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The Maria, in my short experience, has always provided very alternative theatrical pieces and Jeff James' production of Margarite Dumas' play about a couple meeting up after their divorce is no different. La Musica is a very stereotypically French play. Even Barbara Bray's translation keeps the references and the contemplative tone. The first half sees Emily Barclay and Sam Troughton facing a window away from the audience with cameras capturing the smallest facial expression. This move is less grating than the video usage in Measure for Measure on the main stage and gives the audience a meaningful insight into these people's lives with a cinematic quality. The second sees the action relocated to an in the round setup with the audience moving to both sit and stand whilst the two actors sharing similar sentiments in a more dynamic way. However, at times the repetition bores and despite Ultz's extraordinary design Bray's translation of Dumas' play just isn't interesting enough. Barclay and Troughton try to breathe life into the text with a powerful and complex relationship which is wonderfully and fascinatingly staged by Jeff James yet I just couldn't get over the plodding and static text which disappoints, in spite of the first rate production values.
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I wouldn't say that the last Caryl Churchill play I saw was a success. Light Shining in Buckinghamshire was very difficult to watch and her writing felt more like a history textbook than a dynamic and engaging drama. I had resolved not to bother with this play after that experience however, after seeing that Michael Longhurst was directing, I got a ticket. It is clear that Churchill can write a decent play. A Number is a fascinating and superbly written piece that both deals with the relationship between fathers and sons as well as medical ethics and the future of science. Her play also is served very well by the creative team who create a unique and thought provoking experience. You're brought into a room with about 50 people with a covered screen facing chairs in a place which has a feel of a hospital waiting room. The sound in the background also feels medical before the blind are peeled back to reveal a mirror which then disappears to reveal John and Lex Shrapnel in a room where the other three sides are mirrors behind which are other audience members. Scutt's complex and fascinating design creates this feeling of the dangers of the advancement of medical science, showing that the unique relationship between a father and his son could be replicated and reproduced in the not too distant future. The flaw is that, by creating this effect, it involves creating a physical barrier between the audience and the actors. This keeps us from ever becoming emotionally involved in the drama properly which is a shame with such an engaging staging of a great play.
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As an antisocial type, being told that the show will involve talking to people almost brought me out in palpitations. Luckily, I was on a table with three lovely people and I just about survived the ordeal. Unfortunately, whilst it deals with challenging issues rather well, as a person in my group remarked, World Factory was 'one sprout away from a Christmas game'. The 'show' involves different groups acting as Factory Owners in China and making decisions about our factories taking either ethical or economic decisions based on cards which are handed out. It did feel like it should be on the shelf of a game shop rather than a theatrical experience. Our four hosts start the Game with some verbatim interviews of British and Chinese workers and parts of speeches from Thatcher and Reagan. This part is really interesting and would make a far more challenging production. I get that they are trying to get us to think about the decisions we make and get an insight into the world of the factory but I think, as a piece of theatre, the verbatim approach works far better than a glorified parlour game.
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Mike Bartlett has gone from the grandure of King Charles III to the intimacy of his latest play to come to London. Bull is 55 minutes of pure torture; gut-wrenching and awful in its depiction of bullying in the workplace. As soon as you enter the studio space from the Vic, you recognise that this is a sport rather than a play; you recognise the Bull in Sam Troughton's Thomas; you recognise his tormentors in his two collegues and his boss. The set up is that three workers are waiting for a meeting with their boss in which one of the three will be fired. Bartlett's writing is electrifying, dynamic and graphic in order to show this taunting of Troughton's bull. It gets to the point to, at times, manipulating you into confusing the bully for the victim. James' clearly has good taste in terms of writing, having come straight from Bartlett's play about the fall of the monarchy to this masterpiece. He, along with Eleanor Matsuura are device, slippery and superb as the 'toreadors' and Neil Stuke goes from being the clerk in Silk to the boss who joins in with the tormentation of the star of this piece Sam Troughton. There was no lost voice for him in this where he shows an extraordinary range, especially in the last 10 minutes which was almost physically painful to witness. Soutra Gilmour's design is magnificent and simple to give the audience the feeling of witnessing a bull- fight, creating the perfect atmosphere for the tension which Clare Lizzimore directs. Why this has not created more of a fuss stumps me as it is spectacular and secures Mike Bartlett to be, in my opinion, as Britain's greatest living playwright.
