Saame Sita

Cast: Estrid Barton as Noaide/Kuepekaf, Ailie Cohen as Stallo the Giant/Biegolmai/Ravna, Norman Chalmers as Father/Leeaibe-Olmmai, Robyn Hunt as Jabmiekha/Marish, Saana Stellan as Mattarakka, John Hollywood as Uldarak the Raven, Kevin MacIsaac as Meandash, Jim McSharry as Slunta the Seal.

N.B. Saame Sita was also reviewed in the arts press in Sweden and Norway, and on radio in northern Norway. The play was also featured on BBC Radio Scotland’s Arts Show.

2 Reviews

1. Mary Brennan in The Herald, December 2003: Saame Sita (Theatre Workshop)
2. Alan McCreadie, in the Edinburgh Guide.com (December 2003): Saame Sita (Theatre Workshop)

Mary Brennan in The Herald, December 2003: Saame Sita (Theatre Workshop)

Outside, the rain was doing its best to turn to sleet – inside, on-stage, the land of the Sami was gripped by never-ending winter, darkness and famine. Jabmiekha, the Queen of Death, had spread her curse across the land and had purloined not just the light but also the songs, dances, stories that fed the imagination, the very souls of the Sami.

If ever this life-blood of culture was to be retrieved, then someone would have to brave all kind of dangers to bring back the sacred drum. Writer Suhayl Saadi weaves this, and elements of other traditional stories and pre-Christian Sami beliefs, into a tale that reflects Theatre Workshop's ongoing policy of drawing seasonal inspiration from beyond our own familiar legends and folklore.

It's unlikely younger children will appreciate the skill which he, and musical director Norman Chalmers, have used in clothing the adventure with accurately-researched details. But designer Janis Hart's wintry landscapes, the frosty whiteness offset by splashes of costume-colour, are appealing as are the animal-guises of Raven (John Hollywood), Seal (Jim McSharry) and Reindeer (Kevin MacIsaac) that tap into the culture of shape-shifting. Morven Gregor directs the Workshop's integrated cast towards a poetic staging of the quest, rather than a panto-jolly clash between good and evil.

At times, it is intensely wordy and – despite Ailie Cohen, on stilts as a wicked, greedy giant – there's not much humour or knockabout. But Sanna Stellan's gung-ho Mattarakka is a feisty heroine who – with her beloved Reindeer Prince – finally confronts the Queen (Robyn Hunt, icy menace with a flame-spitting sceptre) and releases the drum – a happy ending to a curious foray that probably confuses and intrigues youngsters in equal measure.

Outside, the rain was doing its best to turn to sleet – inside, on-stage, the land of the Sami was gripped by never-ending winter, darkness and famine. Jabmiekha, the Queen of Death, had spread her curse across the land and had purloined not just the light but also the songs, dances, stories that fed the imagination, the very souls of the Sami.

If ever this life-blood of culture was to be retrieved, then someone would have to brave all kind of dangers to bring back the sacred drum. Writer Suhayl Saadi weaves this, and elements of other traditional stories and pre-Christian Sami beliefs, into a tale that reflects Theatre Workshop's ongoing policy of drawing seasonal inspiration from beyond our own familiar legends and folklore.

It's unlikely younger children will appreciate the skill which he, and musical director Norman Chalmers, have used in clothing the adventure with accurately-researched details. But designer Janis Hart's wintry landscapes, the frosty whiteness offset by splashes of costume-colour, are appealing as are the animal-guises of Raven (John Hollywood), Seal (Jim McSharry) and Reindeer (Kevin MacIsaac) that tap into the culture of shape-shifting. Morven Gregor directs the Workshop's integrated cast towards a poetic staging of the quest, rather than a panto-jolly clash between good and evil.

At times, it is intensely wordy and – despite Ailie Cohen, on stilts as a wicked, greedy giant – there's not much humour or knockabout. But Sanna Stellan's gung-ho Mattarakka is a feisty heroine who – with her beloved Reindeer Prince – finally confronts the Queen (Robyn Hunt, icy menace with a flame-spitting sceptre) and releases the drum – a happy ending to a curious foray that probably confuses and intrigues youngsters in equal measure.

Alan McCreadie, in the Edinburgh Guide.com (December 2003): Saame Sita (Theatre Workshop)

Theatre Workshop is dedicated to exploring in unusual ways the seasonal themes of magic and renewal. This finds expression this year in a wonderfully absorbing romantic quest-tale from the tiny, but culturally diverse, Sami populations of Scandinavia.

The story opens with Meandash, the Reindeer Prince, Kevin MacIsaac, asking for the hand of Mattarakka, Saana Stellan, in marriage. She accepts, but before they can be wed, Meandash must find the kannus, a sacred shamanic drum which has the power to bring winter to an end. A winter which has already been three years long thanks to the malevolence of Jabmiekha, the Ice Queen. To help in his quest, Meandash enlists the help of a raven and a seal, each of whom can bring guidance in their natural elements of air and sea. And so they set off to travel into the mystical and treacherous realm of the underworld, to challenge a sorceress, a giant and a wicked queen.

As a spectacle, the show is vividly realised. A twinkling icescape is transformed into forest, cave and homestead. The costumes for the mythical figures, in particular, are inspired (remember to look at the giant's shoulders), and the 'joiks' (Sami songs) blend effortlessly into the narrative. Indeed, if I had the merest sliver of disappointment, it was only insofar as unfamiliarity meant the audience couldn't join in the singing at the end!

But really, this is a show packed with intelligence, fun and more than a little of that most essential of fairy-tale ingredients - fear! Complex ideas about ecology and politics engage the mind at the same time as good-versus-evil and sheer beauty capture the heart. A genuine treat.

© Lorraine McCann 12 December 2003. - Published on EdinburghGuide.com

[top]