The Red Balloon
presented by Tongue and Groove Theatre
The Austin
Chronicle
The Red Balloon
BY ELIZABETH COBBE
July 28, 2008
Salvage Vanguard Theater, through July 26, 2008 | Running time: 1 hr
Remember that kid in school? You know, the loner kid who never played with anybody else at recess, who sat by himself at lunch with his lunch box on his knees?
Oh, right. A lot of us were that kid.
Tongue and Groove Theatre's original show The Red Balloon dredges up several memories starring that kid and dramatizes them onstage, not in a weirdo-turns-raging-killer way, but in a way that is innocent, charming, and heartwarming. The boy, played by Artistic Director Mark Stewart, is a dreamer and a loner, and on the way home one day, he discovers a giant red balloon with a giant personality. The two of them get along and dance and prance and enjoy themselves thoroughly, and the boy finds himself looking at the lives of people around him through changed eyes. Then along comes a trio of bullies who make life interesting for the boy and his balloon-buddy.
It's a simple story, but it's one that's told in such a way that you find yourself floating from scene to scene much like the titular balloon. That effect comes from a few different places. First, there's the staging. This is a play sans dialogue, and the cast of 18 actors and dancers gets to exercise fully their sense of timing. Standouts include Zeb L. West as the masked elderly gentleman, Jeanne Harris as the teacher, and Kelli Bland, who might just be the cutest, angriest little hoodlum this side of the Mississippi.
Next, there's the music, scored by Justin Sherburn and brought to life by an eightpiece orchestra. With no spoken language in this show, the music sets the rhythm and mood for the actors, and it, too, soothes rather than blasts. The music rescues what might otherwise be the occasional corny moment, keeping the whole show within the realm of exploration and play.
The animation is what makes the show. Designed by Leah Sharpe, the graphics are clever, easy on the eye, and thoroughly theatrical. Like the costumes, they are in muted tones, and while it's only the balloons (yes, red balloon gets a girlfriend) whose colors grab the eye, the animations are the friendly backdrop to a kindly show.
Director David Yeakle's staging looks to meld physical performance with the visual effects, which requires great coordination from the entire cast and technical crew. Opening night saw a handful of flubs and fumbles, as if the company were only just then settling into the play's rhythm. Perhaps a few choices were overambitious, but this is a play that requires bravery, and the creative team has given their all. The Red Balloon ends after barely an hour, leaving in its place a pleasant feeling, like something dark and heavy has been lifted up and carried far, far away.
Austin 360:
‘The Red Balloon’ at Salvage Vanguard Theatre
By Clare Croft
Monday, July 21, 2008, 11:12 AM
Accompanied by the tinkle of a glockenspiel, Mark Stewart slowly spins, hugging a giant red balloon. The moment is enchanting.
Stewart is the artistic director of Tongue and Groove Theatre and the central boy in the company’s newest production, “The Red Balloon.” The play, running at Salvage Vanguard Theatre through July 26, brings the short 1956 French film of the same name to the stage.
But it is the production’s offstage aspects — a live band playing music by Justin Sherburn and projected animation by Leah Sharpe — that give the show warmth. By the time a cadre of balloons float the boy away as real balloons rain down, I felt like Stewart’s balloon — hugged in public. The play’s sentimentality is not too gooey, but instead fresh and charming.
Through movement and cartoon, [choreographer Jennifer Sherburn and director David Yeakle], creates a stroll-able city for Stewart and cohort. Projections of city sidewalks and buildings scroll backwards as the actors walk in place. With the exception of the oddly graceful balloon that thinks for itself, this is any city, anywhere. The anonymous locale is the play’s largest shift from the film, which situates its characters in post-WWII Paris.
But comfort can be more openly prized in the Tongue and Groove show than in a war-torn France. The show’s music progresses from tinkle and plip-plop to harder rock. The eight-person ensemble picks up the audience and cast, carrying them along. Stewart and his balloon will face adversity; Kelli Bland is the funniest long-legged hoodlum in the duo’s path. No matter: Music, cartoon and omniscient balloon assure that all will end well.
