... Hail, Caledonia Kilmarnock This Mike Clark production at the Palace certainly proved that a strong Scottish variety production can pull them in. And the audi ence nearly lifted the roof several times in rapturous appreciation of what was most assuredly a splendid show. It would have done the hearts of pros the world of good to have witnessed this joyful return. The atmosphere was electric. ...

... Lee Hurst Preston Anyone who thought it was all over after the first 100 minutes of this set, was in for a pleasant, or disappointing, surprise-depending on how they had enjoyed the fast-talking filibuster. When the lights came up for the first time there was still another 20 minutes of performance left in the East Ender at this his first Guild Hall appeaarance. The past couple of years ...

... Tip top hoppers Elaine Mayson witnessed an evening of dancing which brought together three generations of the lindy hop and rhythm tap styles The third London Lindy Hop Festival '96 went out with a bang, no ordinary cabaret, but a spectacular performance held at the Bloomsbury Theatre. The show was open to the public. but the festival members were issued with free passes to a golden evening of ...

... Eddi Reader Aberystwyth At the Arts Centre, the atmosphere of a basement club prevailed for this concert by former Fairground Attraction lead singer Eddi Reader. It was a good experience, even though the redheaded singers outstanding vocal talents were not clearly evident in her earty performance. But this was because the backing music was a touch too loud, and as she gained in confidence, so ...

... Four Saints in Three Acts Edinburgh International Festival Playhouse Although a Broadway success when it was first staged in 1934, this opera by Virgil Thomson with libretto by Gertrude Stein is rarely performed, and one can readily understand why. The absence of story and action is deliberate, expressing Stein's rejection of i cal structures, as does the minimal- ist text of the absurd. It ...

... Time and the Room Edinburgh International Festival Royal Lyceum If memory Is all we've got we're in a bad way. The collection of contemporary urban types who turn up in Botho Strauss' Time and the Room can hardly remember a thing. A bit like Beckett, they have a faint feeling that they may have met before or even enjoyed themselves together, but as for detail or mean ing, well that is a ...

... Norman Lovett Cafe Royal Norman is the famously mellow, favourite uncle that would give an eight-year-old £1 accompanied with a warm wink to buy a Star Bar and say: There you go son, but don't tell your mum. The crooked-nosed wit returns to his usual haunt to release his relaxing, entertaining influence upon us all with a gen tle manner and family-suited sto ries. The title refers to his ...

... The Scooby Doo Generation City Cafe Angus is a scrounging Sega addict. Jane dresses like Miss Whiplash and Victoria is an uptight, pretty, blonde with big dreams of holding court with Richard and Judy. Lined up on a leopard-print sofa for an evening of television, they squabble furiously with each other and escape into their private fantasies. Sharply written and well per formed, this show ...

... Owen O'Neill Traverse O'Neill, from County Tyrone, tells wit-filled stories about his upbring ing and his present misde meanours as a hod-carrier, in this superblyvmtten and well- portrayed show. Shouting from the Scaffold. He is a brilliant storyteller with an acute sense of timing and expression, always releasing his cracking punchlines at the optimum moment. After skipping last year's festi ...

... Mai Randolph Studio Hana Umemoto gives a very skillec and richly expressive performance of Mai-- traditional Japanese dance-with great subtlety of gesture and superb timing creating different characters and their moods. In Ama and the Crystal Ball she dances the legend of an ama a woman diver, who recovers a crys tal ball from the sea for an aristo crat, cutting open her breast tc put the ...

... Dancing with Desire C Subtitled a poetic fandango with the erotic and the bawdy, this recitation-style production by the Beyond the Proscenium Company of California is in no sense a one- act play (as it claims) but rather a collage of erotic poetry and sexy snippets from many cultures. Teriryn Nichols, the director and adapter, has gathered sensual extracts from Ancient Greek, Sanskrit, ...

... Aaron & Duncan's Voyage to Euphoria The Honeycomb A snappy title is essential at festi val time to get audiences and crit ics in, even if it has nothing to do with the show. A better title would probably be Aaron Watson and Duncan Starkie's Guide to Two Drama Graduates Arsing About, stamping loudly, spitting, making a disgusting mess, telling wild and occasionally poignant stories, dancing a ...