A Christmas Carol - Review

Theatre Royal, Windsor

****

Written by Charles Dickens

Adapted and directed by Roy Marsden

Having played for just the one week at Windsor’s Theatre Royal, Roy Marsden’s adaptation of the famously festive ghost story made for a charming lead-in to the Christmas season.

Staged as a radio play, the cast sit onstage throughout, costumed as befits their various characters, stepping up to microphone stands to read their lines as Foley Artist Michael Workman creates all sorts of background noises to set the scene. All the sounds are real rather than digitised and it is a treat to see radio drama performed much in the style of how it would have been created during the mid-20th century.

Marsden is Ebenezer Scrooge. Clad in the traditional nightgown as Scrooge receives his three ghostly visitations over the night of Christmas Eve, Marsden’s portrayal of the old miser, from curmudgeonly to compassionate, is the work of a deft old hand who cleverly captures Scrooge’s complexities.

Playing (a Scots) Ghost of Christmas Past as well as Mrs Cratchit, Jenny Seagrove brings a glorious combination of chilling wisdom together with firm but humble homeliness to her brace of  characters. There is a kind familiarity to Seagrove’s performance that is as gorgeous to watch as it is professional in its delivery.

Michael Praed, Robert Duncan and Holly Smith take care of a handful of other key characters that the old yarn requires, while Shannon Rewcroft adds a glorious soprano touch to her roles as Ben Stock steps up to lead the audience in a handful of carols for all after the cast have taken their bows.

The ‘On Air’ series of radio plays is an imaginative concept that the Theatre Royal’s company appear to have skillfully mastered.  Classic dramas, delivered in a way that is both traditional and yet innovative. 

This opinion is published after the show’s run has ended – however it seems that irrespective of this critic’s praise, the Windsor audiences know a good show when they see it. On the night of this review, the house was packed with an audience that spanned the ages and generations, all enjoying an evening of fabulously crafted theatre.

Hamlet - Review

*****

Ian McKellen

Directed by Sean Mathias

Written by William Shakespeare

117 minutes

It was a bold move in 2021 for Sean Mathias to cast Ian McKellen as Hamlet in his production at Windsor’s Theatre Royal. Traditionally the role is played by a much younger man who needs to be a credible university student as well as one whose mother is still of an attractive re-marriageable age, and desirable to her former brother-in-law. In this iteration however McKellen was the oldest actor on the stage, boldly defying convention. The production attracted mixed reviews at the time, however it led to McKellen returning to the role at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2022 - in a completely separate dance-based production - and subsequently to the Bill Kenwright Company releasing Mathias’ work as a fully storyboarded full blown feature film.

 

This filmed take on Hamlet proves to be an inspirational revelation. Filmed in and around the Windsor theatre, Mathias has set the play across the stage, backstage and front-of-house areas of the venue, giving a meticulously re-imagined interpretation of the story.

Film and theatre are profoundly different media. The live performance demands our attention on a scene or tableau, possibly quite diverse in its panorama, and often far away from where the audience is seated. Cinema however, as Norma Desmond made clear in Sunset Boulevard, is all about the close-up. And Ian Mckellen as Hamlet, in close-up, is quite simply a masterclass. Few living actors have a mastery of Shakespeare’s verse that can match McKellen. His delivery of the prose, both the famously quotable stuff as well as the lesser-known lines is exquisite and even those familiar with the text will find new revelations in the story through McKellen’s delivery.

A decent production of Hamlet demands a cracking supporting cast and Mathias has rounded up most of his 2021 company to accompany Sir Ian. Jonathan Hyde is a suitably evil Claudius with Jenny Seagrove stepping up to the role of Gertrude. It is in the Gertrude/Hamlet interactions - notably Act 3’s closet scene - that the age-neutral casting is most put to the test, but Seagrove pulls it off and if her death a couple of acts later is perhaps a little hammed up, the pathos with which she describes Ophelia’s death, is exquisite.

Ian McKellen and Jenny Seagrove

Emmanuella Cole is a well cast gender-swapped Laertes, with Ben Allen also putting in a finely sympathetic shift as Horatio. Equally, Steven Berkoff’s Polonius is perfection in pomposity and Frances Barber delights as the First Player.

Amongst the supporting roles however it is Alis Wyn Davies who shines out as Ophelia. Frailty may very well be her name such is the carefully crafted fragility that defines her performance, with Davies bringing a light to the fair Ophelia that is rarely seen. Hers is a  gorgeous performance, which when her voice is married to Adam Cork’s music in her tragic mad scene, is lifted even higher.

 

Squeezing in at just under 2 hours, Mathias has trimmed the text with wisdom and sensitivity. Set in contemporary dress in a dystopian locked-down world, this is very much a Hamlet for the 21st Century with Lee Newby’s design work sitting well in the compressed settings of the Edwardian-age theatre. Neil Oseman’s photography is similarly ingenious, adding a profound depth to the story's imagery.

In cinemas for one night only on February 27th and while there will of course be future online streaming, if you are able to catch this on the big screen, just go!

Ian McKellen’s Hamlet is a must-see. His take on those famous speeches, in close-up, is unsurpassed. The rest is silence.

For a full listing of screenings click here

Ian McKellen

Clare Louise Connolly talks about playing Regan on stage in The Exorcist

Tonight, Halloween 2017, the stage play of William Peter Blatty’s apocryphal horror story The Exorcist opens in the West End at the Phoenix Theatre.

Directed by Sean Mathias, the story is all about 12 year old Regan MacNeil, a girl from Georgetown in Washington DC, whose becomes possessed by Devil. The play stars Jenny Seagrove as Regan’s mother Chrissy, and Peter Bowles as Father Merrin, the Jesuit priest whose mission is to exorcise the young girl of her demon.

I saw The Exorcist when it first played at Birmingham Rep (who alongside Bill Kenwright are co-producing this London transfer) last year. It was a great night at the theatre, but what struck me then, aside from the starry lead performers, was the fabulous work from Clare Louise Connolly who plays Regan.

The Exorcist play may well be dripping in world class special effects and illusions – but at the heart of this gruesome horror story is quite simply a breathtaking performance from one of the country’s finest young actresses. 

As rehearsals were ending, I caught up with Clare to talk about the show.

JB:    Tell me about the build up last year to your being cast as Regan. 

Clare:   I had, probably, about four auditions, and I did a lot of work to get the part. The story shows a really good character arc the story has such a cult following, that I wanted to make sure that I gave the part justice in the auditions.

We worked a few scenes during the audition run, including the iconic movie moment where Regan spins her head around. I made sure I told our director Sean Mathias that my neck was extremely flexible!

JB:    “Iconic” is a word that’s over-used today but it’s entirely appropriate in describing the impact that The Exorcist has made on movies and the horror genre in particular over the last 40 years. Did you use William Friedkin’s movie to prepare for the audition process?

Clare:    Good question. Not very much at all. I knew I'd watched the film years and years ago, but I didn't actually watch it again before I auditioned because I wanted to make the character my own.

When I read the scripts, I was really excited because it's written so well that I just wanted to bring my own truth to it, rather than be an imitation of Linda Blair who played Regan on screen.

JB:    Filming the movie famously took its toll on Linda Blair, with Friedkin demanding countess retakes of some of the most harrowing scenes. You, of course, are telling, the same story, but in a very different, live medium where, like all theatre professionals, you have to get it right, first time, every time. Having seen the show last year in Birmingham I can confirm that your performance is magnificent and convincing.

Do you enjoy horror as a genre?

Clare:    I do. I didn't used to but then I watched The Orphanage that I just thought was so beautifully done. I'm not a massive horror fan per se, I don't seek them out so much, but if there is a horror film that I think, "Oh, that looks interesting " then I’ll watch it.

The Ring is when I think horror movies turned and really started to get back in the public eye again. But, in preparation for The Exorcist I have watched more horror.

JB:    The biggest challenge of telling a horror story is to get the audience to suspend our disbelief....

Clare:    Yes, but it also needs truth. It has to make it real and I think that's the success of The Exorcist. It is such a domestic story, and you can really imagine how these events could potentially happen. 

There is also a strong focus on mental health in the narrative. Chris struggles with guilt and worries that her daughter feels abandoned. Father Damien(Adam Garcia) also struggles with guilt over abandoning his mother before she died. Uncle Burke (Tristram Wymark) is dealing with addiction, so there's a lot of themes that are relevant to today. 

JB:    Some people say that violent horror, when portrayed as entertainment, “sets a bad example”. Do you have a view on that?

Clare:    Yes - I do feel quite a responsibility to a story well and to take the audience on a journey. 

One thing The Exorcist does talk about is that where there's evil, there's also good. I think people like to have their dark side challenged and I know that the response of the audiences has been amazing.

Clare with Adam Garcia (l) & Peter Bowles (r)

JB:    Tell me about the audience responses - without giving too much away of course. 

Clare:    Well there are a couple of jump moments of course but it's not really about that. There is a moment where the audience get quite loud, and shocked that we can actually pull a particular effect off on stage - Ben Hart’s illusions are amazing. 

