And they were happy.
Appearing at the end of a tale this line seems simplistic.
Anywhere else it is ominous.
Happiness will be disrupted. The power of the folk tale, despite its exotic and anti-naturalistic setting, is its assertion that we want peace, but it shall be denied us.
This is their insight: not the denial, but the desire.
Told By Night is a series of adapted Eastern European folk tales. They are deeply moving tales of family and death.
Beautifully written by Jonathan Dunk, Finn Davis and Jem Rowe, their strength comes from their simplicity.
They are presented somewhere closer to a telling than a dramatization. Directed by Dunk, the performances are absolutely captivating, with both voice and movement seemingly balanced between improvisation and choreography.
This creates a spellbinding immediacy which enhances one of the most fascinating aspects of this piece. These tales were told to the audience, but also to (and with) those present on stage. We hear and see the tales. We hear and see the responses to them.
Stories don’t represent reality. (Especially not folk tales.) They are not truthful. They play us.
The wind chime doesn’t ask if the wind is true.
Veronica Kaye
Skazka, Told by Night
New Theatre
2 shows left Wed 25 Sept and Sat 28 Sept
Theatre Red 
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