| Author | Message | ||
     John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.203.130.228 |
I’m not exactly familiar with Luigi Pirandello’s ‘challenging work for the theatre’ but I understand that even the author himself wrote six different versions of it. Since then apparently it’s been traditional for each generation to freely adapt this work to make it relevant to a modern audience. Normally I’m not a fan of attempts at updating works as they never seem to work that well and the shadow of the original always seems to overhang them. The version of this play that I saw last night at the Bristol Old Vic wasn’t just a success however, it was one of the best things I have ever seen put on stage. A British television documentary crew are in Denmark making a film about a euthanasia clinic. The filmed excerpts from this are appropriately unnerving, and the way that the filmed television footage keeps intruding into, and adding to, the plot reminded me of Nigel Kneale’s work for some reason. During a break in editing our 6 characters turn up and demand their story be filmed. This forms the basis of the play but there’s an awful lot more going on here, including the director’s real reasons for making the euthanasia film in the first place, and the use of several media (stage, music, filmed footage) adds tremendous depth to what is already a pretty complex production. There are moments of pure nightmarish horror in here – the scene where the father cuts the lacy black underwear off his teenaged stepdaughter before dressing her in a child’s clothes is only superseded by the rest of the cast breaking into a dirge like chanting during the sex scene, all of which reminded me of the very darkest of David Lynch. Towards the end the entire play stops and goes back to the beginning, only this time with a director’s commentary being voiced over the performers’ dialogue until he is interrupted by the 6 Characters and eventually brutally murdered with a meat cleaver. At one point a young girl falls into a huge fish tank live on stage and ‘drowns’ and then her body stays motionless floating in the water for the rest of the act. I still have no idea how they did that. A lot of the people in the audience didn’t like this at all but I loved it, and it was fun to overhear outraged comments both in the interval and at the end, following the utterly downbeat finale. I’ve never been a fan of the theatre before but I’m going to go a lot more if they put on stuff like this. If you get a chance go and watch it. I thought it was brilliant. | ||
| Chris_morris (Chris_morris) Username: Chris_morris Registered: 04-2008 Posted From: 12.165.240.116 |
Sounds great, JLP. I'll have to look it up. | ||
| Kate (Kathleen) Username: Kathleen Registered: 09-2009 Posted From: 76.238.190.27 |
Sounds like a date if it's still playing when I get back from the States!  | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 213.158.199.80 |
Kate -  John/Lord Probert - sounds like a maniac's version of a Twilight Zone episode whose title I forget, much to my shame. The Lynch comparison sounds apt indeed. | ||
| Chris_morris (Chris_morris) Username: Chris_morris Registered: 04-2008 Posted From: 12.165.240.116 |
"Five Characters in Search of an Exit"? | ||
| Weber_gregston (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.47 |
I've read this play before and really liked it at the time although it hasn't really stuck in my memory much. Maybe if it had read like you described it it would have done. Is it a touring production or is it something for those darn sarth? | ||
| Weber_gregston (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.47 |
As for the girl/fishtank thing, did they have a different girl playing the part every night? | ||
| John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert) Username: John_l_probert Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 90.203.130.228 |
My Lady P we may well seek it out as I'd love to see it again. It's a touring production Weber and the reviews have been excellent (I only read them after seeing the show). It stars Jack Shepherd who I've always liked since he played a particularly emaciate and twitchy Renfield in Philip Savile's BBC version of Count Dracula (the one with Louis Jourdan). Another major influence I forgot to mention is Charlie Kaufman - 'Being John Malkovich' even gets namechecked at one point and if you're a fan of that you'll love this. | ||
| Weber_gregston (Weber_gregston) Username: Weber_gregston Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.176.105.47 |
http://www.headlongtheatre.co.uk/production09/tourdates.php Bollocks Even though it's touring, it's still all darn sarth. |