Irish Times reviewers give their verdict.
Lang Lang (piano)
NCH, Dublin
By Michael Dervan
Mozart - Sonata in C K330. Chopin - Sonata in B minor Op 58. Schumann - Kinderszenen. Rachmaninov - Preludes in B flat Op 23 No 2, in G minor Op 23 No 5. Liszt - Petrarch Sonnet 104. Liszt/Horowitz - Hungarian Rhapsody No 2
Artur Schnabel's often-quoted remark about Mozart's sonatas being too easy for children and too difficult for artists came to mind during Lang Lang's recital. The Chinese pianist's approach was that of a virtuoso who sees in Mozart mainly prettiness, so that, for all the clarity of his sound and effortless technical ease, he made the Sonata in C, K330, prattle as if it were purely decorative, without any substance at its core.
Chopin's Sonata in B minor showed off this young player's keyboard prowess, but it also revealed more of his shortcomings. He fussed over the melodic content, but ignored issues of momentum and connectivity that are best addressed through the shaping of the harmony. His sometimes arresting detailing failed to accumulate into a satisfying whole.
One might expect the miniatures of Schumann's Scenes from Childhood to suit him. But the fussiness remained at too high a level, with strong attitudes - an unexpected emphasis of liner or accent, or adjustment of tempo - sometimes struck for no apparent reason.
The Rachmaninov preludes were driven by a roughly-whipping energy. And while Liszt's Petrarch Sonnet 104 was made to stutter uncomfortably, the no-holds-barred approach to the composer's Hungarian Rhapsody No 2, with copious embellishments and snuck-in counter melodies by Horowitz, was clearly designed to bring the house down, which it did.
On the evidence of this recital, there's no doubting Lang Lang's exceptional keyboard facility or fearlessness. He is fleet of finger and rapid of wrist, and he showed unusual control of tone colour, dynamics, and voicing. But at the moment his playing seems more focused on what the music can do for him than on what he can do for the music.
The McGarrigles
Vicar St, Dublin
By Joe Breen
Almost 30 years since they made their Dublin debut, the McGarrigles, Kate and Anna, returned to the city and an audience which bathed them in fond memories of classic love songs and sublime harmonies. And while it is difficult to live up to the legend, the two Canadian sisters and their discreet four-piece band made a decent fist of it, earning two encores, one of which was the much-loved Swimming Song.
As with so many veteran acts, they are hostage to their older material, but they made a virtue of this by reworking songs such as Heart Like A Wheel and Dancer with Bruised Knees, albeit with such taste that few could complain.
They also pace their set well, mixing up the intensity of much of the material with offbeat patter which also helps to offset the inevitable tuning delays (serious black mark here). And although their performance has sharpened somewhat with the years, they remain engagingly unpolished, almost relishing the gentle anarchy of their onstage personalities, though they could usefully give themselves a lash occasionally.
Chaim Tannenbaum, co-vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, proved a perfect foil for the sisters' pristine voices, while the rest of the band, especially violinist Joel Zifkin, did all that was required. Highlights included Matapedia, a pair of songs in French and a brace of Bermudan hymns. Eclectic indeed.
Shooters
Focus Theatre, Dublin
By Gerry Colgan
American author Jack Gilhooley wrote this play for the Dublin PurpleHeart company, and it is now having its first performances here. The title refers to the trade of the four characters - hired assassins all. It is misleading, because the play is actually the lightest of light comedies, littered with laughter rather than bodies.
The men come first, and an odd couple of partners they are. Lou is a Harvard graduate, literate in speech and preoccupations, while Barry is an ex-librarian who never read a book - but has absorbed high-flown speech and references as though by osmosis. But, after an unfortunate incident on the last job, he wants to quit, leaving Lou in the lurch.
After failing on the new job, both men are obliged to flee, quitting the stage for good. Next come the women, who have the job of eliminating the quitters. Arlene is a policewoman who shoots bad guys to supplement her income. Her partner is Molly, once a high-school friend and a great shot; hence her recruitment.
All of this is the frothiest of amusing nonsense, spiced up with witty dialogue that continually evokes laughter. The men have the literary gags, including one about Harold Pinter, who later returns to haunt us. The women are more into sex and feminism, with Molly the weak link when it comes to getting the job done.
The acting - by Stewart Roche, Dermot Magennis, Mary Kelly and Tana French - directed by John O'Brien, is beautifully pitched and effective.
It is a pity the author chose to end his play with a comic steal from Pinter's The Dumb Waiter, or something very like it, not really an ending at all in this context. But if it stops in the middle of nowhere, at least the craic is good getting there.
