Chronicle of a death fortold

This Friday night sees the opening of the major theatre event in the 2003 Sydney Festival, Chronicle Of A Death Foretold by the National Theatre of Colombia. Based on the novel by Gabriel Garc?M?uez with performers from Colombia, Cuba, Argentina and Puerto Rico, Chronicle continues the Latin American feel of the Festival (oh, and Beckettian and the rest. Themes for festivals are stupid anyway). Brett Sheehy told me in 2002 he discovered the production at the Caracas International Theatre Festival and he had never seen a performance style quite like it. It’s so big, is the best way to describe it, it’s so kind of passionate -¦ It could so easily be histrionic or over the top, but it’s not, said Sheehy, and further, -¦ there’s this amazing electricity on stage. It’s giving Sydney something it would never in a million years get to normally see, Sheehy said. So there. Catch the passion at the Theatre Royal from 17 to 25 January, and phone 9266 4826 for bookings.