Flare Path ****

Flare Path is set in the heart of the Second World War; the British bomber command. It was a very immediate source of inspiration for Rattigan, who served in the RAF during the war.  The story details the arrival of a Hollywood star in the midst of an RAF-occupied hotel with the sinister intention of taking back his romantic partner who has since married one of the servicemen.

      

The script is both insightful and reflective, some of the characters having obvious roots in the men and women that Rattigan knew in the war. The result is that the characters feel very real indeed, their nervousness and their stiff upper lip being painfully true to life. A few of the lines were given a comic effect that I’m not sure was intended in the script but apart from these there were very few moments where the play seemed dated in any way. It was a deeply moving if somewhat heavy-handed piece. I say heavy-handed because a few of the speeches and conversations were obviously engineered to make a point or to put a certain opinion across but their clumsiness does not detract from the authenticity of the sentiment or their effect on the audience. It is a deeply moving piece that puts one in the shoes of the generation that were forced to do what we hope to never have to. The only thing I didn’t like was the ending. I thought it could benefit from a harsher and more realistic finish as opposed to smiles all round. It would have given the play a more potent effect.

      

The acting throughout was brilliant and led from the front by Harry Hadden-Paton as Teddy and Sheridan Smith as Doris, though I’m not downplaying the talents of Sienna Miller, James Purefoy, Mark Dexter or Joe Armstrong et al. James Purefoy’s Peter Kyle was the embodiment of the arrogant but fundamentally empty and needy actor who fails to see the validity in anything outside of his own happiness. His part tossed and turned from flippant to distraught through comical and serious and at all points he maintained the reality of the character against the backdrop of the servicemen, keeping himself distant and apart from their very real world.

      

Sienna Miller also played her part very well indeed, a magnificent performance and painful to watch at times as she thrashed out between what she wanted and what she needed to do. Her conflict of interests between running away with her high-flying Hollywood romance or staying put with the Flight Lieutenant who needed her brought out the most challenging aspects of her character and she handled all of them naturally and the result was a compelling performance. I would say, however, that both Purefoy and Miller were overshadowed by the magnificent performance of Harry Hadden-Paton. Playing the hero of the group, the man everyone looks up to and the joker in the pack while deep down suffering from some very real and debilitating issues makes for a very difficult job indeed. He stands up to the challenge and makes his mark on the character, giving Teddy the respect he deserves. Your emotional investment in him doesn’t come as a surprise, but the strength of it does.

      

The talents of Sheridan Smith are not to be overlooked, either. Her character is nuanced and utterly believable from the moment you meet her asleep in her chair to the moment you leave her at the end. Her ability to maintain the nervous energy of Doris is remarkable, especially considering what the character is forced to deal with. Fantastic work brilliantly completed by the work of Mark Dexter as her husband, Johnny. The Polish accent is flawless and the characterisation behind it equally adept. It is perhaps the most difficult role to play in terms of practically doing it but he shines through as a natural talent in doing so.

      

I would feel remiss if I didn’t mention Joe Armstrong here because I thought his performance was superb. Playing the part of the pessimistic joker he worked very well with Harry Hadden-Paton and added another colour of intentional humour to the show that was much needed and valued because of how well it was done.

      

Trevor Nunn’s production is a fine return to form after the disappointing Birdsong, another war story. He doesn’t seem to have shaken it off completely, however, with the projection finding new life in the form of a banner across the top of the stage. Thankfully it was only used once but even that was too much. It detailed the take off of the bombers at the end of the first act and focus was so drawn to the projection that the actors could have been doing the hokey-cokey completely stark naked on stage and only the people in the stalls would have even thought of noticing it. Apart from distracting from the acting, which was far too good to justify distracting attention away from it, the projections removed the element of imagination from the very tense scene and as a result the suspense was destroyed. Apart from this, though, it was a very good showing indeed. The whole show was coherent and unified in a way that is symptomatic of the strong direction one can expect from someone with the calibre of Trevor Nunn.

      

I would recommend this show to anyone as a vast improvement over Nunn’s recent endeavours with Birdsong and label it as unmissable if you have an interest in any of the themes or situations involved. Well worth it.