Runs to Nov 26
Town Mouse, Country Mouse
The Ark, Dublin
By Sylvia Thompson
The 40-minute show begins with the actors, Sean McDonagh (City Mouse, Spike) and Jody O'Neill (Country Mouse, Dandelion) casually introducing themselves before they don their mouse make-up. Then they become the Town Mouse and the Country Mouse ready to discover each other's world.
Both actors effectively take on mice-like facial grimacing for their roles, yet their physical transformation into these tiny creatures never completely happens. The four- to six-year-old audience enjoy the adaptation of Aesop's fable nonetheless.
It is entertaining to see how unfamiliar the city slicker mouse is in the country mouse's barn (fearful of animal sounds and dark skies) and likewise how the country mouse is out of place in the noisy city (scared of human voices and almost getting caught in a mouse trap). Spike and Dandelion's energetic chases are greeted with giggles. However, this reviewer was just dying to see a cat or at least hear one threatening the lives of these mice. But, alas, no cat appears and once the two mice had visited each other's homes, they say their farewells and return to their homes.
The programme notes' claim to explore "themes of culture, diversity and understanding" seems rather grandiose. And Barnstorm's adaptation of Aesop's fable is an underdeveloped production - a missed opportunity for this professional children's theatre company, which has often given us very imaginative shows that challenge their audiences, leaving them energised rather than simply entertained.
At the Ark until Sat, tours to Portlaoise, Waterford, Castleblayney, Mullingar, Castlebar, Blanchardstown and Kilkenny (056-7751266)
Love Me
Waterfront Hall - Belfast Festival
By Jane Coyle
On first viewing, the title of of Lucy Guerin Inc's UK and Ireland premiere work seems rather curious, for, with one notable exception, there is little obvious human warmth or emotion in this meticulously choreographed trilogy of conceptual duets.
The hallmark style of this good-looking Australian company is cool, meticulous and hi-tech, blending a complex dance language with electronic/industrial soundtrack and monochrome projections on screens including the dancers' own bodies.
Reservoir of Giving I and II is about a relationship, fraught with insecurity and secrets. It is a staccato duet, with one dancer on stage and the other on film, reduced to two dimensions in the flat-screen box of their designer bedroom. Part II flips to reverse the roles, thereby heightening the sense of reserve between them. Frustratingly, a technical hitch prevented its completion.
In On and Melt, the sense of the title begins to emerge, as two pairs of dancers present contrasting works, each a mix of human independence and interdependence. The first is nervy and unsettling. The second brings Kirstie McCracken and Krisy Ayre from freezing to boiling point in a dazzling display of graphically-enhanced movement inspired by outside forces. Kyle Kremerskothen and Byron Perry are their male counterparts, all four delivering Guerin's highly individual vision with breathtaking focus and physical brilliance.
Ensemble Nordlys
Coach House, Dublin Castle
By Andrew Johnstone
Denmark's "northern lights" ensemble (pronounced "nordloose") is touring the country with a programme celebrating the bicentenary of Hans Christian Andersen.
Chamber works by composers he knew and admired - Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Denmark's own Niels Gade - present the quartet's clarinet, violin, cello and piano in various permutations, while new pieces based on two of his stories - by Ireland's John McLachlan and Poland's Rafal Augustyn - involve all four players.
The arid acoustics of the Coach House were unkind to the Romantic pieces. There was a tendency for the piano to overwhelm the other instruments. In the brooding Ballade from Gade's Fantasiestücke, however, pianist Joachim Olsson achieved a noticeably better balance for the clarinet playing of Jolson Oshiro. And they developed a sense of corporate cantilena in the slow movement of Schumann's Märchenerzählungen, with cellist Frederik Waage substituting for the original viola part.
Specially commissioned for the tour, and receiving its first performance here, McLachlan's The Metal Pig is loosely based on Andersen's story about a poor boy who becomes a great painter. Apart from a crudely onomatopoeic scene depicting domestic violence, it's not discernibly a programmatic work. Nor, because of the composer's avowed strategy of purging his material of any memorable quality, is it discernibly an organic one. What remains is something you can't listen to in any normal way, something you can do no more than just hear.
In contrast, Shadow Inc: A Parable for Four Players clearly represents its literary model while taking distinct musical themes on an interesting journey of their own. (It also requires violinist Christine Pryn to lend a helping hand at the piano.) Avoiding both the facile and the obscure, and balancing dynamism with atmosphere, Augustyn's work achieves an intelligible association of ideas that would doubtless have appealed to Andersen himself.
