Writer/performer Oscar McLennan. Photo by Erica Peroni
A theatre production about a housebound misanthrope who spends his time masturbating, bemoaning the absence of an ex-lover, dreaming of Spain and engaging in staring competitions with flies, could be deeply entertaining; a tragicomic drama featuring a paranoid protagonist whose flaws reveal almost too much about the human condition. It may have been Glasgow-born, Dublin-based writer/performer Oscar McLennan’s intention to create just such a work with Kiss of the Chicken King. If so, he has not succeeded.
This laboured and charmless production – a series of monologues interspersed with songs and low-fi projections – feels amateur in the extreme, an impression not helped on opening night by McLennan forgetting his lines and having to ask awkwardly for a prompt. Certainly it seems out of place amidst the many polished and professional works present at the Adelaide Festival.
McLennan’s writing lacks wit and poetry; save for a colourful sequence set on the London Underground, his material is all too prosaic, with the result that there is little depth and no emotional resonance in the character he presents on stage. The production was further hindered by a laboured performance; McLennan’s delivery is awkward, with little sign of craft or comic timing.
The presence of musician Martin Tournish on the accordion, with McLennan occasionally joining him on acoustic guitar, provided some pleasing distractions from proceedings, though McLennan’s lyrics were somewhat trite and simplistic, as were the visual projections screened periodically behind them. Backing vocalist Erica Peroni joined the pair on stage periodically, looking bored in the extreme, echoing the emotions felt by this frustrated reviewer.
Rating: 1.5 stars out of 5
Kiss of the Chicken King
Written and Performed by: Oscar McLennan
Music: Martin Tourish and Oscar McLennan
Visual Projections: Kevin McAleer and Oscar McLennan
Creative Consultant and ‘Ghost in the Mirror’: Olwen Fouere
Costume, Photos and Backing Vocals: Erica Peroni
Production Manager, Lighting and Visual Design Assistant: Noelia Ruiz
Commissioned by Adelaide Festival
Queen’s Theatre, Adelaide
1-4 March
Adelaide Festival 2014
www.adelaidefestival.com.au
28 February – 16 March
