IN BRIEF Four part time-travelling play explores the prices paid for marriage by those termed “wives” in an earnest but uneven script, well-acted and directed.
WIFE is four one-act plays
linked by related, conflicted characters, spanning 90 years of time- 1959,
1988, 2019 and 2049. It’s a very uneven, sprawling but earnest show which aspires
to look at the state of marriage across the years, through interactions with
Ibsen’s A DOLL’S HOUSE, using the play and theatre as reference points along
the way. Anyone who does not know Ibsen’s play will still find this show
accessible.
In 1959, teacher Daisy loves actor Suzannah but is married to accountant Robert, who sexually assaults her. The resulting (unwanted) child -Ivar- in 1988 pressures Eric, a young carer (for the previously mentioned Daisy) to come out too quickly and in doing so causes their relationship to split. In 2019, Eric’s daughter Clare tracks down the previously mentioned Ivar to ask about her father who has been killed. Ivar is now married to Cas, a self-obsessed performance artist wasting Ivar’s money on vanity projects. In 2049, Clare’s daughter Daisy is in love with the theatre and actor Suzannah, who tries to help her unravel the mystery of the tambourine, a family heirloom, and inscriptions therein. Cyclically, and quite satisfyingly, we return to 1959 to the first meeting between Daisy and Suzannah, where all the possibilities began.
Samuel Adamson has produced an intense play, with only a few laughs amongst the angst, but it held the audience from start to finish. Adamson’s thrust seems to be that the state of marriage has never provided equality and liberty; in the first part it is seen as a traditional trap for women, the second is as an unfocused aspiration to “have what heterosexuals have”, the third is lazy and an anachronistic accessory, and the fourth seems unnecessary. The play says much more about homosexual relationships than heterosexual ones and as such is a more useful debater about how society’s outsiders seem to have become politically neutered by being brought inside the law. However, this is all rather academic and somewhat dry. The section in the future was less compelling to me and perhaps only there to frame the circularity device, it did not interest me as much as the other parts.
Indhu Rubasingham skilfully directs
with a humanity and care for the characters, while also providing us with a very
funny and much welcome first act curtain which completely drags us into the
present. A cast of six do a good job with the material they are given.
As a wider exploration of marriage the play is lacking, but as an examination of same-sex relationships and how they relate to the social and legal strictures of the day it fares better. From Daisy’s 1959 “arranged marriage” to Ivar’s 1988 struggle for self-expression, to Ivar’s 2019 realisation that the grass isn’t always greener (“We got what we wanted… and we lost”) to young Daisy’s open relationship of 2049, it’s an interesting discussion. For me, the play works best when in the present, highlighting self-obsession and expression which appear to have engendered complacency amongst those who have not had to fight for the rights they have been gifted with. As a discussion, this show has many loose ends and unexplored avenues which made it rather frustrating for this viewer.
The “wife” term will mean different things to different people in different times. As it is used here, it’s first as a prisoner, then a camp joke, then a self-conscious archaism, then- who knows? Rather than accepting society’s definitions, how much better to first know, and be ourselves – to find our own truth, not a label.
I hope that WIFE finds its audience.
WIFE runs at the Kiln Theatre, Kilburn, until 6 July. Information and ticketshere
THIS ISLAND’S MINE at Kings Head Theatre until June 8th, details here
IN BRIEFAmbitious production of epic multi-strand drama whose breadth restricts its depth, but maximised by hard-working cast and direction.
First things first – it’s
refreshing to see a play about gay people that includes both men and women. And
how interesting that to find this mix we have to thank this play from 1988, now
receiving a loving revival (its first ever) from Ardent Theatre and
director/designer Philip Wilson.
There is a lot packed into its 105 mins running time (straight through). Teenage Luke runs away from his family to stay with his gay uncle Martin; a lesbian couple have trouble with their young son and jealousy; an actor and chef experience turbulence in their relationship. All face pressure of prejudice upon them involving sexuality/ race/ sex. Meanwhile, Martin’s old landlady reflects on her life and the prejudice she has seen, while caring for her elderly cat.