Written by Terence Rattigan; Directed by Trevor Nunn; At the Theatre Royal Haymarket; Starring Sienna Miller, James Purefoy, Sheridan Smith, Harry Hadden-Paton, Joe Armstrong, Mark Dexter, Sarah Crowden, Jim Creighton; Runs from 04 March 11 - 04 June 11.

http://www.trh.co.uk/book_fp.php

John Ord (23/03/2011)

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg ****

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is a story about first love, about finding that someone you think is special and the trials and tribulations that may arise as life so swiftly decided to get right in the way of it. ‘It’s so unfair!’ most people complain, and yes, often it is but this production is certainly not unfair, being a masterpiece of the modern innovative theatre style that we have come to recognise as distinctively Kneehigh. Having been rather disappointed with my trips to the theatre over the past couple of weeks, I was excited that there was a new Kneehigh show in town and eagerly rushed in to secure a ticket. I have seen a few Kneehigh shows before, although not in London, and was flabbergasted by each and every one, notably my favourite so far, Rapunzel. I am happy to say that The Umbrellas of Cherbourg lifts the roof off the disappointing aura of the past few weeks.

      

From the outset the show is different. Meow Meow enters through the audience having ‘come in the wrong door’ and begins the show generating raucous laughter from the audience. She is compelling throughout. She never drops the ball and her talent and pure love of the show radiates magnificently. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for her next solo cabaret night. Her opening skit is a perfect blend of humour and double-entendre with some audience participation thrown in for good measure and it works fantastically well.

When the set is brought to life you are certain you are watching a Kneehigh show. Small model buildings are sprayed across the stage in the form of the port town of Cherbourg before being hoisted up and replaced with a series of larger set pieces that the cast climb all over and dance around. Wonderful. It is a vibrant and colourful show, resembling a fly-by from all the birds of paradise discovered by man and a few more just for good measure. Everything is colourful, from the umbrellas in the shop to the costumes, the neon lights that light up the set, the balloons that are used for one of the sequences, you name it and it’ll be colouful. This gives it a far greater sense of charm than would have been possible otherwise, the feelings surrounding the boldness and naivety of first love making it feel like a child’s first painting. They bring it home and it’s a sheet covered with bright colours and it is marvelous. So bright and colourful is The Umbrellas of Cherbourg though I dare say at least a crayon-step more complex. A credit to Lez Brotherston that such good costumes and set is used throughout and to such wonderful and enchanting effect.

      

The whole show is sung throughout. I don’t mean there are songs as there are in a regular musical, splicing themselves between speech and scenes, I mean that it is sung. The cast don’t talk at any point, the lines are still intact as in a normal play except that they are sung and put to music. This represents a mammoth undertaking from composer Michel Legrand and a truly innovative show that works to further increase the charm of it all. The French setting helps with this as well, providing a sassiness that could only be found across the channel (and brought in its full unadulterated form to our fair shore by Meow Meow). Emma Rice says that the show is the definition of ‘chic’ and I would happily agree with her.

      

With the charm comes sophistication. The efforts of all the cast are to be noted for their vocal work especially, with every single member being a fantastic singer, but they were also more than capable dancers. In particular, the trinity of Gareth Charlton, Aki Omoshaybi and Matt Wilman providing a marvellous physical backdrop with their dance, whether it be a choreographed routine or their innovative methods of changing the set or even moving from A to B. The whole production flowed like a piece of music, never standing still and there wasn’t a moment that I felt bored or even distracted.

      

The main couple, brought to life by Carly Bawden and Andrew Durand were emotive as well as fun, their characterization faultless despite the unusual style. Happily, this was a trend throughout the cast. Joanna Riding, Dominic Marsh, Cynthia Erivo, Gareth Charlton and all the other performers brought believable and emotionally provocative characters to the show. You find yourself invested in them far more than you had ever expected and by the end you find yourself feeling as though you’re lost in a fairytale and although it’s not the happily-ever-after, you’re not sad to be there either.

      

This is a fantastic show in almost every sense of the word. It’s not the typical show you’d expect to see in a theatre but that is testament to the work that Kneehigh are doing continually to stand apart from the crowd. They have found a brilliantly talented cast and I hope they keep hold of them to bring us more shows similar in nature, with the expression in both dance and song because I did feel throughout as though the cast were holding back, like they were able to do something even more extravagant. I’m glad they didn’t as it wouldn’t have suited the show but I sincerely hope that they’ll have the chance to do so in the future.

      

Another groundbreaking success for Kneehigh, the West End and theatre in general. Don’t make excuses, go and see it before you kick yourself for missing the chance.

