A charming, positive and energetic performance – but does it all make sense?Rating
Good
There is something very charming about Szalony Zielony Bez/Green Wild Elderflower, performed at Riverside Studios as part of their theatre spring season celebrating 50 years of the organisation this year. Billed as being a story of Polish migration to the US in the 1950s, life and adventures on arrival and a subsequent return home, it’s a promising narrative. The entire show is performed in Polish (drawing a predominantly Polish audience) with English surtitles, so I was intrigued from the start. However, building the production around the poems and songs of renowned Polish writer Agnieszka Osiecka, with the show meant to mirror her own journey from Poland to the US and back again, is where the performance falters.
We start with some initial scene setting and all three cast members dreaming of leaving their lives, about to board a train taking them to the edge of the world. Natural, relaxed yet energetic performances from Mateusz Mirek and Elwira Rejnowicz put the audience at ease, with Michal Nowak adding a more nervous, frenetic energy to the proceedings. The very basic set of three kitchen chairs and some wooden boxes make for an easy transition between scenes and are put to good effect as the threesome embark. From this point on though, it’s not clear what’s happening – there are no individual characters and the addition of verses and songs by Osiecka, as good as they are, appear to hold little correlation to the narrative. Perhaps something is lost in the surtitles? Yes, the cast are clearly portraying different people at points, yet in others all three appear to be playing the same person.
There is no doubting that this is a talented bunch, with the voices and energy of Mirek and Rejnowicz a highlight, very able to go from slow, emotional numbers to up-tempo jazz-style songs, with wonderful harmonies. A sound issue for Nowak marred things during one scene, which could happen in any performance, yet for the opening press night, the cast weren’t flustered and it was soon corrected. Music for the performance is solely provided by the very talented Jan Tabecki, who keeps the mood going from start to end with some terrific piano numbers, at times becoming part of the ensemble and interacting with the cast, which works well.
As an audience member (albeit an English one with no knowledge of Polish at all), the narrative lost its way for me early on and I would have liked to have seen more of life before leaving Poland, life in the US and about what was driving the return home. Again, some more dialogue alongside the words of Osiecka might assist here and help the actual story develop.
There are several light, humorous moments that generated some laughter amongst the Poles in the crowd, presumably moments akin to Polish life, and several of the songs were clearly well known with audience members singing along.
Audience interaction during an obscure TV show segment, with some ‘prizes’ for three of the audience who spoke, are presumably in-jokes for the Polish community, with a discount at a certain restaurant and a one-way trip to Blackpool. The inclusion of this scene, along with a courtroom scene, is not fully clear.
Green Wild Elderflower (which is a lyric in one of the final songs) has the potential to be an even more charming piece with the camaraderie of the cast, the vocals, the music and pace of the show already being on point. Some focus on the story, characters and the inclusion of the poetry and songs is needed to really make it grow.
Producer and Director: Mateusz Mirek
Producer: Michal Nowak
Musical Director: Jan Tabecki
Stage Manager: Susan Brooke
Lights: Can Bitirim
Sound: Tomek Gtazik
Green Wild Elderflower plays at Riverside Studios until Sunday 19 April.
