Arts:Blog

Theatre Review: The Aspirations of Daise Marrow ***

Michael Cox reviews a 'nice' production.

Diase Marrow sounds like a really interesting individual. It’s rather a shame then that The Aspirations Of Daise Marrow is told not from her point of view but those of the community as her body is taken to the cemetery.

Based on Patrick White’s short story Down at the Dump, the production is more of a live reading of White’s piece than a dramatic interpretation, with it’s cast of four mostly narrating the action with touches of staged interpretation. This would be fine in an intimate space, but staged in the round in Assembly’s Palais Du Variete where the acoustics can be a bit cavernous and at a running time of 75 minutes, this is a well-intentioned piece that can try one’s patience.

Still, it’s a nice production that is passionately performed by the cast, who are joined by four musicians, and there are some wonderfully vivid scenes where the production blooms—mostly in quiet memory moments where the characters actually get to interact with each other.

The Aspirations of Daise Marrow has completed its run at Assembly’s George Square.