Mark Reece's Blog, page 19

Russian state ballet at Wolverhampton grand theatre

Over the last few days, the Russian State Ballet (RSB) company has been carrying out a series of performances at Wolverhampton grand theatre, of which I saw Sleeping Beauty.

It's an interesting change to see a theatre company other than Birmingham Royal Ballet in a West Midlands theatre, and the RSB does not disappoint. The dancers had a wonderfully light touch, and the music was sublime.

The supporting aspects of the performance were also memorable, particularly the costumes and the set. There were several rapid changes of background, and at various points in the performance, the curtain cut the stage in half, with the dancers using only the front part of the stage. This skillfully focused attention on particular dancers. The use of lighting at the back of the stage to highlight mood or a change in the time of day was also highly effective.

I didn't quite understand why there were scenes from little red riding hood and Cinderella, but that doesn't matter greater. It was great to see a foreign ballet company in the midlands, and even better that it was such an accomplished one.

Review- The Stone Raft

The Stone Raft by José Saramago

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Like all Saramago's books, The Stone Raft starts with a fantastical premise- that the Iberian peninsula has split apart from the rest of Europe and is floating out to sea. Meanwhile, three men and two women meet up with each other after hearing that each of them have developed a whimsical superpower- for example, one of the men can feel tremors in the earth. The five then set out on a journey across Spain and Portugal as the two countries face exile from Europe and social collapse.

Saramago's style utilizes only commas and full stops as punctuation. Furthermore, the prose is consistently illusive and filled with asides. Oftentimes, a curious idiom is used without explanation, as if to suggest that it is commonly used in this world, then other idioms will be used to say a similar thing, or the opposite thing, then there will be an ironic comment about its truthfulness. At first, the style seems ponderous, however, after a time, the characters in the story become readily identifiable, even without directly attributable speech. In this way, Saramago's style is not simply a quirk or eccentricity, but helps to build a sense of wonder and sets the tone for the story.

Few writers are as careful about the characterization of animals as Saramago, and that is never more apparent than in this novel. Both the dog that accompanies (and sometimes leads) the characters, and also their two horses, are described with delicate and loving care. Much effort is given in particular to the naming of the dog, with the characters, and of course, the author, recognizing the importance of doing so.

It is not clear whether the characters' abilities are connected to what is happening, although the authorities are suspicious nevertheless. As is often the case with Saramago's stories, there is a deft satirical touch on display. Villagers and government officials are suspicious of the characters and their motivations, whereas the prime minister of Portugal is concerned about the reputation of the countries women and their virtue. Meanwhile, the British government declares its intention to defend Gibraltar wherever it ends up, while the president of the United States worries that if countries move around too much, then geo-political strategizing will become impossible. The tone is apt, and very funny on occasions.

Ultimately, this is a book that is hard to categorize. On the one hand, the theme of 'journeys' is often present, whether in the life of individuals, or of countries. The novel also contains some social satire, such as the fear that results when groups of frightened residents occupy a series of hotels. The link between the characters' abilities and the wider events might be said to be a comment on causality- on the danger of making inferences linking events without due cause. However, the book would hardly be improved by being neatly categorized. It is such a pleasure and a delight to read. To my mind, Saramago is plainly the outstanding author of the twentieth century.



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Review- Silk

Silk by Alessandro Baricco

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is a stylish and mesmerizing book. Written in a series of very short chapters, many less than a page long, it tells the story of Herve Joncour, who travels to Japan to buy silkworms to supply mills in a French town. The book is very short- probably less than novella length, and the chapters form what are essentially a set of interconnected prose poems. The tone is very reserved, and there is more subtext than text. For example, the second chapters ends with these three sentences:

Lavilledieu was the name of the town inhabited by Herve Joncour.
Helene was that of his wife.
They had no children.

It is thus made apparent that there is a distance, or even a quiet sadness, in the relationship between Joncour and his wife. The prose sometimes reminded me of haiku, in the way that consecutive sentences change focus to create implicit metaphors or similes.

Joncour's reserved nature is beautifully illustrated by the hazy nature of the writing, which is always covered by a delicate veil. At one point, Joncour is described in this way:

It will have been noted that such people observe their destiny much as most people tend to observe a rainy day.

