Review: RINGMASTER, VAULT Festival
Part of VAULT Festival and performed at the Network Theatre, Ringmaster is introduced as being vaguely based on La Ronde. Schintzler's subversive 1900 play, banned and censored by his contemporaries, presents an analysis of the sexual costumes of the time.
Transported to the 21st Century as devised by the company, the show falls short in many aspects. From its byline - "Everything in the world is about sex. Except sex. Sex is power" - to the inconsistent acting qualities, it's a confused and confusing piece of theatre that doesn't say anything about the modern society.
Essentially, their attempt to put on something edgy is at the expense of content and distinction. The spirit is buried under easily foretold storylines that are delivered with a Brechtian approach and probably need a tad more care.
Unfortunately, all these elements make it too hard for the audience to get invested in the characters' lives, leaving them cold and unattached. As of this moment, Ringmaster doesn't click and sadly looks like a first-year-of-drama-school exercise.
Ringmaster runs until 3 February at Network Theatre as part of VAULT Festival.
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