There were two hot air balloons serenely floating above St Werburgh’s last night. And however long you have lived in Bristol, you can’t help but look up and be taken in by the spectacle.
The flights couldn’t have been better timed to coincide with the press night of Myrtle Theatre Company’s Hot Air at the Tobacco Factory Theatre, set in nearby Ashton Court during the Balloon Fiesta.
Anyone who has been to the Fiesta will recognise its tribes, and they are all represented here: couples who lay out their picnic blanket on the same spot every year, bickering young families, corporate schmoozers in the hospitality area.
Vic Llewellyn as one “balloonatic”, especially his description of the special shapes from Rupert the Bear to a fire hydrant, is worth the admission price alone.
The actors flit between roles in seconds. For example, Jack Riddiford, in his professional stage debut, plays a posh toff as well as a “chav” who another posh toff befriends.
At all times, proceedings are overseen by omnipresent narrator Trevor Sellers, a cross between Richard Gere and councillor Simon Cook.
Storylines are as tightly interwoven as the wicker in a hot air balloon’s basket, with no real stand-out tale.
Mike Akers’ dialogue is rather simplistic at times, and the endings a bit too hackneyed, with boy meets girl and a second chance given to what looked like a hopeless cause.
But there is also a real feel-good factor, with Heather Williams’ directing seeing the drama and excitement of the Balloon Fiesta joyfully brought to the stage.
“It’s just brilliant, it’s just brilliant” goes the refrain, not Olivier Award-winning lyrics but a reminder that the sung elements – composed by Kieran Buckeridge and some of the best moments in the show – are taken verbatim from interviews.
The enthusiasm for flying is almost infectious, and the sense of height is conveyed by model houses including one which looks like the flats with the triangular balconies between the ss Great Britain and Brunel’s Buttery.
This is just reminder that Hot Air is a production rooted in Bristol, pangs of recognition aplenty for anyone who has attended a Balloon Fiesta.
Hot Air is at the Tobacco Factory Theatre until August 10. Visit www.tobaccofactorytheatre.com/shows/detail/hot_air/ for more information.
Photos by Graham Burke