When traveling to Japan, Joncour meets an important man in a village, with whom he establishes a partnership based on the sale of silkworm eggs. Joncour glances the man's concubine, and although they do not speak, they form a relationship of sorts that provides the narrative focus of the story.

The centrepiece of the book is a love letter between the two that is astonishing in tone and provenance. To say more would be to give too much away.

The book could easily be read in one sitting, and many times in a lifetime.



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Review- The Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


After not having read The Canterbury Tales for many years, I had forgotten almost all the stories and could read them as if new, which I found to be a very happy state. This is a wonderful book, and a good translation by Neville Coghill, who unobtrusively modernizes the language in a way that maintains the rhythm of the poetry.

A party are going on a pilgrimage to Canterbury, containing people of many social classes, including a knight, various members of the clergy, and working men. Some members of the party have professions that no longer exist, such as the 'Pardoner'- who makes a living out of selling Papal pardons. The party members agree to a competition to tell a number of stories each, with a grand meal granted to the winner. Chaucer employs a wide poetic range in granting a distinct voice to each of the party members. He creates a genuine sense of a rumbustious party- not an easy task when the characters of party members are reflected only indirectly, through the stories they tell.

The tales are a mix of elegant romances, morality tales, stories with a religious theme, and bawdy anecdotes. Chaucer shows a lot of skill in creating an overarching narrative by the way the different tales relate to each other. For example, some of the characters are rivals and make the protagonist of their story the profession of their enemy, then proceed to make the story an example of the folly of (say) a miller or a friar. Their rival then retaliates by making the anti-hero of their story an even more foolish example of their enemy's profession.

The tone over the course of the book is very well judged. Ostentatious virtue can taste acrid, and Chaucer carefully balances tales of virtuous wives with bawdy, humorous stories. In fact, the treatment of the virtue of women is one of the most intriguing aspects of the overarching narrative. Many of the tales give as their exemplar meek and self-sacrificing wives who passively submit to circumstance and kill themselves rather than be dishonored. However, one of the party, the wife of Bath, strikes a very different note. After telling the others that she has been married five times, she proceeds to expound on the merits of wives mastering their husbands. It is not clear who, if anyone, is speaking with Chaucer's voice, and each perspective is given persuasively. This is why this set of poems is such a compelling work of art.

The Canterbury Tales is an elegant, witty, and joyous work that achieves both a high level of realism, and poetic magic. It will be dilemma as to whether to wait such a time before re-reading it.



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Review- Murphy

Murphy by Samuel Beckett

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


I enjoy Beckett's plays, but I found this novel to be unreadable. The writing is too dense and lacks beauty.

Also, I have a limited tolerance for the type of solipsistic protagonist on display in this book, who aims for sensory deprivation and annihilation. Why, I wonder, do some people imagine that 'the universe' owes them a meaning to exist? That has always struck me as tremendously arrogant. Other animals don't seem to need any kind of ultimate meaning.

Nor does such a belief very often lead to enjoyable books being written.



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Story shortlisted

My story 'The Diary' recently received an honourable mention in 'The Short Story' 2019 competition. Congratulation to the two winners: Sophie Lay and Jeremy Galgut.

Here's the link for the full details:

http://www.theshortstory.net/

The Nutcracker

It must be Christmas, as The Nutcracker is on at The Hippodrome in Birmingham. Despite the changes in personnel at the Birmingham Royal Ballet over the last year, the performance is reassuringly as good as ever.

Of course, that means outstanding, with beautiful sets and costumes, and delightful performances. From the moment the curtain raises to reveal the dancers frozen in position around a Christmas tree, one knows to expect dancing of the highest quality.

The programme this year describes how the sets and costumes have been updated. It is difficult to compare performances by memory, but the changes felt modest. I recall specifically only a few new elements, such as a moon motif hanging from the ceiling during some scenes, which seems to match the magician Drosselmeyer's costume.

The Nutcracker is notable for its inclusion of young children dancers, who are unfailingly skilled, and also witty actors, particularly the boy who plays Fritz, who made the audience laugh several times when he broke the nutcracker, or sulked when his toys were taken away.

