Peepshow

I’m always surprised when I walk into the drama barn the night of a new performance. What on earth can you do with such a small, dingy, black-walled space? According to Peepshow… plenty.

The plot follows the lives of three couples and a loner. First encountered returning from a party (dressed as a clown and a panda respectively) are George (Emilie Smith) and Ben (Chris White). Young and rambunctious, the pair go through what appears to be a familiar, alcohol-induced, post-party routine. Next are Richard (Ziggy Heath) and Sharon (Lauren Reed). Slightly older, this pair create the atmosphere of a dying relationship between a long-suffering couple who don’t know what to do to keep the spark going. Kate (Helena Clark) and her new flatmate Sarah (Claire Curtis-Ward) meanwhile move spiritedly around their set filled with the excitement of new prospects and the future. While Loner (Lewis Chandler) sits alone in his corner having a one-sided conversation down the telephone. Thus begins Peepshow.

Where to start? From the moment you enter the barn, you are immersed in the lives of seven very different people. The set is fantastically designed - split into five sections: four bedrooms and a kitchen – and each section speaking volumes about their inhabitants before any of the characters have even opened their mouths. It’s almost as if each character’s soul has been laid out on display for all to see. Complimented by the backing soundtrack, a few members of the cast wander round the set aimlessly creating a ‘lived-in’ feeling that makes the Drama Barn no longer feel like just a barn.

Drawn together by a bottle opener, the characters begin to dip in and out of each other’s lives, drawing polar-opposites together in a whirlwind of uncovered secrets. Where the show tended to fall a little flat was in between the dialogue. The dancing worked best when the movements were small and intense, creating the heat and passion that I think directors Francesca Murray-Fuentes and Fran Isherwood wanted to convey. However occasionally the choreography, particularly in the lifts, might better have been performed by trained dancers. These minor, infrequent moments of clumsiness however did not detract from the movement of the scene or the on-stage emotion.

The entire cast was strong, each well-suited to their roles and the chemistry between couples was unfalteringly convincing. Chandler’s portrayal of Loner was utterly endearing and heartfelt and worked well interchangeably with all the other characters. However it was Emilie Smith who really captured the audience’s attention. Having never seen Smith perform before, it was hard to tell if she was actually drunk or just very much in character (I presume the latter). Her portrayal of her character George’s progress through the play was both hilarious and heartbreaking, bringing the audience on a rollercoaster of intoxicated emotions.

For those of you who listened to the preview, you would have recognised the Antony and the Johnson’s track ‘Daylight and the Sun’ amongst the soundtrack to Peepshow. All the songs were well chosen and perfectly suited to the tone of the play, though the times when the cast sang along felt a little strange. Perhaps a choice should have been made between singing karaoke along to a backing track or mouthing to the original. The songs alone tended to drown out the cast, but this may have just been a sound fault, as Loner’s “polish tape” also felt a little loud and distracting.

Overall there is little bad to say about Peepshow. Well-staged, beautifully-directed, and wonderfully performed, I would urge any of you unlucky enough not to have bought a ticket to go queue on the night. It’s well worth squeezing yourself in for. A perfect start to the Drama Barn’s summer term.

Director: Francesca Murray-Fuentes

Assistant Director: Fran Isherwood

Producer: Rosie Townshend

Tech: Josh Robson

Stage Manager: Issy Smith

Choreographer: Hayley Thompson

Add Comment

You must log in to submit a comment.