Tuesday 16 July 2013

New Dawn Fades (The Story of Joy Division) by Brian Gorman - Review by Mary - Lass O'Gowrie - 15 July 2013

Brian Gorman’s intriguing new stage play is built around the story of the band Joy Division..This is the glue holding the piece together but interestingly, it’s an ethereal kind of glue leaving crevices and cracks wide open for a procession of peripheral figures to enter the space, some hoveringly, some more startling and incongruous – like the Roman general, Agricola – though quite honestly, even he, rubbed shoulders quite seamlessly with the characters occupying the centre space. But of course, not even those central characters are operating in present time. This play dances skilfully with the notion of time, it’s passing, it’s pausing, it’s swirling and repeating, but it’s as much about time as place. We’re showered with a litany of dates and place names, historical, current, disappeared and returning.

So, fittingly the premiere happened on Ian Curtis (lead singer of Joy Divisions birthday) in a location directly opposite the site of the old Factory records offices (now Peter Hook’s factory club). Entering this red-brick, quintessentially Mancunian setting felt just right. As Mel and myself waited for the later performance we saw the audience file downstairs from the earlier showing. Some were in tears, some who had known Joy Division and associated characters in real life. It can’t have been easy to sit through a performance as intimate as this having connections with the real people involved, but perhaps one of the things this play also demonstrates is that we are all connected, through time and space and place. The past is but a breath away, the future can be glimpsed poking around corners if we adjust our vision, the present is strangely nebulous and on that sultry July evening it truly did feel that time zones and spirits were intersecting on multi- levels in the tiny upstairs theatre at the Lass O' Gowrie



 
Some may say, a stage-play about Joy Division is superfluous. After all, we've had a stream of films and documentary about the band in recent years. In a sense these are ready-made, recognizable characters to anyone with an average general knowledge of Manchester’s musical history. We've got a colourful entourage and a moving, gripping story that should translate to the stage without too great a difficulty I assumed. Though somehow, I knew in advance this was a production worth creating and was intrigued to discover what Gorman and director Neil Bell were up to. I wasn't disappointed. From the minute we took our cramped seats in the theatre and stared at the bleakly set stage, there was an immediate sense of both claustrophobia, nostalgia and an endearing kind of awkwardness and confusion. This is the spirit of the band and the times they lived in. I don't know how different the experience would have been in a larger venue but that feeling of being hemmed in and held back, so inherent in the sound of Joy Division was palpable. The characters played out their scenes with such urgency and passion it felt like the walls might burst open at times and dispel some of this pent up frustration.
 
So, the characters in a sense arrived ready- made as I said, but that's no recipe for success if they aren't fully inhabited and brought to life. The whole cast, each and every one of them stepped into the shoes of each soul with an uncanny fluidity and conviction. I'd rather not single out names because all were authentic and impressive but I have to say that I was continually both amused and captivated by the revolving door set of cameos performed by Sean Mason. From Martin Hannett to Dr Dee (Elizabeth the first’s advisor) and Paul Morley he joined the dots between much of the action. Andrew Michael Grogan who played Stephen Morris did this too, hopping effortlessly out of Stephen and into such figures as Pete Shelley whose encounter with Ian was nothing short of hilarious. The lynchpin was, of course, Tony Wilson, played by Lee Joseph. Who else could be more suited as narrator than a Granada news reporter? But he was more than that. The Wilson character also took on the quality of some sort of time traveller or seer, a camp historian weaving tales and building bridges and stepping in and out of the action without missing a beat.
 
Barney and Hooky (Sean Croke and Guy Wills) were loveable and completely believable. Ian Curtis is an enigma, a legend, an icon to many and to climb into his skin is no easy ride. Due to his tragically short life we don't have as much information about Ian as the rest of the band or characters but even watching a short piece of footage of Curtis gives a lasting impression. Michael Whittaker turned Ian into a flesh and blood being again for this night and gave it everything. His singing (and dancing) eerily became more and more attuned to the real singer's voice and movement and I was glad to see he played Ian with a mix of playfulness, charm and passion as well as the inevitable angst. Natalie Perry contributes a strong and spirited performance playing a vulnerable and confused Deborah Curtis, trying to make sense of the disintegrating landscape around her, finding little support from the all-male crew on the seemingly sinking ship. The music business can be a cruel world and the insanity of that life is captured up close and personally in the production tonight. Oh and Rob Gretton (Giles Bastow) WAS Rob Gretton....it was all alarmingly real.
 
