Review by Jo Tomalin
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Tale of a Potato
What does a potato think about? How are potatoes born and what happens during their lives no mater how short? Batisfera, a theatre company from Italy have the answer in their new show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025! Potatoes are sturdy and functional vegetables and so is the interesting set for his show. We are greeted in a kitchen with an island counter for preparing food but in this case the wooden table top is the stage for the characters or rather the vegetables!
Our host is performer Valentina Fadda who skillfully moves the potato and its friends and relatives around the stage in a charming tabletop object puppetry style. Valentina developes a rapport with the audience as she begins to narrate the story, intermingled with conversations of the characters through her voice. Let’s start, she proclaims and we are in her care for this thirty minute show. We meet he most important character, the potato, and Valentina calls out it the Protagonist. We follow the potato through parts of its life meeting other vegetables such as the tall aubergine and personable squat cauliflower as the modest potato’s life journey begins.
Written and directed by Angelo Trofa the tale is fascinating and imaginative. Creative lighting design by Luca Carta is simple but effective and transforms with the set seamlessly for different scenes. The music by Luca Spanu supports the mood and action of the story well. Generally the sound levels might benefit from tweaking here and there in this space in order to appreciate and understand the narration when spoken fast or loud music when the narration happens.
Each new character has enough personality to keep this story moving and developing. Some of the most effective moments are when the narrator’s voice shares slowly and softly suggesting a tender moment of the life of our Protagonist Potato.
Months and seasons pass including a beautiful, wintery scene efficiently brought onstage and off. The dark atmosphere with the mini lighting in this bijou theatre is effective for these tubers et al to share their story. The writing moves swiftly from narrative to dialogue and questions for the audience to contemplate. It flows well yet at times I found myself wondering what was happening exactly, matching the narration with the action. There is much charm about this show and no doubt it will develop and finesse as the run progresses. Recommended!
More information:
https://www.batisfera.com/about-2/
