Emlyn Williams Theatre, Mold, North Wales: 20th February 2003
Clwyd Theatr Cymru commemorated the 50th anniversary of the death of the Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas (1914-1953) with a superb run of performances by a small but accomplished cast of actors.
Described in the programme as "A theatrical journey through the prose writing of Dylan Thomas", the production was created by Tim Baker, an Associate of the Royal National Theatre, who won the Manchester Evening News Best Visiting Production award in 1992 for the highly acclaimed To Kill a Mockingbird.
Although Thomas is best known for his 'play for voices', Under Milk Wood, his evocative poems such as Fern Hill and Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night are rarely overlooked when anthologies celebrating 20th century poetry are put together. Indeed, this mesmerizing interpretation of Thomas's short stories could well be described as a rich fusion of prose and poetry. For example, in a scene crossing a river he speaks of, "slipping stepping stones" and early on in the piece he describes his "love" of words thus:
"And these words were, to me, as the notes of bells, the sounds of musical instruments, the noises of wind, sea and rain, the rattle of milk carts, the clopping of hooves on cobbles, the fingering of branches on a window pane, might be to someone deaf from birth, who has miraculously found his hearing."
The company of five use only stools and orange boxes to set the scenes for Thomas's vivid recollections of his boyhood in Swansea. The young Dylan is played brilliantly by Russell Gomer, who struts and capers across the hazily lit stage, reliving the poet's every memory as if it was his own. His fellow actors play a myriad of characters. The slightly built but enormously gifted Zoë Davies is adept at playing both male and female roles, from oppressed aunts to inebriated old men. And Morgan Walters, a ginger-haired giant of a man, is memorable for his portrayal of the young poet's bear-like uncle, as well as Les, Thomas's friend who invents names for passing strangers, and as a relation who steals livestock to pay for drinking binges. Whilst the cherubic-faced David Rees Talbot puts in a particularly memorable performance as Ray, a young man whose tragic past is briefly forgotten but inevitably revisited when he and Thomas ramble to the seaside to paddle in the surf.
The enigmatic and engaging Thomas lived a short and self-destructive, if literary fruitful life. His father, an English teacher at the local grammar school, began to read Shakespeare to him at the age of four and he started to write poetry in his eighth year. His childhood and adolescence were central to his later work ? although he left school without formal qualifications and did not learn the Welsh language. He moved from Swansea to London in 1934, famously remarking, "The land of my fathers My fathers can keep it."
Thomas's first two books, 18 Poems and Twenty-five Poems, were published respectively in 1934 and 1936. He married Caitlin Macnamara in 1937 (they had three children during their tempestuous years together) and he made his first radio broadcast with Life and the Modern Poet on the BBC Welsh Services the following year. After the Second World War, his popularity as a poet grew in direct proportion to his reputation as a heavy drinker. However, his positive, rhetorical style won an enthusiastic following and poems such as A Refusal to Mourn the Death by Fire of a Child in London led to lecture tours of the United States. He died in St. Vincent's Hospital, New York, on 9th November 1953.
This stage adaptation of Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Dog ? so bristling with humour and pathos - will undoubtedly delight parents and teachers endeavouring to introduce young people to Thomas's work. Adult audiences will also be entranced by its wry, witty narrative and flamboyant presentation. There is little doubt that, in the future, new theatrical companies will revive the production and it will become a fitting tribute to one of the world's great 20th century poets.
About The Author
Paula has contributed features to numerous guidebooks, magazines and journals on the subjects of literature, travel, culture and history. She is currently the editor of two online guides: All Info About Poetry http://poetry.allinfo-about.com and All Info-About English Culture http://englishculture.allinfoabout.com.
