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Phil Hopkins
Group Travel Editor & Theatre Correspondent
@philhopkinsuk
12:45 PM 29th January 2015
arts

Mr Frodo - Up Close And Personal

 
One must either applaud the West Yorkshire Playhouse's inspired marketing ploy - A Play, A Pie & A Pint - or conclude that London sophistication has yet to reach the county of mushy peas and lard fried fish and chips!

But last night, as I sat and enjoyed my leek and potato pie, I had another winter warmer in store, Amy Rosenthal's witty two hander, Polar Bears, beautifully performed by Verity Kirk and David Leopold.

Traditional proscenium theatre, where there's usually an orchestra between you and the audience, brings its own challenges, and then when you move across to the Playhouse and theatre in the round, you are always praying that the lights don't dim too much lest you see mum on the front row about six feet away!

However, the Pie and a Pint series takes this one step further by moving the action into the main bar, where a series of makeshift seats have been arranged for a very close up performance. In truth, part of the success of productions following this personalised format, is whether they are suited to the temporary environment - workably intimate, small (in a positive way) and very portable. Polar Bears was.

Despite having to deal with 100 or so gawping faces, Kirk and Leopold - ably shepherded by director Caitlin McLeod - rose to the occasion, delivering a script that genuinely had me laughing out loud at certain points. It was intimate and, at times, I felt like a voyeur who should have been averting his gaze for fear of eavesdropping someone else's private moment.

Initially, in the absence of any background information or programme - this was a premier - I was totally disorientated when the main protagonist Leo, aka 'Sam' from Lord of the Rings - walked on stage complete with big feet and Spock like ears. Were we in Middle Earth or was this some kind of Trekkie convention?

Of course it was the former only the setting was a frosty woodland clearing on the outskirts of Leeds, where games enthusiast Leo and girlfriend of three years, Iris - she doubled up as Mr Frodo - met with other Tolkien anoraks - sorry, enthusiasts - to re-enact famous moments from the trilogy.

It was an exploration of young love and maturing relationships, as two teenage friends moved to the perimeters of adulthood, experiencing the pain of leaving home and realising that childhood could not last forever.

Life hurts and Polar Bears is a gentle journey along a line that we have all travelled - nay do we ever get the respite of the sidings? - where a young couple desperately cling to the fantasy world of their teenage years in a bid to hide from the realities of a new, emerging world.

She is dealing with the rigours of an architectural career in London - her mobile rings mid re-enactment and Sam doesn't approve - whilst he still shelters under the protection of his parents, desperately failing to make the break to join the girl who loves him to bits.
She's ready to move on, he's terrified and there's a parting of the waves.

Polar Bears is like a soft blanket and, as you laugh out loud at the teenage angst, you want to put a reassuring arm around both players and say: "We've all been there love, it'll work out."

Daughter of Hull actress Maureen Lipman and playwright Jack Rosenthal, Amy Rosenthal, is observant and, in choosing her Lord of the Rings backdrop, has selected a clever vehicle from which to observe two young adults growing up.

At 50 minutes it certainly holds your attention and is long enough to to bring forth a raft of emotions whilst also bringing you to the Middle Earth realisation that with an 8pm curtain down and there's time for another pint!

Until Saturday (31/01/2005)