10-14 Nov
Bedlam Theatre

* * * *

Well. What can I say? After a turbulent 2 and a half hours I emerge from the theatre, basking in the triumph of a stunning cast and an evening of overall… competency.

Talk, talk, talk. Yadda, yadda, yadda. This is a wordy play. The potential for boredom is high.
Thankfully, skilled director George Ransley doesn’t let us down. This is a slick production, with flowing dialogue and swift scene changes. The staging is thoughtful and (crucially) well rehearsed, the set tasteful and unobtrusive, all with a pleasingly cohesive colour scheme.

But for all this talk of technical competency, where the play truly triumphs is in the cast.
Rebecca (Alice Bonifacio) is enigmatic and beguiling, delivered with composure and subtlety, Mr Kroll (Will Green) has sheer energy and decisiveness, his character fully developed and integrated. Rosmer (Charlie Laurie) creates a heartbreaking emotional intimacy with the audience, his actions specific and nuanced; this is a skilled, and moving, performance.

The minor characters are well chosen: Brendal (Arthur Ford) is engaging, lightening an otherwise increasingly depressive mood, while David Elms’ Mortensgaard is refreshingly understated and contained. Mrs Helseth (Hannah Mendoza) manages to play the truth of the housekeeper, with an unassuming air making her as interesting as anyone else onstage.

Now my snags. The age/class difference between both Mrs Helseth and Rebecca, and Brendal and Rosmer, could be more distinct; the ambiguity jars in such a naturalistic piece. Some actors need more courage, others need to consider a wider contrast of emotional range (avoiding comfort zones) while for others vocal production is inconsistent. For such a static play a bit more attention to pace as well as maintaining those simmering energy levels would elevate this production to even greater heights.

To be fair to Team Ransley, the production is a very high standard. You just don’t see many student productions as polished, as well considered and as fantastically acted as this one. Rosmersholm is an unquestionable success. So why “competent”?

The direction is transparent and suits what the production aims for – a clear, accurate, classical portrayal of Ibsen. However a bit of artistic license wouldn’t go amiss. Go on. Use those redundant scene changes, do something crazy. Get full use of that live musician. Maybe even get some of those top hats everyone was once crazy about.

Comments

Add New

Write comment
Name:
Email:	do not notifynotify
Title:
Please input the anti-spam code that you can read in the image.

Powered by !JoomlaComment 3.26

3.26 Copyright (C) 2008 Compojoom.com / Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."