The audiences have been incredible and I think people are very excited that, actually, we go there on stage! They don't expect to see my head turn. They don't expect to see things fly across the room. They don't expect these things. And, although they know it all  happened in the movie with Hollywood’s special effects,  they don't expect that many things to happen in front of their eyes, so I think they are very excited that those things happen.

JB:    Do you enjoy hearing their screams?

Clare:    Actually, no! I have to really concentrate to not absorb that energy and that’s a big thing for me. As a person I'm quite empathic, so, if I hear somebody screaming, my feelings are that I want to protect them!

JB:    The show has opened on Halloween, which is very much nowadays a season that treats horror with a fair amount of tongue-in-cheek frivolity. But even though The Exorcist may well be "popcorn-theatre", it is not in any way a pantomime, or a show that can allow its cast to interact with the audience. 

Clare:    "Popcorn theatre" is a great description. We've actually had women come along to see the show dressed as Regan! So who knows - we might have the beginning of a cult show here.

What I do know though is the genius of John Pielmeier's adaptation that allows a lot of comedy in there too. There is the time for the audience to laugh, and it might be right before they’re meant to feel scared, so it really throws them back and forth. The Exorcist audiences have been the loudest I've ever experienced doing a play, in fact they probably are on a level with pantomime audiences. It’s a real experience for them and so far they all seem to be loving it, lapping it up and coming out afterwards really exuberant, bright eyed and with lots to say. 

Another key part of the show’s magic for me is the sound. When I landed the part, the first thing I wanted to find out was who was designing the sound, because, for me personally, it is the sound affects that complete the illusion. When I learned that it was Adam Cork - who I've worked with before on something else that was also very distressing and horrific -  I was like, "Brilliant. We're okay. He's fantastic." And, when you enter the theatre and you've got that haunting chanting sound, it just puts you on edge to begin with!

JB:    The possessed Regan literally looks horrific. How long does it take you in make up to get that face just right? 

Clare:    Make up is actually an amazing challenge, because it’s a gradual process throughout the show. I start clear faced, no make up, just as Regan starts off as a normal happy girl, who has a great relationship with her mother. So it’s a gradual build-up.

On the brief moments when I'm not on stage, there's a brilliant lady called Billie Sanger, who is adding make up to me, slowly, and that's how it happens.

JB:    And you are not off-stage for very long at all. 

Clare:    I know. Most of my changes are about 35 seconds. I think I might have one that's about a minute and a half. And they're very quick. And I do change my nightie a few times as well. Very quick changes.

JB:    Let’s talk about Ian McKellen and THAT voice. Last year in Birmingham it wasn’t announced that he was voicing the devil and in fact he didn't even get a programme credit. Now, with the London opening, his part in the show is well publicised.

 What’s it like to lip synch to Ian McKellen?

Clare:    Fantastic. An absolutely dream.There  are certain people you really want to work with in your career and he’s at the top of that list. Even though his voice is recorded, we did rehearse together so as to make sure that the cadence of what I was saying and rehearsing matched his cadence, rhythm and speed. 

I didn't actually know it was to be him voicing the Devil until the read through!  I met him about 10 minutes before we commenced and then started acting with him and it was just brilliant. He's such a legend and yet I immediately felt calm working with him.

What’s great about Ian's voice is that people recognise it. This in turn makes it all the more believable as to why Regan takes him on as a friend. If he’d been voiced as a gruff, mean sounding villain, she wouldn't have given him the time of day. Ian’s Devil however is smooth and he just entices her in.

And of course the rest of the cast are amazing to work with too. It's been such an ensemble piece with everybody throwing in ideas. Sean really likes to take a collaborative approach. 

JB:    Clare, thank you finding the time to talk. To you  and to the whole Exorcist company, break a leg with the run.

Clare:    Or break a neck!


The Exorcist is booking at the Phoenix Theatre until 10th March 2018

The Exorcist - Review

Birmingham Rep


****


Written by John Pielmeier
Based on the novel by William Peter Blatty
Directed by Sean Mathias

Adam Garcia, Clare Louise Connolly and Peter Bowles

Unquestionably for over 18s and with John Pielmeier's adaptation retaining both the physical and verbal profanity of Blatty's shocking novel, the tale of 10 year-old Regan’s possession by the devil condenses well into Sean Mathias’ neatly staged two hour yarn. With Hollywood forever having been about make believe and impossible illusions - now more than ever in the age of motion captured CGI – it was always going to be a tall order translating classic horror from screen to stage. So there’s a well-earned hurrah (or should that be scream?) for this evening of hokum that's currently playing in Birmingham over the Halloween fortnight. As the audience take their seats the house lights are gradually built up to a full on brightness before plunging the auditorium into a shriek-filled darkness and we’re off.

