For Puck’s Sake is funny and whimsical, taking one of Shakespeare's most endearing characters and making them the focal point of their own story, Rating
Good!
Written and performed by Alice Bloomer and directed by S Callaghan, For Puck’s Sake takes the mischievous fairy, Puck, famed for their tricks in Shakespeare‘s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and drops them straight into the plot of As You Like It.
Moving a character so intricately woven into one Shakespearean plot and investigating how they might manage in another – no less in a land where humans dwell – lights up aspects of Puck that we might not have considered. The script also smartly draws in lines from other Shakespearean works; it hands over words that once belonged to other characters and instead places them into the mouth of Puck. Particularly notable is Jaques’ famous speech ‘’All the world’s a stage’’ and here, they seem to feel very much at home.
Bloomer is a vision as Puck, embodying all of his pixie-like mischievousness. It’s clear that she has a love, care and deep understanding of the cheeky fellow, making her Puck very likeable. It’s easy to feel confident in Bloomer’s ability to hold the stage and the attention of her audience and she handles the Shakespearean language with skill and deep understanding. The audience interaction is smooth, and even when the challenges of fringe theatre arise, Bloomer is adaptive and playful.
The stage and costume design by Rah Petherbridge brings depth and texture to the intimate Etcetera space and this, combined with the tech, creates an environment that is magically tranquil. The show is also expansive, using the full scope of available space in the theatre. Having Puck running off, through the backstage, before returning to us to complete a full circuit creates a world that is bigger than the space we’re in. It too is comical: there are many laughs to be had throughout this production.
On occasions the tech does seem to be lagging behind the action and the technical elements of the production could go further to support Bloomer in some of the key tonal changes – notably, Puck’s transformative moment of sensing a human emotion for the first time. Perspective changing for Puck and plot shifting for the play doesn’t feel as impactful as it potentially could, despite Bloomer’s honest connection to this moment.
Additionally, the work would benefit from smoother transitions between the different moments in the storytelling. Where Bloomer is the sole conductor of this piece there is a sense of wanting her to launch more confidently into each of these moments. This may well come with time as the show continues to develop.
For Puck’s Sake has plenty of heart. Through this, it succeeds in taking a magical Shakespearean character and using them as a sort of medium to help us explore and come to terms with the uniqueness of the human experience and the potential of the unknown qualities of it all.
Written & Performed by Alice Bloomer
Directed by S Callaghan
Produced by Harry Fitzpatrick (Temporal Horizons Productions)
Art Direction by Rah Petherbridge
For Puck’s Sake performs at the Etcetera Theatre until Monday 22 December.