Life would be so much better if it comprised ballet everyday.

Review- Thinking Styles

Thinking Styles by Robert J. Sternberg

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


In this book, Sternberg sets out a schema to categorize styles- ways of thinking, which he distinguishes from abilities. Sternberg's main argument is that people are often wrongly judged as lacking ability, when in fact, their thinking styles are mismatched with the activities they are undertaking.

That is a reasonable observation, although a banal one. It is repeated throughout, making this short book feel like a long one. Given that Sternberg does not profess to know in any detail what causes a person to develop a thinking style, I'm not sure why he needed to write a book, rather than a short article, on this topic.

The schema Sternberg sets out contains several strands that are not mutually exclusive. For example, he states that some people are 'legislative'- creative, others 'executive'- rule following, still others 'judicial'- critical. However, he conceeds that many people share several of these traits, further weakening his argument. I would also suggest that activities cannot be neatly categorized in this way. For example, Sternberg suggests that creative writing is 'legislative'. Of course, poems require creativity, but they also require editing, an understanding of form, and so on. In other words, many poets are also analytical and disciplined, at least to some extent.

Sternberg makes reference on a few occasions throughout the book to a person's 'real self', or similar formulations. It isn't clear what this means- I wonder whether he is suggesting that self-hood comprises something beyond what a person does and thinks. This somewhat mysterious suggestion goes unexplained.

In short, the book is useful as a reminder that teaching should be flexible enough to accommodate children who learn in a variety of different ways, but I didn't take much else from it.



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Review- Lolly Willowes

Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The protagonist of this novel- Laura Willowes- moves in with her brother and his wife after the death of her father. She picks up the nickname 'Lolly', and the loss of her real name seems to mirror the loss of her independence. However, after many years, she surprises her relatives by moving to a small town on her own initiative, and becoming a witch.

The first half of the book is written in a laconic, dryly witty style. Laura's relatives and their deathly dull existence are detailed deftly, in a way that is often very funny. There's a real sense of strangled domesticity- meals are always served at a certain time, after which, the men rest to avoid disturbing their digestion. Meanwhile, Caroline, Laura's sister in law, takes particular care with how the washing is folded, in accordance with her belief that neat underwear is an expression of godliness. Even the advent of world war does not change family life much.

The writing may not be to all tastes, as the pacing is very slow- there are few concrete events. However, it is infused with a deep sense of pathos and whimsy that well evokes the environment the author describes. This is a lot of quiet drama.

I did not enjoy the second half of the novel as much. The symbolism of becoming a witch to escape social convention seemed forced and obvious. Also, although I like magic realism/fantasy sequences, the witch scenes are written entirely deadpan and came across as just silly sometimes- sitting in woods, chatting cod philosophy with the devil. I much preferred the first half of the book, where the social satire was more subtle, and Laura's character seemed better developed.

Overall, however, I'm glad to have discovered this author and will read more of her books in the future. She has the ability to depict mood over time in a way that is not easy to invoke, and that alone makes this book worth reading.



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Review- Other Minds

Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness by Peter Godfrey-Smith

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


In this book, Godfrey-Smith discusses the evolution of intelligence and consciousness, focusing on invertebrate species, particularly the octopus. It is loosely structured, with several chapters being essentially digressions on the author's personal experiences of interactions with octopus, or studies broadly related to the topic. This makes the book a little hard to follow at times, although it is an engaging and interesting work.

Godfrey-Smith is a philosopher and interprets the empirical findings of biological research philosophically. It is this combination that gives the book its power. It is unusual for a philosopher to study a particular group of animals- cephalopod species- in detail, and also to write about the philosophy of mind in a general fashion. The philosophy of mind is a subject that I confess to having little interest, but here, the discussion in grounded in a sufficiently interesting topic for it to be pleasurable to follow.

Godfrey-Smith is mostly an elegant writer, and his joy when recounting his personal encounters with octopus and cuttlefish are apparent throughout. His care for these creatures is also expressed powerfully and without undue sentiment. "When you dive into the sea, you are diving into the origin of us all".

All in all, the book is more a collection of loosely connected essays than a consistent narrative, but the author's blend of biology and philosophy enriches both subjects and rewards reading and re-reading.



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