Tag Archives: Christopher Haydon

“Diary Of A Madman” at the Gate Theatre

Al Smith’s play, inspired by Nikolai Gogol’s short story, is a triumphant commission from the Gate, already praised for its premiere at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh. Using schizophrenia to touch on plenty of issues, the play’s often very funny humour turns on a knife (well, a screwdriver) to create something truly gripping. Christopher Haydon’s direction is swift and sure, while a strong cast is clearly determined to make the most of this bracing piece.

Smith’s updating of the story is a neat affair. Set at the Forth Bridge, our hero, Pop Sheeran, is the latest in a family tasked with continually repainting the national monument, now owned by a global corporation. Times are changing. Liam Brennan takes the lead, giving a well-paced performance as an appealing figure with a  movingly delusional mental illness.

Talk of identity, national and professional, is instigated by the arrival of a young Englishman (Guy Clark does a super job here), which might feel contrived and portentous but isn’t. Modern life and sexual politics are quickly addressed, yet there’s real insight. If there are routes that could be explored further, credit to Smith for staying so evenly on track.

Lois Chimimba and Louise McMenemy
Lois Chimimba and Louise McMenemy

Firmly rooting the play in a community works wonders. This is a family drama as well. Deborah Arnott contributes immeasurably to a convincing portrait of marriage as Pop’s wife. Louise McMenemy brings depth to her role as their daughter. A neighbour and friend, a part to which Lois Chimimba brings hugely confident comic timing, gives us two young girls growing up – their sassy dialogue is a delight.

Laughter and insanity isn’t a new combination. Smith highlights discomfort about the connection but, more, utilises the humour impressively. A puppet of Greyfriars Bobby rewrites a tourist legend in a creepily memorable comedy scene. And, at the risk of too many spoilers, the finale at a fancy dress party themed on Scottish heroes is a damn clever move. The path towards Pop’s breakdown is so skilfully written, it’s as pleasurable as it is painful to watch.

Until 24 September 2016

www.gatetheatre.co.uk

Photos by Iona Firouzabadi

“Purple Heart” at the Gate Theatre

It’s a brave decision for a playwright to make a child one of the central characters of a play. In Bruce Norris’ Purple Heart, receiving its UK première at the Gate Theatre in Notting Hill, Thor is a 12-year-old caught between his grieving mother and grandmother after his father dies in Vietnam. Given the raw intensity of the part, it would be almost impossible for a child of the same age to play it so the first medal awarded to this production goes to the actor Oliver Coopersmith, who is 20, for an astonishingly convincing portrayal of a precocious, disturbed pre-teen.

The family trio mourns in different ways. The resilience of youth is matched by the stoicism of age, with Linda Broughton playing Grace, a mother-in-law whose best intentions and insistence she is “on top of it” would test anyone. Grace’s attempts to control her son’s widow have an underlying insecurity that Broughton develops well. In the central role, Amelia Lowdell gives a similarly layered performance; the focus of a close-knit community obsessed with sending condolence casseroles, she is close to suicide through grief and alcoholism. Lowdell makes her fragile character the focus of our sympathy, despite her vicious streak.

Matters become more complex with the arrival of Purdy, a Vietnam veteran and a fourth, fine performance from Trevor White. It doesn’t take long for the soldier’s clean-cut manner to slip and White manages this superbly, making the most of every movement. Purdy is more a device than a well-rounded character: Norris uses him to pull out ideas and give Purple Heart some weight. At times, his character makes the play seem a touch sensational but the writing is original enough to fascinate.

Christopher Haydon’s intelligent direction serves Norris’ text well. Most of the conversations have an interrogatory feel that is delivered with an appropriate military pace. Better still, Haydon clearly appreciates the author’s quirky comedy; despite being a play about grief Purple Heart is full of laughs. It’s the darkest of humour, one that gives even poor jokes an edge. It’s a work unafraid of crudity, even silliness (Thor’s novelty jokes, gifts from his father, make continued appearances) – all to bring out the plays painful questions. Norris is known to London audiences primarily through his success at the Royal Court – this early work is every bit as good as the smash hit Clybourne Park, and deserves just as many awards.

Until 6 April 2013

www.gatetheatre.co.uk

Photo by Hugo Glendinning

Written 6 March 2013 for The London Magazine

“The Trojan Women” at the Gate Theatre

In Caroline Bird’s new take on Euripedes’ tragedy, the aftermath of the Trojan War finds the “crème de la femme” of the former empire held captive in the mother and baby unit of a prison alongside an anonymous pregnant woman in the role of The Chorus. If someone in labour chained to a hospital bed offends your sensibilities, then avoid the Gate Theatre on this occasion – it’s just one of several shocks in Bird’s powerful, vicious and unsettling text.

This is writing filled with passion and profanity and it’s guaranteed to disturb and provoke. But it lacks control and, like the subject matter, often borders on the grotesque, while the occasional injection of humour, with a handful of funny lines, falls flat. While the Greeks didn’t hold back when it came to suffering in their tragedies, Bird seems determined to outdo them and Queen Hecuba’s traumas are added to by The Chorus, performed viscerally by Lucy Ellinson, reminding us that the poor are the real victims of any war. As a moral focus it’s admirable, but it makes The Trojan Women relentlessly harrowing.

Bird exposes the audience in merciless fashion, while Christopher Haydon’s direction and Jason Southgate’s impressive set add to the intensity. And the performances are faultless. Dearbhla Molloy makes the most out of a complex Hecuba who is steely-cold and thirsty for vengeance. But the star of the night is Louise Bradley who takes on three roles and manages to convince in all of them. Sadly, no matter how well Bird’s strategy is pursued she doesn’t quite add enough to the original to make this new version worth enduring.

Until 19 December 2012

www.gatetheatre.co.uk

Photo by Iona Firouzabadi

Written 13 November 2012 for The London Magazine