[THEATRE AND PHYSICAL THEATRE/Clown ~ United Kingdom]
The Kingfisher at Gluttony, Sat 25 Feb, 2023.

Sadly David Attenborough and his animals couldn’t make it to Gluttony on the afternoon of the 25th, but Clownfish stepped in and rescued the show with a splendid performance. The male of the species (Jonathan Tilley) took on the role of Attenborough himself, and his female counterpart (Jess Clough-MacRae) took on the challenging task of being all the animals: a blue whale, a crab, a kangaroo, manta ray, orangutan, meerkat and so many more wonderful creatures.
Anyone daring to mimic the legendary presenter just has to get the timing right and Tillley did so – with – those pregnant pauses – that – are part of – his trademark.
We’re taken under the ocean, across the seas to the Serengeti, the Galapagos Islands and Australia, and to deserts and rainforests. We watch manta rays chasing crabs, plants climbing up to the forest canopy, a sloth chasing its mate ever sooo slooooowly, and hear a lyrebird sounding like a building site.
Clough-MacRae has an extraordinary grasp of the sounds and movements of various creatures – her blue whale song was beautiful; her bird calls as good as perfect. When she needs a hand Tilley helps out with the choreography involved in skirmishes, tree climbing, mating rituals and just as Attenborough might do, narrates the scene in an intimate whisper just centimetres away from the creature he’s describing.
All these adventures are set to music that add atmosphere and help us see that so much of animal behaviour is a beautiful dance. As it must be, there is a serious side – Attenborough himself has been much more forthright in recent years about preserving our natural heritage in the light of climate change and the ever present threat of species extinction – and we’re reminded of the threats facing the natural world is addressed in graphic and poignant fashion.
This is clever, uplifting, entertaining theatre that is a fitting tribute to one of the greatest humans that has ever lived, and to the countless number of plants and animals he has brought to our attention.