Hammers. Timbers. Iron. Steel.They're laying down a mighty keel.As ant-like... Read More
1) End PoemWherever you are today- Is where you were... Read More
Most of my poems are written late at night, often,... Read More
The Incubus' Flash-lightHe looked inside my head And found a... Read More
During interviews and general conversations with the public,one of the... Read More
I can see the cerulean blue of the skiesOr the... Read More
The Goat and the Ropewhere there were devils I saw... Read More
"Song of the Great Zimbabwe"Across the African, winter's skyIn the... Read More
When I hear your voice inside my head it makes... Read More
My life has changedin so so many waysIt seems to... Read More
Like a cat I slumber, blissfully unencumbered, Through eighty per... Read More
Bells for Belphegor!...Where immortal veils never meet Belphegor, Arch devil... Read More
Contract of DeathI heard today, the preacher say: "Daniel has... Read More
Out of the eight poems provided here [all previously unpublished],... Read More
Once upon a midnight dreary, coffee cold and vision... Read More
Wars, air of AmbiguityDedicated to 1st. Lt. Laura Walker (From... Read More
English VersionA bunch of us guys in the hutIn ?Nam... Read More
Have you ever sat there staring at the paper, ready... Read More
English VersionAnd the Death God said: "Let it rise to... Read More
Growing hurts sometimes; saying goodbye to friends, ... Read More
Writing Poetry for TomorrowWhat does a man need to be... Read More
Part One Midget HistoryI am thirty-six inches tall, that is... Read More
Footprints to Mantaro Valley (English version)In what retreat art hid?-Where... Read More
In this modern age of technology, busy lifestyles, and obsession... Read More
LIFE IS A FANTASY!A pink-eyed rabbit, fuzzy whiteHops in bedrooms... Read More
She probably can't remember and I know I can never... Read More
My eyes opened. I am still alive; Living on... Read More
One of the most important poets of the post-war period,... Read More
Ode to QuetzalcóatlQuetzalcóatl the GreatNo one knew his true name,... Read More
"How Do I Love Thee?" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning was... Read More
1)dying in the bar [sluggishly]yet, I would crawl too upto... Read More
Note: written after seeing the little adobe 16th century church... Read More
There are many times I set up barriers and walls,... Read More
Key Largo:The fans turn lazily in front of the doorThey... Read More
Out of the eight poems provided here [all previously unpublished],... Read More
Contract of DeathI heard today, the preacher say: "Daniel has... Read More
It's dark, it's cold, its' just six thirty,thoughts of sleep... Read More
A Poem - By Lorraine KemberIt was a day like... Read More
There are many times I set up barriers and walls,... Read More
Note: written after seeing the little adobe 16th century church... Read More
The light of all eternity shines with me now /... Read More
Four Poems: Katrina's PathwayHarvest of Apoplectic Horses ((Dedicated to: Katrina))... Read More
What can I do to keep this world in its... Read More
Advance: in Mr. Siluk's poetry one finds symbolist values, sensuous... Read More
FIND the MAGICFind the Magic As you release old bondage... Read More
In Poetry: Meaning of WordsWhen I write poetry, I check... Read More
In the Mountains of Haiti(In the City)-July is a hot... Read More
Since my wife and I are moving, or preparing to... Read More
I never thought I would have to say GOODBYE to... Read More
Is poetry too complicated for the average reader? Is it... Read More
You speak simple, completley understandable justifications I respect them, respect... Read More
I will never think twice nor will I roll the... Read More
"Song of the Great Zimbabwe"Across the African, winter's skyIn the... Read More
You are to me my lifeline my security. That scares... Read More
She probably can't remember and I know I can never... Read More
[As Told by the Last] King: it was in the... Read More
Since Mohamed Ali?then Cassius Clay?announced that he had written "The... Read More
Shakespeare's sonnets require time and effort to appreciate. Understanding the... Read More
English VersionThe Merchant of Copan [480 AD]Advance: The ballgame at... Read More
When your life becomes unbearable And the light of... Read More
Way of Life: Rhymes of the IncaPizarro (Spanish conquistador ((1525))The... Read More
I cannot bear to think of when you will be... Read More
Phantom of the Rocks[Huancayo, Peru]Night falls deepUpon the traveler!Low, over... Read More
LIFE IS A FANTASY!A pink-eyed rabbit, fuzzy whiteHops in bedrooms... Read More
My eyes opened. I am still alive; Living on... Read More
Amy King's first full-length collection, Antidotes for an Alibi, insists... Read More
Poetry |