Last night, I saw Dragon at The Citizens Theatre in Glasgow; a co-production between the National Theatre of Scotland, Vox Motus, and Tianjin Children's Art Theatre. Like DV8 and New Adventures, this story was told almost entirely without words. The Narrative begins when the main character - Tommy - loses his mother. he soon begins to see a Chinese dragon in a number of forms, the first of which being an apparition in a street lamp, a la Marley's ghost in the door knocker in A Christmas Carol.
There are many ways in which to interpret the various manifestations of this dragon, one of which being that they represent the contrasting stages of grief. The fact that - to my recollection - there were seven distinct dragons certainly feeds into this idea. The second vision of Tommy's, supposedly formed from a chair in his bedroom, hits him on the head with a book, which Tommy had just thrown in fear. This could be an indirect act of self punishment, representing his regret and self hate surrounding his mother's death. This is followed by a red, fierce dragon; a house-sized, winged dragon that Tommy rides over the rooftops, and a big, white, protecting, Never-ending Story dragon towards the end of the play. These could denote anger, denial/escapism, and acceptance respectively. The idea that the 'denial' dragon forms from the roof on Tommy's house when he climbs up there to escape home life reinforces the concept of fantasy and avoidance with regard to his feelings of loss.
Stylistically, the puppetry used in Dragon is very much like that of war Horse, especially in how the performers become part of the puppets. In War Horse, the people controlling Joey's head, legs, and back end are all clearly visible, which somehow adds to the charm and realism of the production. It's the same deal with the various dragons in Dragon, especially the roof-denial incarnation where the head, tail, and each wing are all supported by a performer; there was definitely an air of Handspring Puppet Company about the whole aesthetic.
Another company that Dragon reminded me of was New Adventures. The initial vulnerability and loneliness of Tommy's character rang true of figures such as The Prince in Swan lake, Angelo in The Car Man, and Edward in Edward Scissorhands. This mixed with the strong, tireless physical theatre of Scott Miller's performance almost made for a classic Matthew Bourne outsider.
An asset worth mentioning from this production is the minimal use of scenery; this is where similarities to companies such as DV8 come in. For instance, the fridge in Tommy's kitchen is nothing more than a performer holding a door, with the lighting timed accordingly. I also loved how the use of performers was embraced, rather than covered up, and the scenery humanised. At one point, a whole swimming pool is created out of people in blue body suits, which has to be one of the most impressive things I've ever seen on stage.
Dragon has finished its run at The Citizens Theatre, but it's off to Dundee next, and I believe it'll be touring more widely after that. It's the perfect introduction to theatre for more mature children, but perhaps a little heavy for the little ones. It is marketed as a children's production, but me and my adult friends all enjoyed and related to it, and I'd encourage anyone to see it if you get the chance.
If you enjoyed Shrek: The Musical, How to Train your Dragon, or any episode of Game of Thrones, I fail to see how you won't get your claws into this magical tail...dragon puns aren't easy, OK?
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