Date of performance – 9th March 2023
Venue – Sherman Theatre, Cardiff
A few weeks ago, Michelle Perez of Cardiff based theatre company Theatr Iolo invited me to review an audio described performance of their new production of Pijin/Pigeon at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff. As I have focused my reviews exclusively on musicals thus far, I was intrigued at the prospect of reviewing a play (and variety is the spice of life – so they say!) so I agreed. The production is based on Alys Conran’s novel of the same name, which I hadn’t rea, so I didn’t really know what to expect (save some background details of the show, helpfully provided as an audio introduction), but I can say now that this was unlike anything else I have seen, and I doubt I’ll ever see again.
Story
The production (and the novel I’m sure) wastes no time, and plunges us into the 90s’ North Wales setting where we meet the two young protagonists, Pijin and his dutiful best friend Iola – who spend their days frolicking about town and making up daring stories about the local ice – cream seller Gwyn. Pijyn is quickly established as courageous, imaginative and more than a bit mischievous – and Iola hangs on to his every word. It sounds like a nostalgic, cosy, rosy – cheeked account of childhood, and at the beginning, it does feel like that. However, nothing is what it seems. These kids don’t have it easy and, to Pijin especially, stories are a refuge from the brutal surroundings of home and his abusive stepfather (who is mostly referred to as ‘Him’ throughout the show – possibly to emphasise Pijin’s, and indeed other characters, hatred of him). His only other saving grace is his beloved ‘Mam,’ who is constantly at the mercy of Him. Pijin uses the ‘villain’ stories he makes up about Gwyn as a metaphor to ‘release’ his hatred towards Him; and what starts out as a mostly – harmless (yet dark) child’s fantasy morphs into a elaborate ‘make believe’ capture mission and then rapidly turns into something very, very violent. Something that results in life changing consequences for both Pijin and Iola, their families, and the wider community.
Cast
Out of all the shows I’ve seen, this cast is by far the smallest I’ve seen – comprised of only five actors. They all did an incredible job bringing this story to life; each one expertly immersed themselves in their respective characters, adding their own little twists, leaving the audience literally glued to their seats. Most of the time, I felt like I was actually watching these events play out in real – life – that’s how natural and authentic the performances felt. They also had SO much work to do – all of them remained onstage for the entire duration of the show for one, and some played multiple roles. I’d go as far as to say that they were some of the most hard – working, genuinely talented actors I have had the pleasure of watching.
Owen Alun particularly impressed as Pijin, who really showed off his emotional range as his character grew from a confused, isolated little boy who uses his passion for words, stories and language to distract himself from his troubled home life, to a mentally troubled teenager struggling to come to terms with his violent past. As well as bringing an enduring cheekiness to the earliest scenes, Alun wasn’t afraid to bring a real rawness to effectively showcase Pijin’s isolation, frustration, and (especially later) mental struggles – and intensifying throughout as Pijin’s complicated feelings and struggles continue to escalate. Elin Gruffydd also gave an engaging performance as dutiful Iola – exuding ‘best – friend’ loyalty and tendency to go along with Pijin’s most dangerous schemes, as well as a quiet sense of guilt as the show progresses. Crucially, Alun and Gruffydd played off each other very well – the later scenes that show them struggling to reconnect were genuinely poignant. I also enjoyed Nia Gandhi as the sweet, optimistic Cher – the unfortunate daughter of ‘Him’ (and thus a new stepsister to Pijin) who desperately wants to befriend Pijin. She also has some lovely interactions with Gruffydd Iola; when something happens that forces Pijin’s temporary absence (albeit one that lasts several years) Cher and Iola become close – and the scenes showing the growing friendship between the two girls as they grow up were beautifully done.
Even though the remaining two members of the cast, Carwyn Jones and Lisa Jen Brown, played multiple ensemble roles apiece, they also had a meatier role each – and it’s those that were more memorable. Jones brought a chilling menace to Pijin’s abusive stepfather ‘Him’ – it sounds obvious, but a lot of the most hard – hitting scenes defiently involved him. What would perhaps seem strange to some was that, during moments when ‘Him’ was abusing Pijin and Mam, no stage combat was used to represent this, sometimes Jones wasn’t even on the stage in these moments – but the characters still signified what was happening through their movements, vocals, and facial expressions. In short, this was an example of ‘showing’ not merely ‘telling’ – and I liked that. Lisa Jen Brown was also excellent as Pijin’s adored but mentally – scarred Mam – delicately combining motherly love and real vulnerability to often heartbreaking effect.
One aspect I particularly enjoyed about the script was that it organically combined both English and Welsh – with the actors sometimes conducting entire scenes in the latter (which made absolute sense considering most of the characters primarily speak Welsh). This really helped to make the characters, and the entire setting, feel real – rather than the caricature it could have been had the dialogue been delivered entirely in English to aid non – Welsh speaking members of the audience. This aid is instead provided with English captions provided overhead (these simultaneously also appear in Welsh) – helping the audience to follow the course of action – for the most part. I say for the most part, because I couldn’t help but feel that the captions were also a potential hindrance to the production; my grandfather felt that sometimes he had to focus on the captions so much, that he was ‘missing out’ on the action on stage, and the exceptional performances.
Set, Costumes and Technicalities
The set (designed by Carl Davies) was fairly minimalistic, the most striking pieces being the backdrop of ripped paper (representing Pijin’s mental scrapbook) and a large, industrial – like metal structure; which, when wheeled to different sections of the stage, effectively represented the various locations of the story transforming into a children’s climbing frame, Pijin’s shed home, an ice cream van, and even a prison cell. In this respect, lighting was used exceptionally well to depict different locations, and highlight certain characters during a scene. The costumes were also appropriate to the setting and era – bringing a real sense of time and place to the show.
Audio Description and Captions
I was also asked to ‘test out’ the audio description service provided for this performance. I was really excited to try this out, as I had never used audio description in the theatre before (having never felt the need to, as I do have some sight). The audio description created for this show was totally unique – as well as describing the action on stage, it provided live translation of the Welsh dialogue into English (there were also other performances when English dialogue was translated for the benefit of Welsh speakers) for those who could not read the captions. This sounded ingenious on paper, but, in reality, didn’t work out quite as well as it should have. I do realise the difficulty of syncing everything together, but there was a constant lag between the dialogue and the translation; in many cases, the English translation would begin partway through the Welsh dialogue. In some instances, the Welsh wasn’t translated at all. It was lucky that I could read the captions, otherwise I would have been completely confused! Furthermore, the description itself was also too quiet, even on maximum volume, which could have a major impact on a vision impaired individual’s enjoyment of the show.
The JazzyHands Verdict
This show was often a very uncomfortable watch, with plenty of intense moments and exploration of tough issues (domestic abuse, mental illness, death, murder, sexual assault etc.). To be brutally honest, this was not the type of show I’d have chosen to go and see, both now and probably in the future. Call me unrealistic or out of touch, but I generally prefer more light – hearted fare so I can’t help but feel that this production was too ‘hard – hitting’ for me, personally. However, for the right audience member, and in its’ own right – this is a very good production indeed, and even I can’t deny its’ power. This is a gritty, tragic, complex tale about growing up, the loss of innocence, finding your own identity, finding love (both the sexual and familial kind) and, most of all – the power of words, and how important it is to use them wisely.