This modern day reworking of Alfred Jarry’s absurdist take on Macbeth integrates the tale of the foul-mouthed Pa Ubu and his sinister plans to take over Poland…with pop music. As he slices and dices his way to the top, Pa Ubu’s favoured form of combat is to defeat his opponents with his killer moves on the dance floor.Absurdist is certainly the appropriate term for this production; there aren’t many plays that can get away with portraying a main character as a cockney in a tracksuit attempting to overthrow the rulers of an Eastern European country… by dancing.
It’s easy to get lost in the play, as the characters take you into an utterly bizarre world, only to pull you back out again (or perhaps plunge you in further) as they perform a string of renditions of a range of songs from ABBA to Adam and the Ants. The five strong cast prove to be incredibly versatile, with constant on the spot character changes which you would think might add to the audiences confusion, yet they are surprisingly easy to keep up with.
This show will appeal to a diverse audience, with established Jarry fans (who may want to couple this play with Fatboy, being shown at the Assembly Rooms) interested in the modernisation of one of the forerunners of the Absurdist theatre movement, and established disco fans who enjoy seeing men mincing around to ABBA (and don’t we all?).
4/5
Becky Stone
