Review of Frantic Assembly - 'Lucky'

I'd never been to, or experienced a production of a physical theatre nature before. In a way, Frantic Assembly could be interpreted as a Dance Theatre Company also, as there were some combined techniques in the performance, for example; some beautiful contact improvisation mixed with weight giving back and forth, simple exercises such as trust exercises and also continuing that fluidity of movement when in awkward positions such as giving your full weight in lifts.

It was brilliant how they combined 'natural Stanislavskian acting', although slightly exaggerated, with little bursts of contact improvisation. They 'broke the fourth wall' when talking to the audience at the start, almost involving us as though we weren't an audience and we were taken along on the experience with them.

There were points where I struggled to follow but then came to the conclusion that pieces are meant to be interpreted however you wish, there's no right or wrong answer, and so I interpreted it in tthe way that there was no real storyline - they were just showing different examples of how a person can be lucky, for example; almost walking out into a lorry and dodging it narrowly, or being on a gameshow and guessing all the answers to the question and winning the gameshow. They even involved voice by using a microphone at points to tell stories of lucky or sad events, and went through the A-Z of different 'lucky' superstitions.

Such original performers, I loved it. I was nervous about what Dance Theatre had to offer but realised all the opportunities and am now excited by the idea of the cross discipline.


Frantic Assembly Promo 09
www.franticassembly.co.uk



Frantic Assembly -'Lovesong'
www.franticassembly.co.uk

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