The play follows them all episodically as their stories intertwine and create a fast-paced narrative that uncovers many unexpected links. There is a lot within its pages- humour, tenderness, longing, sadness, awakenings, which contribute to a well-told story threaded through with humanity.
However, the play’s inclusivity in terms of characters and storylines comes at the cost of depth. This limits the audience’s connections with the characters, which is a pity as when the writing slows down and gives itself room to breathe, it is a delight to listen to Osment’s lyrical language, and as such these moments catch you by surprise and cause a reassessment of the play.
A lot of Osment’s script
involves the characters breaking the fourth wall, explaining the narrative, locations,
feelings and situations. This moving in and out of character, combined with the
fact that the actors double -or mostly triple -up on roles played, mean that
the play can feel very fragmented. This can create distance for an audience, however
I must say that the audience I was with were concentrating from start to finish,
which is a tribute to director Wilson’s carefully thought out approach and the
energy of the cast.
What marks out this production is the clarity with which the director has presented the many strands of story in what could otherwise have felt like a very tangled text. The production is also ambitious technically, with an attractive, simple yet flexible set design which works well within the many confines of the Kings Head Theatre. Rachel E Cleary’s sophisticated lighting design works stylishly, and the evocative soundscape by Dinah Mullen brings a welcome texture to the variety of environments created.
Pleasingly cyclic, the play ends as it starts, with teenage Luke on his home ground, just a little older, a bit wiser and a little more hopeful. THIS ISLAND’S MINE is an endearing tapestry of outsider stories, effectively woven by director Wilson and enacted by a tight ensemble cast that work hard (ditto the props and costume teams) to bring the multitude of characters to distinctive life. And as a reminder of how things have changed- or haven’t- this is a valuable wake-up call that we still have to fight those old battles every day.
THIS ISLAND’S MINE runs at the Kings’s Head Theatre, London, until June 8th. Details and tickets here
Welcome to June’s show highlights. Here are my picks of the best shows that you can find in and around London and the UK.
Opening Off-West End
THE SWEET SCIENCE OF BRUISING at Wilton’s Music Hall. ‘When that bell rings, your life is entirely in your hands.’ Having had a sold-out season last year at Southwark Playhouse and four-starred by me, I can definitely recommend you to this intriguing and gripping production which brings to life a little-known piece of London’s history. In 1869, deep in the heart of Victorian London is a theatre where only the strongest survive. Controlled by men and constrained by corsets, four very different women are drawn into the dark underground world of female boxing; each finds an unexpected freedom in the ring. As their lives begin to intertwine their journey takes us from grand drawing rooms to rowdy backstreet pubs where the women fight inequality as well as each other. But with the final showdown approaching, only one can become the Lady Boxing Champion of the World…
Grab this chance to see one of the best shows of last year, staged in the perfect home for this show, the world’s oldest surviving grand music hall. Two treats for the price of one!
WIFE at the Kiln Theatre. “I don’t believe that I’m nothing but a daughter and a wife and a mother. I’m a human being”. In 1959, Daisy is at a crossroads. Married to Robert, but in love with Suzannah, her moral compass tells her to go one way, society the other. What she chooses to do next will have consequences for generations to come.
Set in 1959, 1988, 2019 and 2042, four couples intersect with productions of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. When it comes to identity, gender and unrequited love, how do societal expectations and pressures change over time? Samuel Adamson (The Light Princess, National Theatre, Gabriel, Shakespeare’s Globe) maps a constellation of four queer stories within four generations in one family. This world premiere of this captivating study of sexuality across the ages is directed by Kiln’s Artistic Director, the briliiant Indhu Rubasingham.
The Finborough Theatre has an unrivalled reputation for dusting off forgotten treasures, and my feeling is that this may well be another. Directed by the reliable Phil Wilmott, AFTER DARK is a late Victorian hit play by highly-successful writer Dion Boucicault (The Shaughraun, London Assurance, The Octoroon, etc). Having lain unseen for 120 years, we can now wonder at the tiny 50-seat Finborough housing a cast of twelve (!) and the many melodramatic scenes, involving train crashes, river rescues, dastardly villains, plucky heroines, salacious scandal and dark secrets, crackling with the energy of a London of fresh peril and opportunity. Love and honour sit next to grinding poverty, sex and criminality in an epic play whose finale descends into the new-fangled London Underground railway! Not to be missed.
