After the success of the first run of Philip Ridley’s Tender Napalm in January and February, Unifaun Theatre Productions is reprising this modern parable of love and loss… first again at St James Cavalier this week and then at the world-famous Edinburgh Festival Fringe next month.
The play – a high-impact, high-concept exploration of the relationship between two people – explores what happens when the unthinkable happens.
The opportunity to take Tender Napalm to the Fringe came about by a twist of fate.
“We were receiving lots of positive reviews and I decided to forward them to my e-mail contacts for marketing purposes. I accidentally e-mailed ‘C Venues’ in Edinburgh who eventually asked me to bring the show to the Fringe,” explains Unifaun founder and producer Adrian Buckle.
Unifaun will be testing itself against professional companies in an environment where there are over 1,000 shows going on. Hopefully, it will be a positive experience
“At first, I ignored the request, but when I told the actors, they wanted my head for not telling them immediately! They convinced me to take the risk and take the show to the Fringe.”
The Edinburgh leg of the production would not have been possible without the invaluable help of the Malta Arts Fund Mobility Fund, as well as from its other loyal sponsors.
“This is a new adventure,” adds Buckle. “Unifaun will be testing itself against professional companies in an environment where there are over 1,000 shows going on. Hopefully, it will be a positive experience.”
Tender Napalm is directed by Toni Attard and assisted by Lizzie Eldridge. It stars Andre Agius as Man and Bettina Paris as Woman. Choreography is by Sandra Mifsud. Set design is by Romualdo Moretti, sound design is by Michael Quinton and lighting design is by Chris Gatt.
According to Attard, the work on Tender Napalm has developed significantly since its first production: “I had to redesign the piece to work on three sides instead of four and ensure that the production works within the Edinburgh venue requirements – five-minute ‘get in’ and ‘get out’ for lights, sound and set.
These limitations made us focus on what really matters: the interaction between the two actors. We travel with two small wooden boxes, a few props and a bag of sand.”
Revisiting the piece was a great opportunity to strengthen the emotional and physical relationship between the two characters and, Attard says, both the actors have risen to the occasion.
“After more than six months working intensively on Tender Napalm, both actors are in top form. I’ve seen them mature in the process and they are ready to share their work with Maltese audiences and with Fringe punters,” he says.
Paris says that she has not been able to keep still since she got the news that she will be performing at the Fringe.
“When I found out Tender Napalm was scheduled to form part of the festival, I was over the moon!” she exclaims. “The overall vibe of the festival must be a highly energetic one so I’m hoping for a very eager audience. I can’t wait to be on stage in a foreign country, to perform in front of a multinational audience, to push my boundaries both physically and mentally and hopefully meet new people who love theatre life as much as I do.”
Agius is also looking forward to the experience.
“It’s not every day that one gets to go to the Fringe, let alone perform there; so I would say I’m pretty excited. It has always been a dream of mine to be part of the atmosphere that congregates yearly at this festival. It is just simply amazing to think that I too will be forming part of the festival showcasing our own talent.”
• Tender Napalm is being staged at St James Cavalier today, tomorrow, Friday and Sunday at 8pm and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival between August 10-25.
Tickets for the Malta run can be bought by phone on 2122 3216, e-mail: box-office@sjcav.org or online: www.sjcav.org.