature of desire.
Susan Conley
Hong O Bong
Temple Bar Gallery
The Korean performance artist, Hong O Bong, departed from his scheduled three performances of The Bird and I. He performed that only once, and on following nights, shows called Money and Dancing respectively. He entered carrying a black refuse bag, and silently sprayed shaving foam on the floor to create the acronym, IMF. A ghetto blaster played Je t'aime and It's a Wondeful World, as the audience sat on the floor of the Temple Bar Gallery for the 20-minute show, looking ever more bemused and amused.
It took about 10 minutes to make the letters; and another 10 for O Bong to rummage in the black bag and take out sticky-backed banknotes, which he then stuck to his face. He then destroyed the acronym (and his clothes) by wiping it out with his body.
A solipsistic piece of nonsense.
Rosita Boland
Hong O Bong was at the Temple Bar Gallery between September 29th and October 1st.
The Nualas
HQ
Picture this: somewhere near the N17, Julie Andrews and the Sawdoctors beget a Von Trappian trio of harmonising vixens. The Nualas originate from obscure farmlands and share an eerie obsession with mastitis and the undulating benefits of udder relief. The show is essentially a cabaret interspersed with satirical improvisation.
Armed with the voices of angels, the performers lampoon a selection of our national treasures (stout guzzling, a convent education). And as they well know, a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down. The Nualas (Susan Collins, Ann Gildea, Josephine O'Reilly) hold their audience spellbound.
For an uninterrupted hour and a half they effortlessly glide from a capella to ad-lib and back again. These highly talented performers deserve every second of their success.
Belinda Kelly
