Equal parts funny and heartbreaking, Succulent Theatre have
devised a unique offering in the form of their play Funeral Teeth. Funeral
teeth plays three nights at the Drayton Arms Theatre as part of a nationwide
tour.
I have now visited a number of pub theatres, and the
Drayton Arms is the nicest so far. The building facade is beautiful, and the
bar is very well kept. After heading upstairs, I was greeted by some delightful
cast members, one of whom offers prospective theatre goers a cornucopia of
essentials. Sweets, tissues, tampons, and condoms all on offer; other theatre
companies take note. Before we even start, the cast fold the audience into
their "in-group", allowing a shared sense of trust. They create a convivial,
community feeling, with strangers being treated indistinctly from the friends
and family in for opening night. Even down to something like the way in which
the "trigger warnings" were announced at the start felt right.
The show itself is deep, and highly autobiographical. That
autobiographical nature draws out a lot of emotion from the cast. The show
bounces from traumatic event to traumatic event, including but not limited to:
suicide, death of loved ones, and abortion. In the case of abortion, this hits
like a truck. While watching, I considered it in the context a view of the
political right in this country: this idea that abortion is something women do
for fun. There is something immensely challenging about listening to someone
express such anguish, and I dare say, guilt over making that choice. That total
ownership of trauma here is an almost political act, standing in defiance of
vulgar myth. That theme of a kind of "guilt" returns:
"guilt" over things you could never control, over things that were
never your fault.
Funeral teeth is deliberately rough around the edges, with
ad lib-ing, fourth-wall breaking, and audience participation (to some extent)
encouraged. There is almost a slight sense that the show is almost being
created in the moment. This could be aided with staging, like if it were to be
staged in the round or with seats spilling onto the stage. Ultimately it is up
to the cast here as to what degree they want to blur the lines between audience
and performer.
A number of the choreography sections felt weak, lacking in
intensity, especially compared to the severe highs and lows of the body of the
play. Even something basic, like having the music louder, would help them have
more weight. The scenes that do work: an awkward and
funny choregraphed sex, and the recreation of a dance from childhood. The latter
of which, strangely, I found one of the saddest moments of the play. There is
something incredibly impactful reminiscing about the good times we will never
get to share again with someone when we lose them.
Succulent theatre have approached all the topics contained
within the play with real intelligence. Most importantly, they understand the
need for light with the shade. The high point for me was the car journey with
grandparents. It was totally hilarious, to the point where I was crying and
could barely breathe. This scene was more than aided by “grandad",
a volunteer from the audience who totally understood the memo.
One can imagine performing Funeral Teeth is a cathartic
act, a catharsis which in turn is transferred onto the audience. It is to be
commended that the cast have managed to invoke such emotion. The
production feels very fringe, and it is hard to judge it against some more
high budget shows I have seen. It is a little messy, but it should
probably stay that way.
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