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Ross Wittenham November 27, 2006

The Abingdon Touring Theatre is a small group of talented amateur actors in their gap years. The group has been around for a relatively short period of time (a year at most) but it managed to successfully pull off a performance that would do justice to a group with a much greater experience.

Aesop's Fables, at first glance, seems to have been a bad choice. This particular adaptation of Aesop's life apparently requires a full compliment of 26 players, instead of the company's meagre 6. However, each performer took on numerous roles (indeed, I began to feel sorry for the narrator, who only got to play one additional character) and managed it fairly well.

Not only actors, but props, costumes and scenery were at a minimum. Described as 'a family show', this dramatisation does include pieces for adults and children alike. It commits a terrible act of thievery by borrowing Monty Python's ancient-mediterranean-ruler-with-a-lisp gag but is otherwise well written. Both the play and the cast do a lot to involve the audience, bringing it dangerously close to pantomime territory (indeed, actors Ben Revell and Katherine Gibbons' two man 'tortoise' is the funniest piece), but perhaps that's in keeping with the season (which will last until late January). I won't attempt to spoil the plot for anyone wishing to attend, suffice to say that each event in Aesop's life (which has been researched in depth) is acted out by a rather hefty number of short fables. With such a vast abundance of morals the play very quickly becomes both enlightening and entertaining.

What a wonderful venue to visit, yet sad that some people from the town were unaware the theatre even existed, let alone know what a fantastic evening's entertainment they were missing.

The show in question, "Aesop’s Fables", has been touring local venues. The cast of six, young, fresh and extremely talented gap year students excelled in their enthusiasm to entertain. Such a shame it was to a pitiful audience of around fifteen. Yet this didn’t appear to dishearten the cast, whose energy grasped you like a magnet. It was two hours of informative, serious and hilariously acted out popular fables, suitable for both young and old.

The costumes were basic as was the setting, but the actors made up for this with some of the all time favourites, The Man with Two Sweethearts, The North Wind and the Sun, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, and of course The Hare and the Tortoise. This particular fable brought loud laughter and clapping from the audience as two dedicated young actors, acted this fable. Panos and Tymon, played by Katherine Gibbons and Ben Revell respectively.

Ben appeared to put his heart and soul into all he performed, with the pride and enjoyment showing hugely on his face.

The show is now entering its final week. Why not chase away the winter blues with the sunshine of Ancient Greece? Let this show end on the high note that it deserves. You will not regret it!

Mardi 18 Jan 2007

My daughters and I saw this production in Bampton and we were so impressed.

As other reviewers have said, the set is simple and not particularly pretty to look at, but this was a good thing as it didn't distract from what we'd paid to see - a well-acted play with substance. All the cast were fantastic and very flexible though Ben Revell and Morgan Thomas particularly stand out - Mr Revell seems to have a career as a pantomime dame beckoning, whilst Mr Thomas was able to be outrageously camp as Jadamon one minute, and completely serious as Croesus the next. I wish there'd been more of Jadamon as he was the character of the play - my daughters could hardly contain themselves afterwards!

The only downside was the lack of audience. Come on, people of Oxfordshire! This is a young, talented, (mostly) local company that deserves your support - they get back to basics with a well-acted play rather than relying on spectacular effects or z-list "celebrities" that certain other local companies use to hide more substantial short comings. You have until the end of January...

Mary Percival 9 Jan 2007

Picture the scene – a narrator, five young actors in first year needlework togas, a crumpled white sheet hung across the back of the stage to hide the prop box and a couple of static lights. It does not sound too promising, but it was the night ‘Up Pompeii’, or possibly ‘Up Athens’, came to town. It was certainly ample evidence that top-quality live performance comes not from flash scenery, stunning wardrobes and ooh-aah lights, but from the talent of the people involved. The whole company, from the production team to the actors, just oozed enthusiasm, and it showed.

An audience aged from four to eighty-four was kept enthralled for two hours by the story of Aesop; how he was a slave for years, how he was given his freedom as a reward for his wit, how he became drawn into the unenthusiastic but self-preserving service of King Croesus and how he wound up being chucked off a cliff when he, inevitably, displeased the Powers that Were.

Aesop’s story was cleverly told by using his own fables. The Hare and Tortoise, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs were all there. The children laughed and got up on stage to join in. The adults heckled good-naturedly and got stuck into some good, old-fashioned, panto-style “oh no you won’ts”. For me the highlight had to be Morgan Thomas’ performance as the camp slave master, Jadamon. It was Monty Python (“welease Bawabus!”) meets Round the Horn and was, without a doubt, the funniest thing I have seen in years.

Only two questions remain: When will the ATT be back? And where was the egg I laid, golden or otherwise?

Ruth Hubbard 7 Jan 2007

Somewhere within the first few minutes of this very enjoyable evening, I forgot that I was sitting in the audience watching a play, and became completely absorbed in the fun, the story and the acting. It was a spell that was not broken until the arrival of the interval.

The play itself is a light-hearted and informative intertwining of Aesop's life and fables, with both familiar and less familiar ones making their appearances.

The script was consistently entertaining, and the six young actors threw themselves confidently into their multiplicity of roles, delivering their lines with a spontaneity that belies the hard work that goes into giving such a professional performance. Once again the ATTC has assembled a very talented cast.

The second half of the play continued in the same vein, and the actors delivered another series of rib-tickling performances right through to the very end.

This enjoyable production is a credit to all involved and I, for one, came away at the end of the performance buzzing with some of the actors' contagious energy. It tours to many venues throughout Oxfordshire from now until the end of January and is well worth catching.

Sydney Hicks 27 Nov 2006

The flyer says “Beaming its neon lights in Oxford’s otherwise drab theatrical darkness”.

After attending the opening night of the Abingdon Touring Theatre’s Aesop’s Fables tour, I’d say that this is a fair assessment. The six young, talented and good looking actors overcame the inevitable first-night nerves and produced a performance that was greatly enjoyed by the entire audience.

The show has many of Aesop’s best-loved fables (the Boy Who Cried Wolf, Hare and Tortoise), but also teaches us about Aesop’s own life. This makes the show informative and interesting as well as entertaining.

It can never be easy to produce a show that appeals to all ages, but writer Stephen Balchin and director Amy Standish have successfully managed it. I won’t go into how they do this, but the show will definitely appeal to everyone except the very young and those with a humour bypass.

All the actors put in strong, flexible performances (most of the actors have to play a number of roles), and were excellent at engaging the small yet enthusiastic audience. If they continue to produce performances like this throughout the tour it would be a travesty if they did not have far larger audiences.

If you want to take your family to see a show this Christmas, forget the rest – this is the best.

Andrew Carson 25 Nov 2006