Catherine Bennett resumes the weekly look at the performing arts world, with the sad end of Jerusalem, the luck of a cabbie, and French revolt. Do you hear the people sing?
Adam Alcock reviews Nigel Kennedy playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons and his own Four Elements at York Opera House.
Catherine Bennett highlights the trends in the performing arts world today.
Jonathan Cridford reviews 'Ghosts', one of the Freshers' plays for this year.
Despite his diminutive stature, O’Neill was the powerhouse of the production, his stage presence and physicality continually giving so much energy to the performance in his role as the confused and tortured man struggling with his attraction to Catherine (Leila Mimmack), his orphaned niece. Mimmack was gorgeous, portraying wide-eyed innocence and, despite a slightly wavering accent, brought an emotional depth to the character well beyond her years. As a young actor on the circuit, I will definitely keep a lookout for her name in the future. Accents were generally very good all round; special mention must go to Ronan Raftery as Rodolpho, whose Italian accent and mannerisms were impeccable.
I have read Arthur Miller’s 1950s classic before, but so long ago that I couldn’t really remember the story. And I was thankful for that. Not foreseeing the events of the play mean that I was completely drawn in to the Royal Exchange’s production. Miller’s play is beautifully crafted, using implication and subtext to tell the story rather than say anything outright. Being able to use a wide, open space like the in-the-round studio allowed greater freedom with proxemics. The actors beautifully displayed the tangible tension between family members in the way they paced around each other on stage without ever feeling dependent on props or set in order to have something to do.
Anna Francolini as Beatrice was brilliant, giving real breadth to her role as she incorporated both the comedic gesticulations of the fussing mother with more tragic moments, such as the heart-wrenching speech when she announces her husband’s infatuation with Catherine. Ian Redford as Alfieri was predictable, punctuating the scenes of action with a magisterial, booming voice as is only expected of the typical narrator-character. I feel that the part of Alfieri breaks up the script unnecessarily, and Redford’s British accent (although I think initially it was meant to be American, but slipped into a more comfortable gentrified Brit intonation) was an unwelcome distraction from the compelling performances coming from other members of the company.
There were initially some problems with audibility, which were compounded by the in-the-round staging: it often meant that during an important monologue, some of the characters would have their back to you. We were unlucky in our seating in that whenever the family sat around the table we were unable to see anyone’s face. Audibility was no problem in the second act, however: the audience was so transfixed that you could hear a pin drop. It seems an odd thing to say, but not for a long time have I felt so completely engrossed in a play, so much so that I forgot that I was in Manchester, and instead felt personally involved in the brawls and family feuds entrenched deep in the fabric of Miller’s Brooklyn. This production made the audience laugh, gasp, and at certain key moments in the second act I was moved to tears. I know that I wasn’t the only one to walk away from the play feeling terribly moved. Even though various staging shortcuts were used and we were in a modern-style theatre, this was actually theatre in its most traditional form, where the audience is transported into the lives of the characters. I couldn’t recommend this enough – a wonderful, authentic, emotionally-stirring version of a well-known play. If you’ve seen A View From The Bridge before, somehow you’ve never seen it quite like this.
A View From The Bridge is showing at the Royal Exchange in Manchester until June 25th.
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