A 'real-life silent movie' livened up a dull summer's day in Dublin, writes FIONA MCCANN
THOUGH SUNSHINE failed to make an appearance yesterday afternoon, the close to 200 adults and children assembled in Temple Bar's Meeting House Square for the first performance of Cliffhanger!didn't appear to mind, as they whooped and hollered a soundtrack to this silent-movie style street theatre show.
The grey skies even provided a suitable backdrop to the black-and-white set and costumes for this Buster Keaton-inspired piece of comedic slapstick by UK-based Bash Street Theatre Company, described by the troupe members as “a real-life silent movie”.
Featuring neatly choreographed acrobatics, a jail-break, keystone kops, falling buildings and a romantic tug-of-war, the show delighted those assembled for the first performance in the square, with the lines of plastic seats filling up quickly until it was standing room only for late-comers.
The free lunchtime performance, lasting an hour, was accompanied by some rinky-dink live piano, with the trilby-wearing pianist also providing the show’s intertitles, pointing up the villain, the hero, and any missing sound effects, including the “Bang!” of exploding dynamite.
Dozens of children complied with the direction to “boo” the villain and cheer the hero, also providing helpful tips for confused characters between guffaws of laughter as the hapless protagonist attempted to rescue the cherry-lipped damsel in distress.
“I thought it was excellent,” was adult audience-member Fiona O’Rourke’s assessment as the crowds dispersed after the show.
“It was very appealing for adults, as well as for children.” Nine-year-old Aoife McDunphy was even more effusive, “It was brilliant!”, while her friend, 12-year-old Luke MacArthur, said he had been particularly impressed by the “very loud bang”.
The performance, repeated later yesterday afternoon, was part of Temple Bar’s new Summer Sensational festival, which kicked-off yesterday with a variety of events, among them a dance social with CoisCéim Dance Theatre.
Some 20,000 people are expected to attend the family-friendly festival, which runs until Sunday, and also includes several outdoor film screenings in Meeting House Square.
These began with last night's showing of Steven Spielberg's Jaws, to be followed by 1980s classic Dirty Dancingtonight at 10.30pm, and Oscar-nominated animation film The Secret of Kellswill be screened tomorrow evening.
The Irish Film Insitute is running a family festival to coincide with Summer Sensational, with a range of films suitable for four- to 12-year-olds.
Highlights include Saturday's sold-out screening of Toy Story 3, which will be attended by the film's director, Lee Unkrich.
Other child-friendly events in Summer Sensational include a three-day course on puppetry leading to a performance on Sunday, storytelling sessions and a series of children’s workshops at the Ark cultural centre.
Adults can get their culture hit from free musical gigs, with a performance by singer-songwriter Julie Feeney tonight at 7pm in Meeting House Square.
More musical entertainment will be provided on Sunday by the National Concert Hall’s Blow the Dust Orchestra at 2pm, followed by the Dublin Gospel Choir at 4pm and the Ottoni Brass Ensemble at 6pm, all as part of a line-up of events for the festival’s Sunday on the Square.
Two thousand free adult tickets for unlimited travel on Sunday on both Luas lines can be collected in advance from Temple Bar Cultural Trust, on East Essex St, Dublin 2.
A full programme for Summer Sensational is at templebar.ie