Written by Jaques Demy (Adapted by Emma Rice); Directed by Emma Rice; Music by Michel Legrand; at the Gielgud Theatre; Starring Meow Meow, Joanna Riding, Carly Bawden, Andrew Durand, Gareth Charlton, Dominic Marsh, Matt Wilman, Cynthia Erivo, Aki Omoshaybi; Runs from 05 March 11 - 01 October 11.

http://www.umbrellasofcherbourg.com/

John Ord (16/03/2011)

In a Forest Dark and Deep **

It was a dark and stormy night and, just like every pirate story invented to scare the children about the perils of the high seas, something isn’t quite right. Tempestuous from the beginning, In a Forest, Dark and Deep tells the story of two siblings not on the best possible terms but with nobody else to rely on they fall together again and their ritual aggression begins to wear away at the façade very quickly indeed.

Before the curtains go up the play is aggressive: loud and heavy music is played through the sound system and fills the auditorium, making it sound like a heavy rock concert while the harrowing silhouettes of the trees hang over the stage. When the action begins it is indeed a stormy setting, the flashes and crashes of the thunder and lightning well visualised and effective. Matthew Fox soon enters after a violent tussle with a hapless door, his six-pack of beer already begun and the volatile nature of his character evident from the off. I’m happy to say he doesn’t drop the ball for the duration of the show, sustaining a perpetual intensity that must have been draining. His work on capturing the nuances between brother and sister was perhaps the better of the two, his turns from anger to joking to jealousy to familiar arguments being natural and seamless.

      

Olivia Williams was also very good. Her character was a hard one to play, the number of lies she was in the habit of telling was hard to keep up with even if the underlying truth was simple. I did feel as though her performance forgot this underlying truth for the most part and so when it was finally revealed I was grateful it was so predictable because there wasn’t much leading us there from the character’s side of the coin.

      

The script was somewhat laboured throughout. The points that it tried to bring up, particularly the reinforcement of the sibling relationship and the digging up of old grievances, began to drag before the end. It wasn’t as bad as being beaten over the head with a hunk of dead meat but it was obvious enough to disable the play’s ability to construct a reality that I could buy in to.

      

The plot developed with a predictable consistency and familiar pattern. The final revelation was predictable from about halfway through and was not surprising. The only surprise was the inclusion of a moment where Bobby reveals less than appropriate feelings for his sister, only for this incestuous urge to be dismissed without being fully explored. Surprising? Yes. Effective? No. This is typical of the script in general. It feels like it’s trying to do a job other than tell the story and because there isn’t much of a story being told the audience aren’t invested enough to allow anything else to happen.

      

Admitting Neil LaBute’s mastery of the craft may be one thing but it doesn’t ensure that he has the Midas touch or that under every heavy-handed line there’s some hidden treasure waiting for the pirate corps to raid it. I couldn’t help but think throughout the whole thing that the developments were excuses to allow the portrayal of the aggressive and violent relationship but we didn’t see enough of that relationship to make it worth it. Instead of thinking throughout the show how awful their respective situations were or caring about the characters in any way I found myself sitting there growing more and more frustrated with the fact that they weren’t packing any of the books up. Everything seemed to hinge on very delicate and dubious premises.

All the marketing for the show focused heavily on the fact that the two actors were Matthew Fox and Olivia Williams. The production photos are studio photographs of them not even in character and even in the poster image it feels like they’re just there, showing who they are as actors as there isn’t much between them to demonstrate character. This was a flaw in the production that I think pervades the whole show. There is too much reliance on the actors and I think in this case Neil LaBute would have done a better job not directing his own work.

      

Having said that, the directing was not at all bad. I thought that throughout they could and would have been doing more work than they were and more would have been going on. A few moments and exchanges were annoyingly poorly developed with average and predictable blocking but with such an intensity being put into finding something worth showing in the characters I can almost forgive that.

      

This production is good to watch but only because of its length. Any more and I would have given it a harsher review, unless the more time was spent in better plot development and creating more relatable characters. I think that this show lost its way a little bit. Perhaps the small cast and the dual roles of writer and director for Neil LaBute meant that there weren’t enough different pairs of eyes and more impartial judges over the rehearsal period and the result is a predictable and monotonous show without much genuine intensity and no balance at all as well as a bland premise and characters it’s very hard to relate to. I would say worth seeing, but not for the ticket prices they’re asking. Maybe half. If you want to see a predictable show about lying where the acting is far better, you best go see The Children’s Hour instead.