Austinist:
The Red Balloon
Francophiles and non-Francophiles alike will probably recall a vague feeling of pleasant warmth when they hear the name The Red Balloon—now, was that a book or a film or a play? Definitely something we liked as a child.... Turns out, it was in fact an award-winning French film, and thanks to Tongue and Groove Theatre's live production of the story, it's now something we absolutely love as adults.
Tongue and Groove's Red Balloon is an enchanting mix of animation, live action, live music and clever choreography. It's the tale of a boy—played with wonder by Mark Stewart, the company's co-artistic director—and his quick friendship with a precocious red balloon. The dialogue-free show meanders through a couple of days in the red balloon's life, helped along by a heart-breaking and heart-soaring live score composed by Okkervil River's Justin Sherburn. (Oh yes, there are MP3's!)
The boy's friends and enemies are played by a delightful ensemble of grown-ups who've mastered the art of becoming children again. Especially pleasing is Mimi Kayl-Vaughan's sweet-faced portrayal of the girl with the blue balloon. They all look lovely in front of Leah Sharpe's animated backgrounds. And there's even some audience interaction at the end that we won't spoil for you.
O, these adjectives! Lovely, delightful, enchanting, pleasing—there's just no way to describe the sheer magic of this play without sounding fluffy and silly. It's a kid's play in all the right ways—heartwarming, sweet—without the pap and clichés found so often in children's theatre. The Red Balloon is the perfect date play...or the perfect place to take your kids...or the perfect place to take your mom...or the perfect place to be with anyone, really. But hurry—it closes this weekend.
The Austin Chronicle:
Top 10 Theatrical Treasures and Pleasures of 2008
BY ROBERT FAIRES
5) The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre) Our most whimsical stage company doing what it does best: infusing a work of theatre with a sense of wonder. This children's classic was delivered with a disarming innocence, theatrical ingenuity, gorgeous animation by Leah Sharpe, and a captivating score by Justin Sherburn.
Top 10 Parts and Wholes (In No Particular Order), Plus One Standout
BY HANNAH KENAH
10) The lovely imagination of The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre)
Top 10 Belly Laughs of 2008
BY ELIZABETH COBBE
5) Kelli Bland, the cutest hoodlum of all, in The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre)
The Red Balloon
BY ELIZABETH COBBE
July 28, 2008
Salvage Vanguard Theater, through July 26, 2008 | Running time: 1 hr
Remember that kid in school? You know, the loner kid who never played with anybody else at recess, who sat by himself at lunch with his lunch box on his knees?
Oh, right. A lot of us were that kid.
Tongue and Groove Theatre's original show The Red Balloon dredges up several memories starring that kid and dramatizes them onstage, not in a weirdo-turns-raging-killer way, but in a way that is innocent, charming, and heartwarming. The boy, played by Artistic Director Mark Stewart, is a dreamer and a loner, and on the way home one day, he discovers a giant red balloon with a giant personality. The two of them get along and dance and prance and enjoy themselves thoroughly, and the boy finds himself looking at the lives of people around him through changed eyes. Then along comes a trio of bullies who make life interesting for the boy and his balloon-buddy.
It's a simple story, but it's one that's told in such a way that you find yourself floating from scene to scene much like the titular balloon. That effect comes from a few different places. First, there's the staging. This is a play sans dialogue, and the cast of 18 actors and dancers gets to exercise fully their sense of timing. Standouts include Zeb L. West as the masked elderly gentleman, Jeanne Harris as the teacher, and Kelli Bland, who might just be the cutest, angriest little hoodlum this side of the Mississippi.
Next, there's the music, scored by Justin Sherburn and brought to life by an eightpiece orchestra. With no spoken language in this show, the music sets the rhythm and mood for the actors, and it, too, soothes rather than blasts. The music rescues what might otherwise be the occasional corny moment, keeping the whole show within the realm of exploration and play.
The animation is what makes the show. Designed by Leah Sharpe, the graphics are clever, easy on the eye, and thoroughly theatrical. Like the costumes, they are in muted tones, and while it's only the balloons (yes, red balloon gets a girlfriend) whose colors grab the eye, the animations are the friendly backdrop to a kindly show.
