| Review: Magical Chairs & There’s Only One Wayne Lee |
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| Culture | |
| Saturday, 03 September 2011 | |
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Stories of last century’s Chinese migrants in the UK are often painful to remember and revisit. Living on the margins of the British society and earning a living through honest means, many migrants are united in a common dream of achieving a sense of belonging. British Chinese director Jonathan Man’s There’s Only One Wayne Lee beautifully explores racial tension in the 70s’ British society through the lives of two second generation migrant boys. A reworking by Roy Williams of his There's Only One Wayne Matthews, the central character Wayne (Chris Chan) now becomes a British Chinese bookish teenager. Troubled by a lack of suitable role models, he tries to gain confidence by practicing football with his Afro-Caribbean friend Carl Wilkins (Alexandre Ross). Carl succeeds in his audition for Chelsea, but learns that his achievement cannot change society’s prejudice against him.
Wayne and Carl share a sense of helplessness, reflecting how cruel society sometimes can be towards struggling young people. The two actors share all the minor roles between them - teachers, friends, and relations – allowing the narrative to flow seamlessly from one scene to the next. Most importantly, the two central characters are well depicted interesting individuals with passion, interests and dreams. In a climactic moment of outburst, Wayne criticises his father, who is still stricken with grief over Wayne’s mother’s death. As the two fight over the remote control, one realises how hard some second generation migrants have to fight to stay strong.
Wayne Lee is shown in a double bill alongside Magical Chairs by Mary Mazzilli, an absurdist fantasy exploring desperation of two young aspiring young would-be magicians stuck in a room of abandoned chairs.
Whereas There’s Only One Wayne Lee studies a historical past to draw comparisons with the present, Magical Chairs has a timeless setting reflecting a human condition applicable to all times.
Success of the plays is inseparable from the appropriate music and sound effects by Ruth Chan and Simon McCabe, ranging from the believable noise of football crowds in Wayne Lee and omnipotent narrator’s voiceover in Magical Chairs, supported by effective lighting from Roland Glasser.
The double bill will be shown at this year’s Beijing International Fringe Festival as part of the London-Beijing Connections project. It will be one of the first experimental British plays to be shown to a Chinese audience, offering a unique perspective on Britain’s society.
By Cecily Liu
A DOUBLE BILL
Magical Chairs by Mary Mazzilli
There's Only One Wayne Lee by Roy Williams
Lumenis Theatre in association with Southwark Playhouse, 30 August – 3 September 2011
Beijing International Fringe Festival, September 17-18, 2011
Additional links:
Lumenis Theatre: http://lumenistheatre.co.uk/
Southwark Playhouse: http://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/main-house/theres-only-one-wayne-lee-and-magical-chairs/
Beijing International Fringe Festival: http://www.beijingff.com/index.html
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