Dark Love and Deep Song, The Riverfront (From South Wales Argus)

Dark Love and Deep Song, The Riverfront

3:00pm Thursday 16th February 2012 in Entertainments By Nigel Jarrett

In one of his poems, the Spanish writer Lorca gently chides the sun for its illusion of 'making the garden technicolor'.

Lorca's element was lunar, his meaningful colours circumscribed - the red of blood and the orange of love, the green of desire.

Blood and death, tears and tragedy, love and longing - these were the staples of his agonising art, and over thirty samples of it were delivered in song, poetry and dramatic snippet at this recital by Theatr Pena.

The Welsh group was formed to give professional female actors the chance to take on 'meaty' stage roles which explore womanly concerns. They launched themselves with Lorca's The House of Bernarda Alba.

This week's was the first of two lunchtime appearances before the whole company returns in June with Jean Genet's The Maids in a Riverfront co-production.

The readings were punctuated by Lorca songs and the complete Seven Popular Spanish Songs of Manuel de Falla, sung by mezzo Buddug Verona James, with Caradog Williams at the piano. Ms James's was an object lesson in how the recitalist should insinuate herself into the mood of the piece, be it lullaby, dance, narrative or lamentation. These were songs enacted with full dramatic flourish.

And the readers - Kathryn Dimery, Erica Eirian, Betsan Llwyd, Hannah O'Leary and Olwen Rees - took their cues from her, their recitations as colourful as their portrayals in extracts from Lorca’s plays Yerma and Blood Wedding. Ms O’Leary directed and several of the translations were by Gwynne Edwards.

Look out for War Songs at the Riverfront on Wednesday March 14 at 1pm.