Marinka stands centre stage and tells us about a life she would like to change to one of normality instead of living in the land of the dead, writes Michael Holland.
Her house, run by the matriarch Baba(Lisa Howard), moves around during the night so she never knows where she will wake up; she never knows whether she should make new friends only to leave them without saying goodbye. Marinka(Eva De Leon Allen) feels like she is stuck in a life with just herself, Baba and her Jackdaw (masterfully operated by Dan Willis).
Baba has great tales to tell but this does not help Marinka feel better when their house on chicken legs moves away from her new friend, Ben (Michael Barker) and the ocean that she would love to return to. Baba tells Marinka that one day she will run the house, a role she would easily swap for a normal life and not one on the threshold of life and death, where the house has to provide safe passage for the deceased to pass through the portal and ‘return to the stars’, after they have embraced their past lives with a retelling of happy thoughts.
There is a lot more to this story based on Prussian folklore but it was difficult to keep up with so much going on and at almost three hours long the younger members in the audience began fidgeting before the hour mark.
Eva De Leon Allen deserves a medal for endurance playing Marinka as she was on stage just about non-stop; Lisa Howard brought much-needed lightheartedness to the production, while Stephanie Levi-John(Yaga) gave it a raunchy soul vibe when she hit town like a lady James Brown in the second act. For me, though, my favourite was Michael Barker’s Ben who supplied great comedy in this world of death.
Saying that, it was visually beautiful with a set by Jasmine Swan that was like a living and moving cartoon. The video projections by Nina Dunn were truly magical as they created universes with shooting stars; waves lapping at golden beaches and doors into another world.
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX until 30th December. Admission: £20 – £40.
Booking: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/performance-dance/house-chicken-legs
