Writers: Luke Venneear and Natalie Bramely

Director: Dawn Richmond-Gordon

Reviewer: Val Baskott

The Public Reviews Rating:

Pirates, peglegs and parrots make a good start for any children’s show. The Lincoln Company headed up by actor-writers Luke Venneear and Natalie Bramely have sailed away on a long tortuous voyage with lots of fun and games on the way.

In this piratical tale of sibling rivalry Captains Codless (Venneear) and Pegleg are brother pirates who are both racing to find the magic medallion their wicked father has left one of them as his legacy. Brian the parrot puppet introduces the show and soon has the youngsters eating out of his claw. Codless is benign but a bit clueless and Pegleg is the natural villain always trying to foil his brother’s plans by making Brian his spy.

Pegleg recruits a motley crew with bizarre names and habits, including a girl in diguise (Bramely). They set sail for Plunge Island with a tendency to sing and dance at the slightest provocation. Organised mayhem follows when Tom Tom the negotiator, sorry, navigator loses his way through evil scheming. After several detours via strange lands and a spell of cabin fever a storm fortuitously drops them in the right place. There’s a nice twist before the medal turns up in an unlikely spot.

All the elements of child satisfaction are there, sword fights, pantomime, disguise, silly songs, water pistols and bubbles, and there are some good puns and topical gags for grown-ups too. The company uses the space well with some lively ensemble dance routines and the pre–recorded film sequences neatly show that Brian can really fly. Bearing in mind that singing and dancing at the same time is tricky, the songs need to have clearer lyrics and the cast could work at better projection. Sharp direction by Dawn Richmond-Gordon contains the chaos without dampening the fun. One engrossed young audience member was on his second visit.

Runs until August 27th

 

Tags: 2012, C Venues, Captain Codless and the Legend of Plunge Island, Ctoo, Dawn Richmond-Gordon, Ed Fringe, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Fringe, Luke Venneear, Natalie Brameley, The Lincoln Company