The Stage

Knock Against My Heart

Published Wednesday 15 October 2008 at 12:50 by Catherine Usher

Light on dialogue and heavy on movement, Knock Against My Heart - inspired by The Tempest - is awash with the feeling that a lot of time and energy has been spent exploring themes and asking questions.

Aimed at an audience aged 14 and over, the hour-long show is the kind of play that will generate hours of discussion back in the classroom, as the variety of characters and their emotions and situations are dissected.

Innocent and enthusiastic Miranda (Mariana Whitehouse) is at the heart of the piece, aiming to please her father Prospero, and yet seduced by the intriguing Caliban (William De Paula), a relationship she knows her father will object to. Andre Santinho as Prospero does the fiery Latino father routine convincingly as he forbids his daughter any contact with Caliban and locks her in her room.

Dani Machancoses fills the comic, loveable rogue role nicely, but it is De Paula as the mysterious, almost animalistic Caliban who commands the audience’s attention. Prowling around the stage, his athleticism is a sight to behold, especially in the intimate setting of the Clore Theatre. As he flips and cartwheels around the edge of the stage, it’s funny to see the audience members quickly tuck away their legs for fear of him tumbling straight over them.

Although its content is clearly drawn from The Tempest, as a stand-alone tale, Knock Against My Heart is an imaginative, colourful, frequently dream-like yarn. However, at times the company’s exploration process can become a little self-indulgent. It runs for just an hour - any longer and the less inquisitive viewers could well switch off.