James Son Of James - The Lowry - 22/04/08 by Jo Beggs

James Son of James is a charming mix of dance, musical and theatre, blurring the lines where physical theatre ends and dance begins. In this busy ninety-five minute work Fabulous Beast offer up a series of spectacular duets strung together with a fast paced narrative. In a small Irish town a funeral is taking place.

Unexpectedly a stranger turns up who turns out to be the dead man’s son. In the short time he stays in the town he touches the lives of individuals, saving a girl from drowning, sparking passions and exposing truths.

The intercultural nature of the cast gives the piece an interesting sense of displacement. This could be small town anywhere (with echoes of Thornton Wilder and Dylan Thomas), the issues raised are universal. The dance too takes a myriad of references from tango to Irish folk dance, yet is bound into a coherent whole through the company’s ensemble choreography and Michael Keegan-Dolan’s direction.

Each of the duets creates a different mood yet they are bound together through a theme of human connection. In many there is a sense of bodies locked in embrace yet trying to pull away from one another, suggesting a universal need for both companionship and solitude, of love-hate and other confusing relationships.

Merle Hensel’s set design seems simple yet hides some surprising and highly effective elements. The colourful costumes play an important role in immediately establishing character and creating the storybook world they inhabit.

James Son of James is an intriguing and daring piece of performance. For me though it has one problem in that the dialogue seems unnecessary, adding nothing to the narrative, lacking the energy of the rest of the piece and at times sounding halting and awkward. A smattering of songs are forgivable (and mostly rather beautiful) and do a much better job of moving along the story and establishing character than all the dialogue put together.

The story has an unexpectedly dark ending as the town viciously turn against James, who, it turns out, still poses the perceived threat of the stranger. Yet despite this unpleasant twist of fortune the overall effect of James Son of James is one of exuberance and joy – and what more can you ask from a night at the theatre.