Tyler J. Mitchell
The world is my stage, the stage is my world.
Cinderella Innit:
"Funny, Clever and Original Show"
*****
December of 2012 saw me playing the role of Teenie, one half of Teenie and Coco- Cinderella's evil stepsisters. This show was not at all traditional panto and by being written and directed the way it was earned this show five star reviews.
Below are extracts of two of those reviews; Taryn Yates' and Simon O'Shaughnessy's review of Cinderella innit at The Oxford House Theatre.
'Cinderella Innit' is such an energised and original show. It turns Pantomime on its head and is very carefully thought out with 100% original and current material, that todays young audiences look out for.
Suzann McLean's Direction is slick and Precise, making full use of each individual Actor that totally Complements David Fieldings' Clever and witty Writing, together this is a team that has so much potential.
Cinderella (Ella) portrayed with a sensitive and beautiful manner by the excellent Emma Read,dreams of being a pop singer and when the chance arrives to sing with the Pop Star Denny D- an electric portral by Landry Adelard, Ella has high hopes.
Those are soon dashed by her terrible Step sisters because step mother Donna has paid for her daughters to win the competition, all give winning breathtaking performances
Together with a loyal friend Jonesy and a compassionate Dad-brilliant comic timing by Steve Swain, she is able to enter the one night only competition and good does shine through eventually.
The Panto runs like an episode of X Factor mixed with the only way is Essex, it never gets boring neither does it patronise the younger audience that so many Pantos seem to do.
Cinderella Innit:
"Fun Loud Uplifting Feelgood Show"
*****
It was a cold rainy miserable Wednesday night. I did not think two hours later, I would be clapping, cheering and laughing so much.
This is a musical play not a panto but it was ingeniously turned into a panto with the usual cliches coming out of the blue expectantly.
Ella lives with her stepmother and her two ugly step-sisters in a kebab shop! The latter three ladies are the real stars of the show.
A very leggy glamorous step-mother who is as wicked and twisted as her two "twin" daughters! They are to twins as is a banana and a pickle onion is to being identical. They are as about as subtle as using a Brillo pad instead of Andrex! Fantastic comedy acting was entailed.
The scene where Ella and her father talk about her late mother was so tender, poignant and beautiful, until the two ugly stepsisters come on and soon demolish that to a cruel but highly comic degree! "My mother died and did not leave me" said Ella! "Same thing, innit!" replies the step-sister! Oh charming! In fact the step-sisters are very cruel to a very uncomfortable degree but that was deliberate, I am sure!
Ella and her umbrella replaces the classic glass shoe scene and her prince is a singer called Denny Dee who wants her to enter a talent show!
The choreography was superb and these young people can superbly act and have beautiful singing voices. You can see that their chemistry works on stage. They are as professional as any accomplished adult actors!
This was a very rich production as the scenery was superb and the acting with so many characters with their mannerisms made the stage burst with exuberance!
I can now recall that the same writer for this play wrote a previous production at the same theatre and that was about a young offenders prison! That involved horror and comedy, No horror in Cinderella Innit(except the faces of the stepsisters whom were grotesque) but plenty of laughs are guaranteed!
I tell you whom I did feel sorry for and they were the musicians at the side of the theatre stage that played throughout the duration of the play and in between the intervals. They are very talented and were bang on cue!
As the play has "innit" in the title it is obvious it is contemporary London culture and that is what makes it such a delight!
The criticism of the show? There is one - it is only being performed four times; a great shame as it is truly a delight to see and a shame to miss it! Well done to all.
The Killing Class:
"Thrilling and emotionally charged drama"
****
The Olympic Summer of 2012 saw me playing the role of Terry, in the Fringe Theatre hit: The Killing Class.
Teenagers Steven and Tia meet when the pair are put together as part of a lesson in learning to interact again with other people. Both are going to be put into Adult Prison and then they fall in love with deadly and surprising consequences.
Set in a young offenders prison, The Killing Class is an emotional and highly charged play with characters you cant help but fall in love with. Describe as 'Scum' meets 'The History Boys'.
Below are extracts of two reviews of The Killing Class written by; Kathy Petrakis and Edward Barrett
This play centres around of group of juvenile detainees, incarcerated for murder. For them, there is no future except subsequent imprisonment in an adult centre.
A well-intentioned governor fights to give them an opportunity by gaining support for their participation in a theatre production of Romeo and Juliet. She goes to the extent of obtaining the assistance from the girls in the nearby female detention centre.
Through both the resistance and participation of the detainees, we learn about their personal demons - guilt, rejection, isolation, fear, love and helplessness. The play is gripping and the final twist leaves you speechless.
These teenage actors were sensational! They made their characters come alive with both their speech and their body language. You can feel their character's pain. I was entranced from beginning to end.
I also tip my hat to the playwright David Fielding, who has written a story that is unique, witty, insightful and unpredictable, that would appeal to teenagers and adults alike.
This performance is a special experience not to be missed!
The Killing Class:
"Super Energized Horror and Humour"
*****
I had some preconceived ideas about this play. It was about a bunch of young killers so it had to be dreary yet at some points, intense, I suppose.
I detest being wrong and on this occasion I was absolutely wrong and I was very pleased to be wrong!
The play was super-charged with passionate performances. I did not expect during the play to be laughing so much,as did the whole audience, as the writer of this play deliberately injected humour with horror. What a combination! I think this was done deliberately to put the audience off the track as to the final outcome of the play. I won't reveal the ending but I certainly did not expect the ending to result in that! I went home on the bus thinking to myself "what on earth and why did they not see that coming!"
There was so much going on in the scenes as at times there were about 20 on the stage that you would need to go again and see it to miss the bits you did not see! It was very content-rich.
This may be fringe theatre but the writing, acting and directing was far superior to be called just fringe.
This is a play where you hate and love some of the characters. When one of the convicted killers you despise because of the crime he did opens up his emotions as to why he did his crime. you actually feel sorry for him you think to yourself "wow that could have easily been me in that given set of circumstances!"
All the cast did a superb job! Also, the play may be set in a young offenders institution but the world outside was brought into these young offenders world. Some highly controversial topics hitting the media at present was also in this play as well as the current social cultural issues.
This production was also highlighting very effectively, the young people of today locked behind bars that nobody cares about. They are human beings with emotions with tragic background and not just statistics!
I also regard this an egalitarian play in that although there are the main essential leading characters, ALL the 20 or more so actors at one point grab the attention of the audience and GRAB it they do!
The writer of this play, David Fielding, has indeed got a unique talent,
With so many scenes in different scenarios the technical aspects of the play must have been a nightmare to bring together but the end result was a dream!