Niddry Street

The Ballad of Truman Capote

05/08/23

theSpace at Niddry Street (Upper Theatre), Edinburgh

It’s 1966 and in New York’s swish Plaza Hotel, notorious author Truman Capote prepares to host a masked Black and White Ball, an occasion that will be attended by the most illustrious stars of the era. As he prepares himself for the evening, Capote muses about his life, his career and the critical reaction to his latest publication – a book that has launched him into literary superstardom and, at the same time, effectively ruined him.

Patrick Moy offers an uncanny impersonation of Capote, capturing the man’s strange lisping voice and effete mannerisms with aplomb. He parades restlessly around his hotel room, punctuating his observations with regular screwdriver cocktails and petulantly reading extracts from cruel reviews of In Cold Blood.

Andrew O’Hagan’s lyrical monologue offers us a glimpse into the titular character’s bizarre childhood and his curious relationship with fellow author, Harper Lee, but occasionally feels a little too dependent on name-dropping. Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe and er…Princess Margaret? It’s like a Who’s Who of the 1960s and all these people are dancing to Capote’s tune.

But while we hear all about these luminaries, we never see them. Capote remains imperiously alone in his room, fielding telephone calls and gradually succumbing to the effects of alcohol as he relishes what will be his last moment of true power. It’s a curiously tantalising piece and I can’t be the only one wishing I could stay on to watch the delicious carnage that will ensue. 

Fans of Mr Capote – and there are many – are sure to enjoy Moy’s pitch-perfect performance, while O’Hagan’s script, though it lacks conflict, manages to effectively capture a significant moment in American history.

3 stars

Philip Caveney

Improvabunga!

08/08/18

The Space, Niddry Street

Throw a stone from anywhere on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile during the month of August and there’s a strong chance you’ll hit a member of an improv troupe. (Please note, that’s not an encouragement to actually try it!). Improv shows are always popular and, ironically, they’re a safe bet when trying to pick something from the thousands of possibilities offered on a daily basis at the Ed Fringe. ‘Ironically’ because, despite the proud boasts that no two shows are ever the same, we pretty much know the kind of thing we’re going to get.

Improvabunga! has been created by Birmingham University student group, Watch This! It’s advertised as a movie-inspired show, and every evening, as they queue outside, members of the audience are invited to write down a non-geographical location of a sheet of paper, one of which will be chosen at random. Once we’re seated and a location has been picked out of the hat (McDonalds tonight. Sorry folks, that was my idea!), we’re invited to shout out suggestions from a range of movie genres and a couple are selected. So, the theme of this evening’s show turns out to be a post apocalyptic/dystopian epic. Four buzzers are also handed out to people in the crowd. When one of them is pressed, the team have to drop everything they’re doing and launch into a pre-arranged task – a musical routine, for instance, or an inspiring speech. Meanwhile, a young chap seated at a keyboard provides suitable accompaniment for the resultng shennanigins. All good fun.

There’s no doubting the enthusiasm and energy that the young performers throw into this production and, if some performers shine more than others, and some scenes catch fire while others only smoulder, that’s only to be expected in this kind of show. Luckily, the troop are pretty adept at sensing when to move things along. There’s no doubting the hearty laughs coming from the audience. This is a pleasant if undemanding way to spend an evening at the Fringe.

But don’t write ‘McDonalds’ on your slip of paper. That was MY idea!

3 stars

Philip Caveney