Coyote Ugly

Finborough Theatre
29 June - 24 July 2004

Coyote Ugly

by Lynn Siefert

Critics' Choice:	Time Out, Robert Shore
Play of the Week:	The Church of England Newsletter

Sound Bites

"If you fancy feeling the sand between your toes this week, Lynn Siefert's 'Coyote Ugly' (no relation to the film of the same name) may be just what you're looking for."
"In this elemental drama, the characters… express themselves in a vivid, gritty, imagistic patois. It's one of the great strengths of Max Lewendel's production."
"The meticulous stage design evokes the play's desert setting so powerfully."
"The excellent cast certainly enter into the spirit of the script's exotic form of domestic madness."
"Part Sam Shepard, part sexed-up Three Stooges."
"An intense and wittily uncivilised evening's entertainment."

-Robert Shore, Time Out

"The five-member cast fill the dim confines of the theatre like a desert storm."
"A cynical version of Meet the Parents set in the isolationist Southwestern America."
"As the story… unfolds, one can just about feel the Arizona sun's unrelenting scorch on the fragile lives beneath it."

-Le Roux Schoeman, The Church of England Newspaper

"Scarlet, a wild 12-year-old, like a coyote bitch in heat."
"90 minutes of manic hysteria in a sea of words and forceful action."
"A dazzling turn by Jade Magri as Scarlet."
"A beautifully restrained, delicately erotic performance by Annie Julian as Dowd's mum."

-John Thaxter, What's On

"My those Arizona desert folks is queer."
"In theme and style it descends from the Sam Shepard school of white-trash families picking away at old sores."
"Deep sand covers the stage, deliberately blurring any boundary between home and desert. Lewendel is co-designer (with Chris Hone) and his direction draws from the cast the hyper-physical playing that goes with the genre."
"Edmund Dehn's Red is a vivid compound of cunning and defeat.... Jade Magri's Scarlet a frenzied waif... Good acting too from Callum Walker, Annie Julian and Lisa Renée."

-Jeremy Kingston, The Times

"Overheated hormonal explosion."
"This play has something far more ambitious but also more shocking. "
" Scarlet, given real life by the impressive Jade Magri, is decidedly odd."
"Coyote Ugly is not a play for the weak stomached or callow. It delves into the taboo of incest without prurience but in considerable depth."
"This intense slice of unseen American life is well worth a visit."
"American director Max Lewendel has collected a strong cast who thankfully all manage absolutely convincing accents."
"This sexy, steamy drama really hits home, especially after delivering the scorpion sting in its tail."

-Philip Fisher, British Theatre Guide

"An enjoyable snapshot of Weirdsville, USA."
"Director Max Lewendel follows in illustrious footsteps with his production of Lynn Siefert's twisted tale of dysfunctional family life."
"Scarlet (Jade Magri) launches an explosive tirade against her mother."
"Dowd possesses a high sexual charge which neither his mother nor his sister can resist."
"Through various heated tableaux, the family rails and succumbs to its collective attractions."
"The stark, unforgiving Arizona desert is the only constant that remains."
"In Lewendel's production, correct moral codes are blurred."
"The cast navigates the perilous emotional terrain with aplomb, especially the sexually charged and menacing Walker."
"In her role as Scarlet, Ms Magri… manages to tease out real pathos."
"Julian also deserves a special mention as the frustrated, middle-aged predator."

-Visit London (Totally London)

"Sizzling bursts of desire and hate among the North American sands."
"Here, too, are isolated characters caught in a routine rooted in emotion and instinct, where small matters are magnified by near-crazed obsession."
"From the start, Jade Magri moves animal-like over the stage, impulsive and determined, emotionally sparky, needing to be placated. If there's a limit to the performance, it's only a sense of composure lurking within the eyes and facial expression. Her obsession with minutiae is matched by the older generation, notably Edmund Dehn's Red."
"Siefert's success is in the vivid quality of her characters, caught well by Icarus' cast."
"It's a tortured, quite fascinating journey."

-Timothy Ramsden, Reviews Gate

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