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ED2016 3/5 Reviews ED2016 Theatre Reviews
Jules Verne’s Extraordinary Voyages: 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea (Not Cricket Productions)
By Andy Leask | Published on Saturday 13 August 2016
This story is dependent upon spectacle; Nemo’s vast submarine, the Nautilus, and the great Kraken that attacks it are iconic incidents in the tale. Wisely, given the constraints of special effects in live theatre, most of these details are left to our imagination, and are all the more powerful because of that. A sea-bed stroll, performed in near-silence, blue-lit, with shadowy fish and seaweed drifting in silhouette is an understated highlight. Less wise was the decision to have a single tentacle, visibly held by a cast member, to represent the Kraken. It drew laughs, squandering the tension the hitherto imagined attack had built. However, complex characters and intense performances elevate this above the other plays in the company’s Jules Verne trilogy.
C Nova, until 29 Aug.
tw rating 3/5 | [Andy Leask]