If its laughter you’re after then you can’t go far wrong with Michael Frayn’s NOISES OFF, returning to the scene of its first success in 1982 at the Lyric, Hammersmith. In this new production, directed by Jeremy Herrin, Meera Syal stars as Dotty, ageing actress who has sunk her life savings into a production of a tired sex comedy, hoping that a quick UK tour will bag her a comfy retirement pot. Naturally, things go awry in ever-more disastrous ways, from the set to the cast to the sardines, as we see the show deteriorate from the rehearsal to the end of the tour. With dizzying split-second timing, physical comedy and an insanely complex plot, at its best this is a show to relax and enjoy to the full! Let’s hope this production lives up to its promise. Now where did I put those sardines……..
At the Orange Tree in Richmond, Paul Miller revives Terence Rattigan’s World War II hit WHILE THE SUN SHINES from 7th June to 27th July, after scoring a big hit with Rattigan’s FRENCH WITHOUT TEARS two years ago.
“I’ll tell you but you won’t believe me. I slept in the same bed with an earl… No, not a girl, stupid, an earl.” 1943. On the eve of his wedding, the young Earl of Harpenden – Bobby to his friends – has offered his room to Joe, an American soldier he drunkenly met the night before. When Bobby’s fiancée Lady Elizabeth turns up, Joe makes a move, thinking she must be Bobby’s ex, the wonderful Mabel Crum. But a Free French lieutenant also has eyes for her… And to complicate matters, Bobby’s future father in law turns up too. It’s London in the Blitz, and identities get confused: time to make hay…
First seen last year, Alex Wood’s play NINE FOOT NINE is a fascinating sci-fi look at gender from Sleepless Theatre. It imagines the far-reaching impacts of a physical change in women, whereby they grow to the size of the title. As women across the world literally rise up, what will be the impact, how will they manage and use their power, and what will be the outcome for this new world order. Imaginatively staged with an accomplished mixed ability cast when I saw this last year, the play is well worth seeing on its mini-tour at the end of June. See it at Bristol on June 27th, Manchester on June 29th, and London’s New Diorama on June 30th. NB all performances are fully captioned and venues, I understand, fully accessible.
Returning Off-West End
Comedy Brilliance– no two shows ever the same! After selling out his shows in April, Luke Rollason returns to the Soho Theatre with PLANET EARTH III for two final shows on June 14 and 15 at 10.00pm. The story? – just briefly, after a nuclear event wipes out everything including the BBC, one plucky, unpaid, intern gathers togethr the recoding of David Attenborough and a mass of office equipment to make the series that would never be- PLANET EARTH III. Improvisation, clever creativity and just plain craziness. You’ll never have more fun with your clothes on. Just GO! Tickets and information here
Touring the UK
Magnifique! Achieving the near-impossible task of translating a unique French movie to the stage, and doing so in some style, this UK tour of AMELIE will bring a smile to your lips and warmth to your heart, as we follow our heroine helping others but finding it hardest to help herself. With a tuneful score and dynamic Audrey Brisson as Amelie, this is your passport to Joie de Vivre. See it in June at Exeter, High Wycombe, Oxford and Edinburgh. Read my review of the show here
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE is out on a national tour with a super-talented (if occasionally underused) cast which make it worthwhile viewing . See it in June at York, Brighton, Bradford and Woking. Read my review of the show here
Now well into its stride, the 50th anniversary UK tour of the tribal rock musical HAIR carries on with abandon, starring Jake Quickenden, Marcus Collins and Kelly Sweeney. See it in June at Portsmouth, Edinburgh and Oxford.
It’s your last chance to see the optimistic but satisfyingly honest A SUPER HAPPY SHOW (ABOUT FEELING SUPER SAD) which has spent May encoring at London’s Vaults and is now back out on the last leg of its UK tour. See it in June at – 12 June, Burton-on-Trent, Burton Brewhouse ; 13 June, Spalding, South Holland Centre; 14 June, Leicester, Attenborough Arts Centre.The show is an unlikely-sounding musical about depression, and from personal experience I can tell you that it’s well worth a visit.
