So this was a half of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Marathon.
In brief: the Fringe is 63 years old.
The number of participating companies in 2010 is 1800!
The number of performers in the streets you should count by yourself.
DEREVO appeared at the Fringe 6 times before: Red Zone, Once…, La Divina Commedia, Islands, Reflection and Ketzal.
Now it’s Harlekin…
Here’s what the Scottish and English press thinks of DEREVO this year:
***** The Herald, Mary Brennan
…This piece really is about the heart and soul of tragi-comic physicality…
Watching Anton Adasinsky inhabit the age-old, timeless form of Harlequin – or Petrushka, Pierrot or Mr Punch, since they are the same elemental free spirit – is to witness a celebration of wordlessly expressive artistry shade into a poignant elegy for a theatrical dimension that long predates the machine age….
***** EdinburghGuide.com, Garry Platt
…This is not just a stage production it’s a phenomenon… Derevo’s Harlekin presents one scene after the next, each iconic and visually dazzling, unique. The stage is filled raw visceral emotion and then subtle considered jokes and funny vignettes…
***** Fest
…The show is a sequence of strange, arresting set-pieces which would be disorientating without the Harlekin himself. The weary innocence with which he greets every strange new situation is the play’s one constant note…
**** The Telegraph, Mark Monahan
…Just go and see this show. It’s strange, stirring, often beautiful entertainment, and you’ll be thinking about it for a long time…
**** The List, Brian Donaldson
…The sinister and the beautiful have been Derevo’s trademarks ever since their Edinburgh debut in 1997 with Red Zone, and Harlekin provides another memorable chapter in their captivating story…
**** The Scotsman, Kelly Apter
…big show filled with striking visual images and charming set pieces. As the Harlekin, Adasinsky’s capacity to mix tragedy and comedy in one role has never been more obvious, while his turn as the domineering Hurdy Gurdist is a little comic gem…
**** Edinburgh Spotlight, Julie Dawson
…Technically, Harlekin is flawless. The performers are breathtaking, the marriage between music and movement is impeccable, the lighting is perfect, the costumes and makeup are excellent. The overall effect is stunning…
**** Three Weeks, Hannah Myers
…a heart-rending tale of unrequited love, cruelty and suffering unfolds. Derevo transcend this dark matter to reveal pools of shimmering light in the tenacity of the human soul, matching sinister dances of death with exquisite physical manifestations of the beating heart…
**** Fringe Review
…once we accept the basic theme we sit back and take in the spectacle like a surreal dream….
The List still hasn’t counted all the Harlekin’s stars and put the show at the 9th position of 952. not that bad… ».
[UPDATE, 31 Aug. 2010]: meanwhile DEREVO has reached the 3d position from 1252 shows in the critics rating by The List.
And just beyond all competition is the unique slide-show by Murdo Macleod from Guardian.co.uk just watch it on their web-site:
