The Glass Menagerie ****

Tennessee Williams has often been heralded as one of the best playwrights in the history of the English-speaking language and, being unfamiliar with any of his work other than A Streetcar Named Desire, I wasn’t too sure what to expect as I walked into the innovative space at the Young Vic theatre. I can happily say that I was very impressed indeed. For those of you unfamiliar with the play, it is a memory play. This means that it is a play written from the perspective of someone looking back at events of the past and often, as in this case, it is narrated by said person.

      

The intertwining of the narration with the story itself was something that director Joe Hill-Gibbins put together very well. Often within the action of the play the narrator (Tom played by Leo Bill) would signal to the musicians on the higher level and they would begin playing and the lights would change in what was a regular and effective fashion. Which brings me to the musicians.

      

I have said many times that having a constant score underlying the play and cropping up here and there is something that has to be done very well to succeed and that I have not yet seen it done well. Intermittent birdsong to give the illusion of being in the countryside often makes you far more aware that you are sitting in a West End theatre so it’s always my policy to avoid it unless it really works. Thankfully in The Glass Menagerie it really works. The constant ditties on the piano make it feel like a painful memory, which makes the structure of the play more solid and gives Leo Bill an easier job in his narration. The music did astound me. The majority of it was in perfect keeping with the glass theme of the play; a series of wine glasses filled with water played beautifully and subtly. My praises go to Simon Allen and Eliza McCarthy for doing such a fantastic job of the music.

      

The acting was not substandard either. Leo Bill gave an assured and suitably torn performance as the anguished Tom, who seems to have nothing but thankless responsibility on his shoulders. He took his dual roles of Tom and narrator in his stride and made it seem a natural link and not a ham-fisted theatrical technique.

      

Deborah Findlay plays a fantastically overbearing and unbearable mother figure, whether that be a compliment or not, and within a few minutes you were in cahoots with Tom and his inability to put up with her. Her performance is an energetic one that doesn’t drop the ball once throughout the whole show, which is impressive indeed.

      

Kyle Soller is the other cast member, who plays the self-assured to the point of arrogant Jim. When he enters the stage the dynamic changes and his bouncing character is so full of vibrant life that it contrasts beautifully with the trapped and tortured family he has come to visit for dinner. His performance is strong and brings out the best and more nuanced aspects of Sinead Matthews’ Laura.

      

Any review of this show would be remiss if it didn’t make a special mention of Sinead Matthews. Her Laura was the most powerful female performance I have seen all year bar none. I found myself wondering if they had cast her because she already had a limp and a stammer or if she was putting them on beautifully. It appeared that such beauty would be the watchword for her performance, carrying off the dignity and troubled soul of Laura with a grace that is necessary for the role. She is wounded and doesn’t over-play her hand. She is coy and quiet and her performance was, I think, the main success story of this brilliant show.

      

Without exception the cast slotted in to their characters with such poise that it was easy for the audience to drop in to the setting of the play and empathise with the turmoil of all the characters.

      

The script was masterfully interpreted and the painful scenes at the end almost had me in tears, certainly squirming uncomfortably as the extremely relatable characters’ hopes fell apart despite their best efforts and the apparent turn of good fortune. Again, Sinead Matthews is at the heart of it all.

      

The use of what is a very versatile stage was suitable varied. Hill-Gibbins made good use of the levels with people often marching up and down the stairs and across the balcony past the musicians. The partition that they used in the second act made for both intimate and grander scenes, giving the actors a chance to play with much more space than there actually was. Everything seemed to fit the show and there was nothing that stood out as excessive or unnecessary.

      

There were very few things that ran against the strength of the show. A few stumbled lines were close to becoming a problem but as it were they were taken and swiftly forgotten as the play marched on. Other than that and the badly timed change of Sinead Matthews’ hair colour from the blonde of the poster to a brunette there was little to pick at.

      

I would thoroughly recommend seeing this production and with it being extended for two weeks they’re doing all they can to make sure you do. 

