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Catherine Bennett highlights the trends in the performing arts world today.
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Feeling his individuality threatened by his own fictional character, Arthur Conan-Doyle decides to plot the end of the famous detective’s life. In order to do so, he creates Holmes’ arch-enemy, Professor James Moriarty, notorious for his evil and dark mind. But nothing goes according to the author’s plan when his sharp and resourceful characters collude for survival, and finally reach him in a ‘contact with the dead’ session.
The play, written by David Stuart Davies in 2008, wonderfully brings together the fiction and the reality inhabiting Doyle’s mind. The main theme is the struggle between an author and his creation, and the impossibility for the two to ever separate.
All characters are played by one actor, Robert Llewellyn, and the audience is subtly incorporated into the story. This happens firstly during the meeting of the Strand Magazine shareholders (who are played by the audience), when the chairman announces devastating news: their cash-cow, Sherlock Holmes, is to disappear following its creator’s decision. Later on, at the spiritualist session, fictional audience and real audience are combined, and finally, in the last minutes of the play, Sherlock addresses the audience directly, commenting on the fact that each of us carries a bit of Sherlock Holmes in ourselves. The ability to preserve a sort of fictional wall throughout this real interaction is fascinating, as at no point is the audience expected to respond.
The stage is split into two: on one side Doyle’s writing desk, and on the other Holmes’ armchair in his Baker Street home, with numerous objects such as a violin or a skull lying on the floor. On both sides, one can note a common item - a glass of brandy. Behind the armchair, there is a tall coat hanger, from which the actor can easily pick up his hat and raincoat. During the production, the light switches between both sides, gradually covering both simultaneously.
Kindly taking a few minutes of his time to chat with me after the performance, Llewellyn disclosed that it took almost a year to set up the play and several months for him to learn the script and interpret his numerous characters – I counted around ten of them! This did not surprise me, as for two hours I had watched him flawlessly transform himself on stage: Conan-Doyle to Holmes, Moriarty, Watson, Mrs Hudson and others; they are all there, even Conan Doyle’s gin-addled dying father! Llewellyn's tone, accent, rhythm of speech, posture and facial expression change in a split-second, and he skilfully incorporates items such as a top hat, notebook or raincoat into his plain grey suit to add to the depth of the characters.
Sherlock Holmes’ arrogance and wit is superbly interpreted, using a cold-faced, ironical British humour to convey feelings of superiority, which contrast with the equally excellent interpretation of tormented and resentful Doyle who is hungry for public recognition. Moriarty's appearances are spine-chilling, helped by a dramatic blue light and top hat combination which concealed most of his face.
The play is excellent, the actor is excellent; the only drawback for me was the choice of sound effects and music, which in my opinion didn’t add much to the performance, and could have enhanced key moments of the story in a more effective manner. That said, inferring from the loud laughter and comments heard from spectators after the show, I can confidently deduce the show was a real success. Elementary.
Sherlock Holmes: The Death and Life is on at York Theatre Royal from 31st May to the 2nd June. Written by David S. Davies, and with music by Simon Slater.
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