Skip to main content

Review of Feast Of Fools Storytelling #11 - Sarah Rundle at the NN Cafe, Northampton

A bustling and rowdy crowd had gathered for the eleventh Feast Of Fools evening and it was all very apt for Sarah Rundle's telling of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

DRINK!

Our introduction to the evening once again came from Richard York and together with Elizabeth they spirited us into the past with their ye olde instruments including that wonderful herdy gurdy again. The second half even included what was described as some medieval jamming (comment copyright Mrs Blake).

However the star of the evening and the one and only teller, was Sarah Rundle. Bounding onto the stage, dressed casually, telling us little of what a night we were in for. However for over ninety minutes and the longest evening of FoF yet, we sat, as is withing her palm entranced by a lively, relevant telling of the ancient tale of Gawain.

Made into a tremendously modern tale while maintaining the flavour of its origin, we were offered broadsides into quite brilliant PowerPoint presentations, a random reference to Brian Blessed, and a rant against British Gas (a very sore point I felt from past experience?). It was a really wonderfully worded tale delivered with glorious style. Just on the right balance between the traditional telling and the more dramatic style.

Us the audience (including the incredible boisterous and noisy yokels at the back) were all invited at times to get into the act, be it...

DRINK!

or in the first half a bit of medievel singing. The audience very much got into the act and without doubt were loving every minute.

There has been much to enjoy from the year of Feast of Fools, however very possibly this was the best yet. Sarah Rundle is deceptive at first, but while we may just be having a jolly good laugh during the first half, by the time we reach the second part, the laughter and joy has become the fully belly variety. A surfeit of laughter indeed and one to certainly try to catch somewhere. Perhaps the very best way to become a fan of storytelling if you haven't encountered it before. Now please...

DRINK!


Performance reviewed: Wednesday 2nd March, 2016 at the NN Cafe, Northampton.

For more details about Sarah Rundle, visit her website at http://www.sarahrundle.co.uk/
Feast Of Fools is held on the first Wednesday of each month at the NN Cafe
Full details can be found at https://www.facebook.com/StorytellingFeast and Twitter @FOFStorytelling
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Review of The House She Built at The Black Diamond, Northampton

Independent theatre company Nerve Theatre was founded in January 2025, when its first original production, Broken Party , took to the stage at Benn Hall in Rugby. That was followed the same year by a modern retelling of Frankenstein . Now, for 2026, Nerve Theatre founder Mia Ballard has written and directed The House She Built , staged for three nights at The Black Diamond, Northampton. The House She Built , set in 1950s Hollywood, is a dark thriller influenced by the lives of Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn and their treatment as women within the cogs of Hollywood. Our leading lady here is Nancy Carlton, who returns to Mellor Brothers Productions to make one final film. But something awaits her, and the scene is set for a period thriller that explores the grimy world behind Hollywood's apparently glamorous days. Michaela Clement-Hayes leads the cast as Nancy Carlton, the star troubled by her past, but returning to her old studio for that final mov...
Read more

Review of Barnum at Milton Keynes Theatre

Barnum , with a book by Mark Bramble, lyrics by Michael Stewart, and music by Cy Coleman, premiered on Broadway in 1980 and followed in the West End just a year later. At the helm for these two productions were two huge names in the entertainment business: Jim Dale on Broadway and Michael Crawford in the West End. It needed, of course, big names to fill the shoes of the legendary P. T. Barnum, whose tale is told in this now-fondly remembered musical. Filling these boots in this new production, now pitched at Milton Keynes Theatre, is Matt Rawle, a prolific theatre performer himself, but can he, and this production, live up to the iconic greatest showman? “Step right up and enter the dazzling world of P.T. Barnum, where imagination and ambition know no bounds”, the publicity for the show announces, and this new production of the now-classic Barnum - The Circus Musical mostly ticks these boxes. Rawle is a captivating and strong presence as the lead, bringing an infectious charm to the p...
Read more

Review of Lord of the Dance at Milton Keynes Theatre

On what was so far the hottest day of the year, and the highest in many a record book, it feels a tad evil to watch as a group of extremely talented performers bring to the stage one of the most famous and most energetic dance shows to tour. However, arriving now at Milton Keynes Theatre, as part of what is now the still rather immodestly titled 30 Years of Standing Ovations tour, Lord of the Dance remains full of energy even on the hottest of evenings in Milton Keynes. I last and first saw Lord of the Dance as part of the 25 Years of Standing Ovations tour, four years ago (yes, the sums don’t quite work), and it was every bit as spectacular as you could imagine this world-famous dance show is. Born into the world from Michael Flatley and the Riverdance spectacular that preceded it, Lord of the Dance is a simple but effective battle between good and evil and the resolution of it through dance rather than fighting. The dancing here is, as expected, exceptional, led by the Lord of the...
Read more