If you know the story then it’s all familiar territory. If you don’t, there’ll be no spoilers here. Kicking off with a brief glimpse of Father Merron, the excavating exorcist, digging up a decidedly dodgy amulet somewhere in the Middle East (think Indiana Jones crossed with Lawrence of Arabia) the action shifts to a house in Washington DC’s Georgetown where our pre-teen protagonist has been discovering the delights of the Ouija Board and her apparently imaginary friend, Captain Howdy. It’s hellishly downhill from thereon.

The production could arguably have been called The Possessed, rather than The Exorcist. It's not until the second act that the titular Peter Bowles really starts earning his wage, cassock donned and holy water spurting. Prior to then the story is all about the poor possessed Clare Louise Connolly's Regan becoming increasingly demonized.

Make no mistake - Bowles gives Merron a worthy gravitas. Not easy, given that his character on stage is reduced to a little more than a paper thin caricature with acute angina. Likewise his earnest sidekick Father Karras (fine work from Adam Garcia) eases the narrative along commandingly, whilst Jenny Seagrove's Chris, Regan's despairing film-star mother does a fine job, steering her character just safe of melodrama. Nods too, for Tristram Wymark's head-turning performance as Burke, the drink-soaked film directing family friend and also for Mitch Mullen who's as dependable as ever in the modest role of Dr. Klein.

The acting honours however are all Connolly’s in a performance that is quite simply a tour-de-force. Yes - there are some clever special effects and ingenious projections (which could to be honest be a little tighter, especially that rather clunky projectile vomiting gizmo) with Anna Fleischle's design work and Ben Hart's illusions creating the story's disconcertingly hellish domestic setting. But it is the diminutive Connolly who makes the show. Whether she's either speaking or lip-syncing to Ian McKellen's vocalizing her inner demon, Connolly’s performance suspends disbelief and from a terrifying precipice at that, utterly convincing that she is a girl possessed. 

Forty years ago on screen, director William Friedkin had Linda Blair’s Regan do all sorts of cleverly horrific tricks, assisted by an FX army and days of post-production. Live on stage however it’s all about the acting and Connolly simply becomes a blond haired fiend before our very eyes. One can only hope that the UK Theatre Awards judging team have her performance in their sights. 

Neither for the squeamish nor the pretentiously highbrow, The Exorcist represents Bill Kenwright at his very best, staging wonderfully entertaining theatre. And Clare Louise Connolly's Regan is unmissable!

Runs until 5th November

Photo credit: Robert Day

How The Other Half Loves - Review

Theatre Royal Haymarket, London


***

Written by Alan Ayckbourn
Directed by Alan Strachan

Matthew Cottle and Gillian Wright

Written before he had become one of the nation's most prolific playwrights, yet as ever focusing upon his hallmark theme of domestic dysfunctionality, How The Other Half Loves is Alan Ayckbourn's 1969 effort, viewed through the prism of well-performed comedy.

Fuelled by differences in class and alongside marital infidelity that spans the social strata, the young and argumentative Teresa and Bob Philips (Tamzin Outhwaite and Jason Merrells) live modestly whilst the older Frank and Fiona Foster (Nicholas Le Prevost and Jenny Seagrove) enjoy a more privileged lifestyle. This being Ayckbourn however, Bob is having an affair with Fiona and thrown into the mix are the dull and dim Featherstones (William and Mary played by Matthew Cottle and Gillian Wright respectively) who have no idea that they’re being used as scape goats to hide the sordid carryings on. 

For the most part the book is well thought out. Mistaken suspicions are cleverly managed to comical and catastrophic results, with occasional moments of perfectly timed slapstick only enhancing the humour. But while there's much energy on display, the ending disappoints, feeling a little weak and somewhat rushed and almost doing a disservice to the preceding hilarity. The lengthy curtain drops between scene changes don't help, with the frequent halts dissipating dramatic momentum. 

Le Prevost, Wright and Cottle are all on top form. Le Prevost’s embodiment of a Blithering older gentleman with a constant misunderstanding of what’s been said to him brings the audience to its knees with roaring hilarity. He shows a believable stereotype that continues to surprise and is extremely enjoyable to watch. Wright’s Mary is shy and understated, with a masterclass performance in how to use pauses to full effect and a wonderful collaboration on stage with Cottle, who embodies a warm awkwardness on stage that one could watch for hours.

Alan Strachan's direction is choreographed to perfection with pinpoint timing and movement, delivering an Ayckbourn revival that is fun to watch and which refreshingly restores some old school charm to the theatre.

Runs until 25th June
Reviewed by Charlotte Darcy
Photo credit: Alistair Muir