Written by Tennessee Williams; Directed by Joe Hill-Gibbins; at the Young Vic; Starring Leo Bill, Deborah Findlay, Sinead Matthews, Kyle Soller; runs from 11 November 2010 - 15 January 2011.

http://www.youngvic.org/whats-on/the-glass-menagerie

John Ord (24/11/2010)

Blasted ****

Much has been said of Sarah Kane and her hard-hitting and often unintelligible approach to theatre (especially in 4.48 Psychosis) but in this revival of Blasted from Sean Holmes, the central voice of her work speaks through the intensity and the horrifying events within the play. Sarah Kane herself was a traumatized person, suffering for years with severe depression that eventually led to her suicide in 1999; four years after Blasted had it’s debut performance at the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs. Heralded by Aleks Sierz as a figure at the forefront of the movement in the 1990s that he dubbed ‘in-yer-face’ theatre (theatre that is designed to be vulgar, shocking and confrontational as a means of affecting an audience on a deep and challenging emotional level) she holds a special place in the history of British theatre writing. This revival of Blasted certainly gives this style a hearty and strong re-introduction to the London scene.

      

The curtain opens onto a simple and elegant set that is undoubtedly the most pleasant and ‘regular’ moment in the show. It gives the impression of a clean and simple lifestyle, which is something that is completely destroyed by the end of the play when the bomb-ravaged hotel is nothing but a ruined shell with a grave-to-be in the centre surrounded by death and debris. The set change to the ruins after the second scene is executed very well, with the sudden increase in space and lack of the lighting that dominated the previous scenes being an omen of what evils were to take place in the suddenly desperate world that had been hidden from us before.

      

The acting was as raw as the material. The stage being set in a simple way allowed the actors to explore the material to a full extent without worrying about props and the like; a string of good decisions from director Sean Holmes facilitating such necessary freedom. Aiden Kelly’s ‘Soldier’ was as harsh and brutal as a cold winter morning, breaking into the action with an assault rifle and instantly upping the tempo and changing the dynamic with unquestionable authority. Suddenly the balance of power shifted utterly and full credit goes to Aiden Kelly for his efforts to make the character so harsh as well as having to lie still and dead on stage for what must have given him far too much time to think about the play and the events therein.

      

Lydia Wilson’s ‘Cate’ was also subjected to a harrowing story. From her entrance I was aware that she was a young girl, probably about sixteen, not of the greatest intellect and also suffering from quite a serious stammer as well as intermittent fainting spells. Her story drags her from an uncomfortable relationship with Ian to offering herself to soldiers to abuse at will in return for food and drink at the end, returning to her helpless companion at the end, lost in a harsh reality too far out of her depth to survive for long. For someone so fresh out of drama school it was a very commendable outing.

      

However, special commendation has to be given to Danny Webb for his ‘Ian’. A character that must be horrendously demanding to play has not stood between him and a poignant and assured performance that stands to his credit. His series of transitions from being in control and assured of his opinions and beliefs but fearful of death to all his fears being realised and his sudden humbling were all taken in an able stride as he dominated the stage with his human reality. He managed to understand and communicate a character struggling to understand himself and facing so many things that he doesn’t know how to deal with in such a way that we, as the audience to his suffering, connect with him, identify with his pain and suffer with him; a remarkable achievement.

      

The play progresses from mild snaps of anger and vulgarity through hints of suggested violence and violation to horrific displays of sex, rape, torture and cannibalism on stage before the end, certainly shocking the audience to the core. As I seated myself in the auditorium I became aware of a flock of schoolgirls behind me, clearly on a school trip of some description. It seemed that they had more knowledge of what to expect than I (having no knowledge of the play at all going in) as they were saying that they were scared and didn’t know what to expect. Almost two hours of nervous laughter, screaming and hearty gasping later they were utterly silenced and I think that this is the effect that Kane would have desired her work had. Stunned silence all round. To think that man is capable of such ‘evil’ is surely a disturbing thought and it definitely disturbed, both the gabble behind me and myself as well. Deeply.

      

The show is a challenge to watch and is certainly successful in its intention to shock and silence us. A first rate revival with actors doing a superb job ensures the lasting success of the legacy of the troubled author and puts a notch in the positive column for the Lyric, Hammersmith. A daring production of what is, in essence, an incredibly grim play.

      
Grim, but well worth a visit if you’re open to being shocked and appalled, which you should be.


Written by Sarah Kane; Directed by Sean Holmes; at the Lyric, Hammersmith; starring Danny Webb, Aiden Kelly and Lydia Wilson, running 22 October 2010 - 20 November 2010.

http://www.lyric.co.uk/whats-on/production/blasted/


John Ord   (17/11/2010)

Design for Living *****

Having already seen this production and given it the handsome rating of five stars I knew exactly what the cast and creative team were capable of when I booked my ticket. Going in, the question was whether the show had maintained the level of brilliance that it had demonstrated at the previews. I can answer that question with a resounding yes and a more in-depth review than before.

Any review of the show is remiss if it fails to mention the simple but elegant sets, peppered with details that make all three locations appear both artistic and lived-in at the same time. There is nothing out of place on the stage and everything is beautiful.

The acting is of the highest order as well. Knowing the excellence of the cast from my previous outing I was expecting a good show, though half expecting them to fail to repeat the performance I had seen before. Happily, I found myself in stitches regularly trying to contain my hyena-like squeals from the poor souls sitting near me. I largely succeeded, though with no help from the cast. The pauses were perfectly timed, the witticisms that make Noël Coward unique were delivered with unfaltering style and charm, making them all as delightful as intended. The twists and turns as the characters try and keep up with the silliness of their lifestyle, which is a struggle for the trio and most notably the honest Ernest, whose explosion at the end has developed over the run from an outburst that had begun as hilarious but has now exceeded even that.

The relationship between Otto and Leo is also one that has developed since the first time I saw the show. Their performances seem more relaxed and neither is afraid to experiment on stage with odd ways to sit on a sofa or dramatic ways of saying their lines. Tom Burke and Andrew Scott are having fun with what is an ingeniously witty script and it is a wonderfully enjoyable spectacle to behold.

The scene where Otto and Leo are re-united in London and drink themselves through their turmoil had the whole audience laughing out loud regularly and was wonderfully dramatised, the characterisation bringing out the best of the dialogue as well. They are wonderfully cast and do a fantastic job with each other.

Although Tom Burke is a fantastic and assured Otto I feel I have to give a special mention to the petulant and outright silly Andrew Scott who revels in his character, bringing a youth and an excitement to the show that even Coward’s script doesn’t give up quite so easily. He takes the already humorous raw materials and crafts them into something doubtlessly magnificent.

Gilda is not to be left out of the running by any means. Lisa Dillon tackles what is a very difficult part to master with such rampant confusion and volatility that her actions and reactions are perfectly plausible. She brings a character to the stage that doesn’t understand her role in the erotic hotch-potch that is the socially unconventional trio. Throughout the play she develops her understanding and, however much she tries to escape it with the fantastically upstanding Ernest, she comes to learn that the three of them are inseparable.

The extravagance, arrogance and absurdity of the life they live is brought out fantastically by the presence of Ernest, the wise, dully effulgent spectator to the drama who sits aloof from it all (at least until the very end) and tries to calm them all down with his precise wisdom and agèd charm. Angus Wright makes the most of a character that has just as much fun as anyone in the script.

The smaller roles are also well played. The development of their performances was interesting to watch, Miss Hodge was even funnier than she had been before, especially with her manner of answering the phone and her judgmental sensibilities. She, as with Ernest, is a wonderful expression of the difference of the life that Leo and Gilda (and, of course, Otto) have been living.

Keeping up with all the quips in the script and the beauty of the set and costumes could not have been an easy job, though definitely an enviably enjoyable one, and one that is a credit to Anthony Page’s direction. He has handled the cast wonderfully, allowing them the opportunities and the freedom to experiment and enjoy the lines that they are given, exploring the characters they have formed so fully and the results are magnificent.

It’s not very often that you see a show that makes you wish that it were a film so that you could watch it again and again and again but this production is one such show. Having seen it twice I would still go again and would certainly love it.

The script stands the test of time, the characters are possibly more relevant now than in Coward’s time and I’m sure that Coward himself would have loved every moment of the spectacle presented by what is a very talented team of individuals.

It’s a wonderful synergy of everything that goes into putting a show together. Nothing stands below par, making the whole so much greater than the sum of its parts that it is convincingly the best piece of theatre that I have seen this year.

Written by Noel Coward; Directed by Anthony Page; at the Old Vic Theatre; starring Lisa Dillon, Angus Wright, Tom Burke and Andrew Scott.


http://www.oldvictheatre.com/whatson.php?id=68


John Ord   (13/11/2010)

Onassis ****

Aristotle Socrates Onassis: a name that seems to necessitate great things and a life that never failed to deliver them. One of the richest men in the world he stood against countries and seduced the most desirable women. Nothing seemed to be beyond the Greek shipping magnate, his life unfolding like the Homeric stories he obsessed over. Living like the great god of the sea, Poseidon, his story of money, women and amorality finally comes to the West End in what is a brilliant example of storytelling at the Novello Theatre.

The difficulties in telling a story that is as historical as this lie in choosing the right parts of the story to tell and doing so in the right way. This is by no means an easy choice to make, especially with a life so rich (in every sense) as that of Aristotle Onassis. The biographical work done by Peter Evans in Nemesis and Ari has paved the way for a precise and masterful script from Martin Sherman, lifting out his remarkable marriage to Jacqueline Kennedy and his tempestuous relationship with the rest of the Kennedy clan as the focus of a story so remarkable it’s a wonder it’s not fantasy.

The erudite cruise through the life of Onassis takes us into a life that thrashes between light frivolity and dark seriousness. The statement of Onassis’ role in the assassination of Bobby Kennedy is one that carries major consequences, and has provoked criticism from the Onassis Foundation, yet the picture we are given of Onassis is of someone to whom danger and conflict is no obstacle. His early life in Smyrna and his motto of ‘there is no right or wrong: there is only what is possible’ certainly made him a talented and unscrupulous businessman. The play captures this brilliantly, giving him a depth of character with his passion for his Greek heritage; the love of Greek mythology and the music of his people, and offsetting this with the coldness that he takes to his business.

Given fantastical material to work with and an equally dynamic script it would have taken a poor actor indeed to screw it up. Robert Lindsay is not a poor actor and he is nothing short of sublime in the role. His character permeates the whole show, from the energetic dancing to his recording of the announcement at the beginning, asking people to turn off their mobile phones and save themselves ‘public humiliation’. He takes to the role like Poseidon to the sea, the character of Onassis being utterly indistinguishable from Lindsay the actor. The accent, the mannerisms, the small ticks and his grasp of the fundamental flashes in Onassis’ character makes it feel as if Aristotle Onassis himself is marching powerfully around the stage like the old school God of War.

The supporting cast are also all great in their roles, notably Lydia Leonard as Jacqueline Kennedy paints a picture of a woman attracted to excitement and paradox; ‘Captain Hook on a yacht with both hands’. She is both meek and powerful at the same time, giving an insight into the dangerous triangle that existed between her, Onassis and Bobby Kennedy.

Making sense of the absurdly inter-connected mess of lovers that these people were involved in, and of which Onassis was at the centre, is a difficult task and is one that is bravely and adeptly undertaken by Gawn Grainger, whose character ‘Costa’ takes on both roles as Onassis’ chief confidant and narrator for the audience. His performance is worthy of merit as he gives Lindsay’s masterful Onassis a solid and more human counterpart as well as filling in all the historical facts that are required but difficult to assimilate.

The other cast members also take on this difficult duality of roles with surprising ease, making the distinction between history and narration so fine that it ceases to exist at all. This is the result of good direction. Their characters are well characterised and develop the Greek heritage and passions in such a way that gives Onassis a context that can be understood in a communal sense, as if he is the god of the group that surrounds him.

The play darts between opposites all the time; from cool lovemaking to fiery anger, from cold business to heated passion and the cast keep up with the rapid fluctuations perfectly, most notably Lindsay, who is the one changing the scene most of the time. As he says in the first scene, he doesn’t approve of subject changes unless he’s making them and throughout the play it is him who is utterly dominant to the point of near-omnipotence. He said in real life that the lives of the super-rich were akin to those of the ‘heroes’ of Ancient Greece and he was certainly among this category, likely worshipping Hermes, God of both theft and trade and to Onassis the two often went together.

On the stage, this dynamism and passion is brought to vigorous life by Robert Lindsay and his supporting cast, who balance the contradictions and controversies surrounding this powerful figure in a performance that is so full of skill it would make the gods themselves both envy and adore what they saw.

A truly brilliant show.

At the Novello Theatre, written by Martin Sherman, directed by Nancy Meckler, cast includes Robert Lindsay, Lydia Leonard, Gawn Grainger and Anna Francolini, runs from 30th September 2010 - 8th January 2011.

John Ord (11/11/2010)

The Country Girl ***

Clifford Odets was one of the foremost writers in the American theatre, finding his voice around the strangled agony of the Great Depression. After Broadway successes with Waiting for Lefty and Golden Boy and his successful work with the acting troupe known as ‘The Group’ behind him, The Country Girl premiered on Broadway in 1950. It is generally considered the most mature, refined and insightful of his works, as well as one of the most authentic ‘backstage’ scripts that American theatre had produced.

      

This production of The Country Girl also has a neat symmetry to it. Martin Shaw has starred in the play before, filling the part of Bernie the young director, in a production that also took place at the Apollo Theatre. Now he comes full circle, returning to the play in the role of the aged actor, Frank Elgin.

      

Martin Shaw’s performance is nothing short of magnificent. Capturing astutely the volatile character, whose self-image is as complicated as the image that he constructs for everyone else. Whether prancing around the stage, projecting the image of a dancing, majestic lion or curled up in a teary foetal mass in his dressing room he is utterly convincing. The character of Frank is a complex beast and it’s a very demanding part due to the constant contradictions within the character that are brought out so violently at times but Shaw handles it superbly and produces a compelling performance.

      

Mark Letheren excels in what is, I think, a difficult part to master. He portrays the image of an ambitious, confident young director who knows what he wants and is willing to stand up for it. I do have issue with the attempts at making his character more troubled. He is very aggressive and I struggle to see much of a justification for it. I also think that a few steps were missed out in his relationship with the rather wooden Georgie Elgin (Jenny Seagrove). The mutual attraction was evident from the outset but it seemed to me to lack foundation. He spends most of the play at odds with her and only when he comes to realise the truth about Frank (in what is a genuinely moving and powerful scene) does he realise that he’s in love with her. This leap, for me, seems tenuous. Although it’s not uncommon for such a transition to occur I felt that emotions weren’t running high enough for the transition to appear believable.

      

Jenny Seagrove, I think, was undoubtedly the weak link in the chain. Her performance was of a very reserved Georgie, where I think more violent emotions would have made for a more relatable character. She spoke unclearly and quietly at times and her choices regarding the development of the character left a lot of the scenes she was in lacking the spark that was hidden in the script. She played her older than she was, even though the character acts older she is still young and that youth is missing.

       

The direction of the show was a strong showing for Rufus Norris. The show kept the integrity that the script demands and all the cast had distinctive roles and characters (I particularly enjoyed Luke Shaw’s performance) that came together well and succeeded in conveying the image of a show behind the scenes.

      

I thoroughly enjoyed the scene changes; the setting of a play being staged made a natural setting for a crew to bark at each other and practice scene changes during the actual scene changes. I see this as a piece of strong direction, keeping the main characters from the preceding scene working while the crew busy themselves in the background. Slickly managed and entertaining, it often brought some much needed light humour to what is a heavy play.

      

However, as much as the script may be ‘refined and mature’, the occasional quip about actors and audience behaviour makes the show enjoyable but not entertaining, the constant switching between personas makes it difficult to keep up with and the suspect characterisation of some key roles and moments makes the characters less relatable and accessible than necessary to excuse their complexity to an audience who is likely only going to see the show once.

      

On top of this, a more fundamental criticism of the story is the basic plot. Who would expend so much effort to coax such a troublemaker back to the stage instead of hiring someone popular and who will put ‘bums on seats’? Extrapolating from that shaky premise was always going to be difficult and I don’t think the complexity of the story is perfectly suited to a play; though would perhaps make a fine novel.

      

On this point, I would say that the show may be very poignant and insightful but I struggled to see that in the production. I followed the characters on their journey and by the end I cared about what happened, at least to some of them, but not, unfortunately, the character in the title role. The play is called The Country Girl but her struggle was underplayed in favour of her onstage husband (Shaw).

      
Although I’d say it was a good show, I’d also say that what makes the script so refined was lacking in the performance.




At the Apollo Theatre, written by Clifford Odets, directed by Rufus Norris, cast includes Martin Shaw, Jenny Seagrove and Mark Letheren, runs from 6th October 2010 - 26th February 2011.


John Ord (02/11/2010)