Brighton Festival: The Lady of Burma
by
Richard Shannon’s solo show, based on the life and activism of Burmese democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi, is a simple and inspiring record of one woman’s struggle. Using minimal lighting and props, it puts performer Liana Gould centre stage with little else.
Gould shows a compelling emotional range as she leads us through Suu Kyi’s life, as a student in Oxford, dealing with grief at her parents’ illness and death, getting involved in political campaigns, coping with house arrest. She commands our attention because of her sincerity as a performer, and of course, the story itself is both moving and uplifting.
Writer Richard Shannon experiments with chronology at times, but the piece is essentially linear, taking us through Suu Kyi’s second house arrest and ending on a final call for freedom for all, not just for herself. Physical actions and movement onstage are understated, an adjunct to the words rather than adding much to the text.
Director Owen Lewis could have done more to animate the performance, but there are brief moments of theatrical ingenuity: - a shawl becomes a babe in arms, sound effects capture the anxiety of demonstrations or state violence. But the piece feels too inert, lists of facts and events sometimes taking priority over theatrical performance.
This review cannot end without mentioning the disruption caused by latecomers during the first ten minutes of the show. Not their fault, but in a meditative, gentle piece like this, it is noticeably distracting.
link: http://www.brightonfestival.org/event_details.aspx?eid=4063
