Richard is a friendly and welcoming host who has been running the Wild Hare Club for a long time. I played at one of his other venues a few years ago with John Cooper Clark and Don Letts, but this was a very different night.
The venue was De Koffie Pot, a cafe in a complex by the river Wye; tables were covered in hessian and big windows looked out over the river: the view was beautiful, full of sparkling lights.
First up was Sea Legs Puppets, an autobiographical performance that featured intricate paper mach models of puppeteer Rob Ashman's parents and brothers, and authentic-sounding family dialogue. The story moved on to his being cheated out of a puppet head that he made at primary school by a dastardly classmate; he sang a song about it, and then produced a terrifying Little Jimmy Osmond puppet that performed Long Haired Lover From Liverpool. I was alarmed to discover that I knew almost all the words! This was a very entertaining show that Rob says is going to be developed into a full-length performance.
Next was Kate Doody, a poet and a blacksmith whose wry words and concise poetry defined women's perspectives through her own stories in a funny and poignant way. There was so much there that I recognised- and so did everyone else. Brilliant.
It was a pleasure to be part of such an evening. I do hope to get invited back sometime, and thanks to the audience for joining in with The Sea again!
No comments:
Post a Comment