Review by Kate Gaul
“Puddles and Amazons” is a storytelling show about a boy who eats an ice lolly when he finds out his mother’s died. He freezes internally, indefinitely, sentenced to a life of hot showers and steroid moisturising creams. A decade later, he falls in love. He thaws - and it makes a terrible mess. Writer, Performer and bedroom foley artist Guy Woods tells the story of a boy’s chilly adolescence. The work features live audio mixing, audience interaction, and quite a bit of water.
As we enter the Demonstration room we are confronted with a child’s paddling pool, a bucket of water and an opaque hospital type screen, and some technical equipment. Woods enters dressed in a swimming togs and pours a bucket of water over his head. He’s about to tell us of a family tragedy and a fictional heart condition. The water gets a special audience warning and all those with weak bladders look at the door. But there is no turning back and we are here to hear. Piss is mentioned – a lot.
Once Woods is dried and dressed, he introduces us to his foley – basically he will make sound effects using a loop peddle and this immediately transports us to the beach, for example or a school canteen. Often the audience is called upon to make the initial sounds which he cleverly bends and plays as a scene setting device. It’s a fun way to involve the audience and everyone is on board. Woods is a charming storyteller, and this is the coming of age story about a boy called Simon. More critically I would say that the setup of the soundscapes takes time and occasionally my attention wandered, and I wanted him to get on with the story. Some of the most amusing touches are the sounds of a distant seagull, or footsteps crunching on an ice cream cone.
There is a strong narrative at work, and we travel with Simon from boyhood through adolescence. Having lost his mother at an early age he must make his way in the world with a strange condition of his own (you’ll have to go see it to find out more about that!)
The structure is episodic, and we meet other characters along the way. Simon’s dad, the twitcher, is memorable as the inarticulate and not so distant human being who is always trying to connect with his son. This relationship adds emotional truth to the story and is the one constant – if terrifying – relationship that Simon has across his life.
The writing has many strong images, identifiable relationships and surreal situations.
“Puddles and Amazons” is a piece about grief and love. The title is a cute take on the English children’s adventure novel “Swallows and Amazons” which also involves a lot of water in its telling. Woods has fashioned a grand adventure of his own complete with whimsical touches, flights of fancy and a metaphorical thawing when the time is right. This piece is an amusing hour, and it is interesting to contemplate where Wood’s suite of talents might take him in the future.
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