Written by Neil LaBute; Directed by Neil LaBute; at the Vaudeville Theatre; Starring Matthew Fox and Olivia Williams; Runs from 03 March 11 - 04 June 11.

http://www.inaforestdarkanddeep.com/

John Ord (08/03/2011)

The Heretic ***

Having not been to the Royal Court before it would be remiss if I didn’t mention how pleasant the space is before I begin a thorough review of the show. Although I’m not sure any other space could pull off the brown décor it suited the theatre well and the seats were easily some of the most comfortable I have endured. Well done, Royal Court. But should I say well done, Heretic? I’m not as convinced.

      

There are a number of things that are deserving of praise. The cast is, at least on paper, very capable. Juliet Stevenson and James Fleet are standing out here as well as Lydia Wilson who gave a terrific performance in the recent Blasted at the Lyric Hammersmith. The other cast members are less well known but are just as capable and suited to their roles, particularly Geoff, played by Adrian Hood. I wasn’t a big fan of Johnny Flynn as Ben, however, as he seemed a bit too extreme. A bit too much of a characterisation that didn’t take into account the conflicts within the character and in his more emotional scenes I didn’t feel any form of compassion for him at all, which is clearly not a good thing.

      

The larger names were clearly looked on to lead the rest of the cast and they certainly tried but as with all of the characters there was something missing, something that didn’t work.

      

This problem is hard to define. It’s as if they have all developed a character but have not done so with any guidance from anyone privy to the group development. The result is that they have all fallen into the trap of stereotyping the character, making them very wooden in the process. They are all undoubtedly the characters they are meant to be but they do not fit together and they do not fit the show. The relationships between them, especially the two senior cast members, should have been a lot more fully developed than they were. There were so many nuances that would have developed over the years they had known each other and they could have played the audience very well regarding the question of Phoebe’s parentage. With no father present and Kevin being Diane’s only known partner it raises a possible dimension that was completely ignored.

      

For me, the blame for this lack of unity falls on the shoulders of Jeremy Herrin, the director. Ensuring the cast works in harmony with each other and the script and the chosen major ideas is the main job the director has and I think this has been missed or ignored. The script still shines through but it seems as if the characters on stage are doing the bare minimum to bring it out, letting it do all the work and going through the motions of their jobs as actors as opposed to the events that inform and inflict their characters.

      

The script is obviously terrific. From the beginning it is witty and laugh out loud funny, delighting in linguistic twists that remind me of a Tom Stoppard play. The situations it develops are equally hilarious while balancing it with tension. I have often and will often refer to balance being the hallmark of greatness in art in any form and this script is a good example of balance. The scene where Diane is facing disciplinary action on mental health grounds is made both hilarious and tragic with the introduction of Maude, a colleague’s soft toy polar bear. The scene was my favourite in the production, with Juliet Stevenson bringing Maude in with so many inferences and implications that I couldn’t help laughing at her.

      

My only criticisms of the script would be the short final act that doesn’t tie up any of the loose ends and is completely out of the blue, not really justifying itself within what is a generally superb plot. I felt as if more explanation was needed, particularly of the militia behind the death threats and the character of Geoff but since there was no explanation forthcoming I suppose we must be left to our own devices on that one.

      

Note to self, add Outstanding New Script award to the Tipsy Hippo Theatre Awards.

      

The technical aspects of the show were strong. The scene changes were swift and well executed, the strobe lighting accompanying the arrival of the helicopter was particularly dramatic and the following scene was subtly and effectively staged. The show does also involve music in the form of a song written by the Ben character and performed with his acoustic guitar. It is a scene well played and has a good effect. Its reprise via recording in the dramatic helicopter scene change was not so well suited and I would have avoided that.

      

The small amount of fighting towards the end was, I feel, characteristic of the whole show. It was just badly put together. It was obvious not only that when Phoebe was punching her mother that she wasn’t doing so very hard at all, but also that when Diane fell she was blatantly falling to where she had been shown to, falling slowly and softly, breaking her fall almost before she even began. Not only that but when she was hit with a wine bottle it was clear that it was plastic. With things like that, if you’re not going to do it well then don’t do it. The audience won’t buy in to shoddily constructed realities no matter how good the script is and although the script was very good indeed, the characters and the production weren’t up to the same standard.

Written by Richard Bean; Directed by Jeremy Herrin; at the Royal Court; Starring Juliet Stevenson, James Fleet, Lydia Wilson, Johnny Flynn, Adrian Hood and Leah Whitaker; Runs from 4 Feb 11 - 19 Mar 11.

http://www.royalcourttheatre.com/whats-on/the-heretic

John Ord (05/03/2011)