REVIEW: SealSkin, Liverpool Everyman
THE flagship show of this year’s PhysicalFest is inspired by the myth of the selkies, and tells a moving and considered tale of community and belonging.
Selkies are mythological creatures, seals who shed their skins in light of the full moon to take on human form. An element of the legend I was less familiar with is the concept that humans who steal a selkie seal skin are supposedly then able to coerce them into marriage, and this quite tragic lore is the inspiration for Tmesis’s story.
Samuel Perez Duran’s lonely fisherman chances upon a seal skin on the beach, hides it and takes the creature home. There are shades of the melancholy Irish animation Song of the Sea, and on the brighter side, Pixar’s Luca in the lively community created in this performance. The vibrancy of busy crowd scenes, with multi roles for the five-strong cast, are deftly and effectively directed by Tmesis founder and AD Elinor Randle. There are funny moments to lighten the load, mostly from Mariana Pires’s cartoonish Mediterranean matriarch. But SealSkin tells its fairytale the more traditional way, where good guys aren’t always what they seem, and there’s no guarantee of a happy ending.
At the heart of this is a remarkable performance from Faye McCucheon as the selkie forced into human society and convention, all the while longing to return home. The nuance and intensity in McCutcheon’s physical performance is filled with curiosity and pathos, a classic Tmesis creation and certainly one of the company’s most striking; the conflicts in her plight reminding me of the 2013 show Wolf Red, performed solo by Randle and examining female societal roles.
A live soundtrack from me + deboe, an acoustic duo with the folk-ish twang of the likes of First Aid Kit, adds poignancy and a gentle ethereal atmosphere, at once contemporary and traditional.
Swathes of white fabric are used to good, simple effect for projecting backgrounds and becoming the all-consuming sea. The costuming too is simple and stylish, all the better for keeping focus on the movement on stage. The cast, completed by Stephanie Greer and Jaq Walker, make a strong ensemble and move together with skill and an intuitive energy.
There’s a timeless quality to SealSkin that comes from its folklore roots, the universality of its themes, and the choice to tell the story without discernible dialogue. Its potential to tour, potentially internationally, and captivate audiences of almost all ages is apparent.
Tmesis is a company that is constantly changing and challenging itself, setting ever higher standards and examining the collective human experience in different ways. This production is something new again, and with some unforgettable imagery and storytelling, certainly ranks among its best work.
