THE BALLAD OF THE BURNING STAR

Pleasance Dome

31st-26th July

17.15

£10.50-£12.50

It is the nature of the Fringe, that its chief exponents are often at the edge of artistic evolution. Take the Ballad of the Burning Star, for instance, the creation of Theatre Ad Infinitum’s Nir Paldi. He looked pretty damn hot in drag, a cabaret queen with a serious story to tell. His subject was Israel & the struggle of its collective social conscience over being at both times the persecuted & the persecutors. As he half chants his ballad, five young dancer-actresses float & skip about him like nymphs at a Bacchanalian feast. Prancing & dancing around the stage, there is a certain synchronicity in the physical movement of the troupe that is at times more than stunning.

Every nuance of movement bounces in time to the heart-beat pulse of the musical aside, provided by a young talented one-man-band called ‘Camp David.‘ I was reminded of Shakesperian actors as I watched them, memorizing reams of obscure Elizabethan verse, but in this context the lines became dance moves, unleashed at an often breath-taking speed. This absolute thrill of a show expresses the deep-seated essence of modern Israel through a magical medium, & for those wanting something more cutting-edge this year, it would be a worthy choice.

Reviewer – Damo Bullen