I'd rather not divulge too much more of the detail of the play as my hope is it will move on to a longer residency at perhaps a slightly bigger venue when this sold out run of three nights concludes. Let's just say, this is an experience you won't easily forget. In one scene when Ian was scribbling in a note book I became aware of the sound of a train (a real, not phantom one) trundling along the tracks from Piccadilly to Oxford Road behind the Lass O' Gowrie, a reminder of just where you are., right in the heart of the city of Manchester. After watching this play, you will quite likely find yourself examining the earth under your feet, seeing if you might be standing on the remains of some defunct historical landmark. Watch also which ghosts may be propping up the bar when you come downstairs....

Originally published with Mudkiss Fanzine. Photos by Melanie Smith.
To read Mel's interview with playwright Brian Gorman click here
 
 
 

Sunday 24 March 2013

Blitzing the Ritz - Johnny Marr - Manchester Ritz 23 March 2013

By time I arrive at the snow sprinkled Ritz, the devoted throngs have gathered and eyes are fixed on the stage as though awaiting some kind of messiah. Johnny Marr’s album may be called 'The Messenger ' but he’s not here to preach, he’s here to make music, to share with us an inspired selection from his colossal back and current catalogue. As each song flashes before me like a prolonged thunder and lightning storm I’m once again bowled over by the absurd amount of talent this man possesses.
Kicking off with 'The Right Thing Right,' I’m instantly pulled straight in. A major rock and roll river’s just burst its banks! This song punches you in all the right places and tickles you playfully in others. 'Stop Me If you Think You’ve Heard This One Before 'follows so swiftly I can barely register the fact that I’m hearing one of my favourite Smiths songs live. What struck me immediately is how naturally Marr inhabits the vocals. He manages to do the exact same thing when shortly after he sings Electronic’s 'Forbidden City'. He’s not trying to sound like his singing/lyricist partners but it feels like he crawls into a space in their head and almost channels their words as though he’s just playing yet another instrument – it doesn’t feel at all strange to hear him sing either Smiths songs or Electronic songs. It feels right, it feels good!

Johnny Marr is a showman without being ostentatious or over-bearing in any way. He cuts a smart, clean look, stylish and totally in control of the sizeable dynamics operating on that stage. He talks about the Ritz being a bit of a special place for him as it was the venue where the Smiths were first officially exposed to the world. There was a whiff of nostalgia and local folklore in the air for most of the night. It was kind of inevitable with five Smiths songs in the set and Marr referencing local street names and summers gone by. 'The Queen is Dead' sounded huge and dangerous and as relevant as the day it was written “Past the Pub that wrecks your body/And the church all they want is your money/the Queen is dead, boys and it’s so lonely on a limb.” Hearing the words coming out of Marr’s mouth somehow underlined to me how much he has and does go out on a limb. He’s never toed the line, he’s never done what’s expected of him (other than consistently create incredible music).
photo: Melanie Smith
Johnny Marr encapsulates freedom for me, freedom from the past, freedom to create your future and so despite the echoes of yesteryear that were reverberating against the grand old walls of the Ritz there was a sense that he was also exorcising the past, dragging it up and letting it be witnessed as the amazing beast it is, as was certainly the case with 'How Soon is Now'. It felt as though an enormous underground current was dragging us back and forth, engulfing the entire audience in the wailing, discordant energy that track contains. But there was no clinging to this beast, he conjured it up and let it go! But, for me, what was truly exciting about this night was the vibrancy of the Messenger tracks. 'Lockdown' was a pinnacle point in a set of standout points –the sea-side town song, the frustration, boredom and creativity all crying out together in a blast of cold, sober promenade wind. The mania and obsession of 'I want the heartbeat' surely got everyone’s cardiac system pumping hard and fast was contrasted beautifully by the bereft, searching sounds of 'Say Demesne'.

To take this tour on the road, Marr has employed a tight and talented crew, with Jack Mitchell’s powerful drumming providing a steady framework and James Doviak’s deft touches on keyboard and guitar complementing the work of the main Magician. Iwan Gronow handled bass duties admirably and also contributed some pretty harmonising with the main Magician.

I loved the theme of rebellion and dissent that ran through the set. We had 'Upstarts', 'The Queen is Dead ' and a cover of one of the best covers of all time The Clash's 'I fought the Law'. Even if the law won in theory, Johnny Marr won tonight. The crowd worshipped him, with grown men professing their love in no uncertain terms. What’s not to love? He’s a true, inspirational hero and I don’t use the term lightly. And lightly or intensely, he knows what to do with a guitar and he knows how to have and give a good time – a REAL good time!

Originally published with Mudkiss Fanzine. To see more photos visit the Mudkiss site and Mel's photography site