The Banquet

By PROTEIN DANCE
The Neptune Theatre

Reviewed by Catrina Macfie

Theatre-goers seeking a thought-provoking, witty, entertaining and quirky production will have found it in ‘The Banquet’. Award-winning Protein Dance once again delivered an innovative and memorable performance following previous acclaim with ‘Publife’, which adopted Liverpool’s own Casa pub on Hope Street as it’s stage.
With the theme of evolution as it’s central focus, we are called to question exactly how civilised we have become. Opening with a sequence in which four actors trace the passage from amoeba to early man, we are presented with a natural history lesson which ultimately challenges our conviction that time has refined our behaviour.
The narrator, art/punk legend Richard Strange, both acts as master of ceremonies and issues a running commentary in the style of a wildlife documentary. Through a series of scenes involving the four actors, he exposes human fragility. We are depicted as flawed, selfish and essentially primitive beings.
Highlighting both the refined sophisticate and the unevolved beast which lurks in all of us, the action is often a little too truthful to be comfortable.
The play’s strength lies in it’s elegant fusion of theatre and dance. With tightly-executed choreography, the performances are both subtle and flamboyant. Acute comic timing, sharp observations and the surreal steep stage setting where the banquet takes place draws the audience in.
Given today’s reality TV-obsessed generation, Strange’s Big Brother-style voice-over is timely and, in his words “as punctual as a Swiss timepiece”. By the same token this obsession mirrors the unimaginative and herd-like traits within us which again denotes our lack of refinement.
Experimental productions often fail to capture their audience through appearing too remote and difficult to relate to. This play, however, enchanted all due to it’s familiar theme and through the charisma of the actors. This particular banquet was a veritable feast for the senses.