Opening West End
Its Summer at last and here’s the perfect show to raise the temperature! Having spent a couple of weeks “running in” in Leicester, this Broadway import bursts onto the London scene at the Coliseum for a season from June 14th until 31st August.
Gloria Estefan has sold over 100 million records worldwide and is the most successful Latin crossover performer in the history of pop music. Featuring the best of her 38 number 1 hits, this Tony Award nominated show ran on Broadway for two years, for over 750 performances. ON YOUR FEET!is the inspiring true love story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan and charts their journey from Cuba to the streets of Miami and finally to international superstardom. Featuring some of the most iconic pop songs of the era, including “Rhythm is Gonna Get You”, “Conga”, “Get On Your Feet”, “Don’t Want To Lose You Now” and “1-2-3” and many more.
ON YOUR FEET! is directed by two-time Tony Award® winner Jerry Mitchell (Kinky Boots, Legally Blonde), with choreography by Olivier Award-winner Sergio Trujillo (Jersey Boys) and book by Academy Award® winner Alexander Dinelaris (Birdman).
People who like a dash of classical and opera with their musical theatre might enjoy Tony Award-winning musical THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZAwhich comes to the Royal Festival Hall for a (very) limited run, 14 June – 5 July, apparently fully staged – and with direction by Daniel Evans (of Chichester Festival Theatre).
Based on the 1960 novel by Elizabeth Spencer, THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA tells the story of a mother and daughter, Margaret and Clara Johnson, on vacation in Italy. Clara becomes besotted with a local named Fabrizio, but what starts as a love story takes darker turns as family secrets and conflicts come to the surface. This musical adaptation, written by Adam Guettel and Craig Lucas, dramatises the story, and uses classical music and opera, rather than traditional pop music often associated with Broadway theatre. In this production, American operatic soprano Renée Fleming is joined by Dove Cameron, Alex Jennings and Rob Houchen. THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA premiered on Broadway in 2005 and ran for 504 performances, winning six Tony Awards from 11 nominations, including best original score and best orchestrations.
Continuing Shows
Until June 8th, THIS ISLAND’S MINE is having its first ever revival since debuting thirty years ago, and is well worth seeing. Running at the Kings Head Theatre, Philip Osment’s passionate and humane drama of forbidden love lyrically reminds us of the struggles we have been through, and the bittersweet pangs of first love. Showing how far we have come, but how much we have to lose. This tender and heartfelt revival feels dangerously topical. With a talented cast and direction by the acclaimed Philip Wilson.
DEATH OF A SALESMAN is the much-anticipated new production of the Arthur Miller classic from star director Marianne Elliott, with a standout cast including Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke (Caroline, or Change), Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Suits, Selma) who makes his UK stage debut, and Arinzé Kene (Misty), bringing Elliott’s acute vision to one of the greatest plays of the twentieth century, seen through the eyes of an African American family. Not quite the ground-breaker we were hyped up to expect, nevertheless a very solid production well worth seeing. Extended to July 13. NB The entire run is sold out, returns only.
The much-praised National Theatre production of THE LEHMAN TRILOGY is now playing the Piccadilly Theatre and has just extended its run to the end of August. With a stunning cast including Simon Russell Beale and Ben Miles as well as having such brilliant reviews behind it, I am sure it will be worth seeing. For those who can’t get there, it will be broadcast in the schedule of NT Live in 25 July, details here.
NT Live Broadcasts
Can you believe that NTLive is 10 years old?! There will be a number of encores in the Autumn to celebrate this anniversary. For now, The late Andrea Levy’s Orange Prize-winning novel SMALL ISLAND comes to life in an epic new theatre adaptation. Experience the play in cinemas, filmed live on stage as part of National Theatre Live’s 10th birthday, broadcast to a theatre or cinema near you from 27 June. Check the NTLive website for locations near youhere
London shows
closing
Closing June 8th – ALL MY SONS – Sally Field and Bill Pullman star in Arthur Miller’s fisrt big hit from 1947.
Closing June 8th – AMOUR – A musical fantasy set in Paris in 1950, utilising the songs of Michel Legrand closes at the Charing Cross Theatre.
