CARDIFF EAST (The Far Away Plays)***

 

By Cal

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgyy6hNu4eE&t=356s

Available until: Unknown

Hoffwn i ysgrifennu fy adolygiad i yng Nghymraeg achos bod hi’n ddrama Gymraeg (ond bron y gyd yn Saesneg) ac rwy i’n caru Cymru, ond mae Cymraeg fel yn iaith gyfrinachol sydd dim ond ychydig o bobl yn ei deal e. A hefyd, dw i ddim in siarad Cymraeg yn rhy dda. (Os ydych chi’n siarad Cymraeg, rwy i’n siwr bod chi wedi sylweddoli hynny!)

That’s supposed to say: I would like to write my review in Welsh because it is a Welsh play (but nearly all in English) and I love Wales, but Welsh is like a secret language which only a few people understand. And also, I don’t speak Welsh very well. (If you speak Welsh, I’m sure you’ve realised that!)

I think Zoom plays are brilliant. They have done so much for the actors and audiences who have being denied theatre for so long. Many plays are enhanced by Zoom. It is good to be able to see the actors in close-up and it’s quicker to get to know who everyone is when they have their character names at the bottom of the screen.

However, I don’t think Zoom really suited Cardiff East. It’s already a very confusing play with a large cast of fourteen main characters, all of them interconnected in ways which are quite difficult to work out just from watching the play. I kept having to pause the play and scroll down to the cast list, which explains some of the relationships. I think I’ve got everyone sorted now, but it’s not easy.

To make matters more difficult, this is a play where the characters are onstage throughout. It’s probably a lot more manageable onstage, where the characters will be standing close to the people they’re talking to and it’ll be fairly clear who’s involved in which conversation and who can hear what. But on Zoom, the individual screens are randomly arranged. It’s difficult to be sure who’s involved in each conversation and which of the others, if any, are close enough to hear what they’re saying. Two characters who are supposed to be in an intimate tête-à-tête might actually be on opposite sides of the screen with two or three people separating them.

I can see why The Far Away Plays wanted to follow the stage directions as closely as possible, but in the circumstances, it might have been less confusing for characters’ screens not to be visible when they weren’t part of the current conversation. Though it does sound a bit like a technical nightmare and this is a reading rather than a performance so maybe I’m being too fussy.

Cardiff East (written by Peter Gill and first performed in 1997) seems like a very interesting play about community and identity with some great characters. Although it’s a reading, actors all give very convincing performances. I particularly enjoyed Geraint Rhys Edwards as the rather belligerent and rebellious Tommy, and Joseph Ollman as the more sensitive Neil. These two so obviously like each other but don’t seem anything like ready to admit it.

There is another very complicated relationship between a mother and son. Suzanne Packer’s Stella has already lost one son and struggles to see her other son, Darkie (Iwan Rheon), getting himself into so many difficulties. Tomos Eames and Ruth Ollman bicker worryingly as husband and wife Billy and Shirley, as both of them struggle to deal with Billy’s problems. It’s no surprise that Michael, played by Jâms Thomas, trained as a Roman Catholic priest. He’s definitely very good at preaching, but Jâms ensures he’s also a very kind character. Siân Phillips is a warm and friendly Annie.

It’s a good play, but if you don’t already know it, be prepared to use your brain. You’ll need it.