multi story has a fabulous new offering - East o'the Sun, West o'the Moon,
an adaptation of the classic Norwegian fairy tale.
Those familiar with multi story's adaptation of The Firebird are already accustomed to the ingenious way that Bill and Gill enliven the stage with dozens of characters when they are a company of only two! But this production not only underlines their expertise in manipulating the imagination of their audiences, it takes their power of story telling into a new dimension of beauty. This is a truly enchanting, wonderfully told tale that is visually exquisite in its simplicity, and full of the humour, movement and music that have become the hallmark of multi story.
In one moment Bill is an ordinary dad, the next a bear, then a handsome prince - and then, suddenly and hilariously, he transforms, completely convincingly, into the mother - a character the audience had already accepted as one played by Gill! And as if playing all these characters wasn't keeping him busy enough, he also manages to play three wise women, the wind of the North and the wind of the West... AND the unforgettably awful Troll Princess who speaks a very nearly indecipherable alien language that had the audience weeping with laughter.
Meanwhile! Gill covers the wind of the East and a bonkers wind of the South with a mad Aussie accent, whilst also playing the mum and daughter of the piece and the formidable father of the bride - the Troll King.
All of these characters take the audience through the challenges of a young girl endeavouring to find, rescue and marry her handsome prince, who has been stolen away to the Troll castle, located, for adventure's sake, East o'the Sun and West o'the Moon.
Reinforcing the setting as an icebound palace and cottage, the entire set is white, dominated by an enormous screen which doubles as a door and a projection screen. In fact technically speaking this production is very exciting. The screen is used to show projected images that carry the audience from one setting to another but, at other times it is very cleverly lit from behind to give a shadow puppet effect for the portrayal of the four winds.
Closing with a "happy ending" against all the odds this is a show to warm the heart. Andrea Charters - North Devon Journal
After finding great
success with The Firebird at last year's Fringe, Bill
Buffery and Gill Nathanson return with East o'the Sun, West o'the Moon, a new work aimed at kids of all
ages. The story was adapted from a traditional Norwegian
tale and has everything a good kids' show should have. A
talking bear, a troll princess and a quest to free a
prince. Life lessons figure prominently in this tale that
gently teaches as it entertains. The audience learns it
pays to be bold but one should remain polite and ask
questions when help is needed.
One of the best things
about Multi Story's family shows - apart from the story -
is the incredible inventiveness they display in creating
a world with simple props and basic costumes.
Everything
is kept minimal enough not to get in the way, but is
flashy enough to captivate the children in the audience.
In fact, many
parents who've paid for a matinee will likely be
reinventing some of the crafts at home. A hat that rolls
down into a bear mask, a horse made from a broom and
shimmering fabrics help the two players become an endless
series of characters with little time wasted changing
costumes.
A large white
screen in the middle of the stage also pulled triple
duty, displaying projections, acting as a door and adding
a little extra touch to a looming shadow when lit from
behind. The adults in the crowd seemed to enjoy the show
as much as the kids did, laughing at all the jokes and
soaking up the plot as it unfolded.
CBC
Manitoba
Extremely well thought through story-telling - this should stimulate further drama and writing, especially in KS2.
The children were intrigued by the screen and loved the costumes. The production will initiate writing. We would like to provide our children with experiences beyond their own lives. The performance was perfect for this. Grenville Combined School, Buckingham