Director David Yeakle's staging looks to meld physical performance with the visual effects, which requires great coordination from the entire cast and technical crew. Opening night saw a handful of flubs and fumbles, as if the company were only just then settling into the play's rhythm. Perhaps a few choices were overambitious, but this is a play that requires bravery, and the creative team has given their all. The Red Balloon ends after barely an hour, leaving in its place a pleasant feeling, like something dark and heavy has been lifted up and carried far, far away.
Austin 360:
‘The Red Balloon’ at Salvage Vanguard Theatre
By Clare Croft
Monday, July 21, 2008, 11:12 AM
Accompanied by the tinkle of a glockenspiel, Mark Stewart slowly spins, hugging a giant red balloon. The moment is enchanting.
Stewart is the artistic director of Tongue and Groove Theatre and the central boy in the company’s newest production, “The Red Balloon.” The play, running at Salvage Vanguard Theatre through July 26, brings the short 1956 French film of the same name to the stage.
But it is the production’s offstage aspects — a live band playing music by Justin Sherburn and projected animation by Leah Sharpe — that give the show warmth. By the time a cadre of balloons float the boy away as real balloons rain down, I felt like Stewart’s balloon — hugged in public. The play’s sentimentality is not too gooey, but instead fresh and charming.
Through movement and cartoon, [choreographer Jennifer Sherburn and director David Yeakle], creates a stroll-able city for Stewart and cohort. Projections of city sidewalks and buildings scroll backwards as the actors walk in place. With the exception of the oddly graceful balloon that thinks for itself, this is any city, anywhere. The anonymous locale is the play’s largest shift from the film, which situates its characters in post-WWII Paris.
But comfort can be more openly prized in the Tongue and Groove show than in a war-torn France. The show’s music progresses from tinkle and plip-plop to harder rock. The eight-person ensemble picks up the audience and cast, carrying them along. Stewart and his balloon will face adversity; Kelli Bland is the funniest long-legged hoodlum in the duo’s path. No matter: Music, cartoon and omniscient balloon assure that all will end well.
Austinist:
The Red Balloon
Francophiles and non-Francophiles alike will probably recall a vague feeling of pleasant warmth when they hear the name The Red Balloon—now, was that a book or a film or a play? Definitely something we liked as a child.... Turns out, it was in fact an award-winning French film, and thanks to Tongue and Groove Theatre's live production of the story, it's now something we absolutely love as adults.
Tongue and Groove's Red Balloon is an enchanting mix of animation, live action, live music and clever choreography. It's the tale of a boy—played with wonder by Mark Stewart, the company's co-artistic director—and his quick friendship with a precocious red balloon. The dialogue-free show meanders through a couple of days in the red balloon's life, helped along by a heart-breaking and heart-soaring live score composed by Okkervil River's Justin Sherburn. (Oh yes, there are MP3's!)
The boy's friends and enemies are played by a delightful ensemble of grown-ups who've mastered the art of becoming children again. Especially pleasing is Mimi Kayl-Vaughan's sweet-faced portrayal of the girl with the blue balloon. They all look lovely in front of Leah Sharpe's animated backgrounds. And there's even some audience interaction at the end that we won't spoil for you.
O, these adjectives! Lovely, delightful, enchanting, pleasing—there's just no way to describe the sheer magic of this play without sounding fluffy and silly. It's a kid's play in all the right ways—heartwarming, sweet—without the pap and clichés found so often in children's theatre. The Red Balloon is the perfect date play...or the perfect place to take your kids...or the perfect place to take your mom...or the perfect place to be with anyone, really. But hurry—it closes this weekend.
The Austin Chronicle:
Top 10 Theatrical Treasures and Pleasures of 2008
BY ROBERT FAIRES
5) The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre) Our most whimsical stage company doing what it does best: infusing a work of theatre with a sense of wonder. This children's classic was delivered with a disarming innocence, theatrical ingenuity, gorgeous animation by Leah Sharpe, and a captivating score by Justin Sherburn.
Top 10 Parts and Wholes (In No Particular Order), Plus One Standout
BY HANNAH KENAH
10) The lovely imagination of The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre)
Top 10 Belly Laughs of 2008
BY ELIZABETH COBBE
5) Kelli Bland, the cutest hoodlum of all, in The Red Balloon (Tongue and Groove Theatre)