Showing between Monday 11th and Tuesday 12th May 2009 @ Bristol Old Vic Paintshop
Showing as part of Mayfest 2009, Bristol’s festival of contemporary theatre

We are quietly ushered into the Paintshop in the hidden recesses of the Bristol Old Vic, a space that traditionally houses the theatre’s forgotten paraphernalia but tonight it is our jungle, our ocean; our habitat. Tonight we are invited to be part of a clan, a species; we could be a shoal of fish, a pack of wolves, a pod of dolphins…

The audience herds together onto an assortment of rugs in the middle of a scattered collection of lamps, lights and torches as our three curators, each donning some eccentric ears-cum-horns, approachably ease us into our surroundings and the show’s promenade style before dimming the lights and treating us to some intimate stories about instinct and survival around the campfire. In classic Tinned Fingers’ style, these absorbing monologues are brought to life with minimalist but beautifully effective props and techniques like simple shadow work on the tall, bare-brick, paint-splattered walls and a cardboard moth which frantically flutters at a lampshade while we engage with a passionate story that embodies the desperation of survival. During these tales, ears are quietly passed around for the audience to wear; ‘Join the pack. There’s safety in numbers.’ We’ve been initiated, joined the herd, together now through thick and thin.

Our first role in our new clan is to work together as a group, as a team, as a family, each member pulling their weight to create a new set and props. Flags, giant, origami paper-boats and piles of blue balloons all create a new habitat in which I feel surreally like Morph mucking around on Tony Hart’s desk; a playful, creative and absorbing environment.

The penultimate scene is the real showpiece of imagination though: Three actors, three species but one has been earmarked for extinction. Each must make their case for survival to the audience but are only allowed to talk while their individual lamp is on; three lamps which are directly controlled by the audience. Survival of the fittest. It’s a brave technique, placing the integrity of the performance into the audience’s hands but they respond wonderfully and it makes for some hilarious and touching moments and some beautifully inventive theatre.

Our Fathers’ Ears is a wonderfully heart-warming show and though inspired by Darwin and issues like species extinction, we weren’t lectured nor it wasn’t rammed down our throats, we were more just shown the beauty of the process and the tragedy within ‘survival of the fittest’ itself.

www.tinnedfingers.co.uk

www.mayfestbristol.co.uk

Matthew Whittle www.matthewwhittleblog.blogspot.com