For King And Country - Review

Southwark Playhouse, London



**


Written by John WIlson
Directed by Paul Tomlinson

Lloyd Everitt, Peter Ellis and Henry Proffit

In the final tragic year of the Great War’s centenary, and 102 years (almost to the day) since the commencement of the Battle of the Somme, For King And Country reminds us of the mental devastation that war can wreak upon its combatants. 

When Private Hamp, a British infantryman who’s served in the trenches for 4 years, deserts his battalion he is arrested and brought before a court martial. A firing squad represents the ultimate penalty he potentially faces and it is down to Lieutenant Hargreaves (Hamp’s defending officer) to argue to the military court that the young soldier was unfit for combat, suffering from shell shock (PTSD in today’s terms), and as such should be spared a death sentence. Opposite Hargreaves is Lieutenant Webb, the prosecuting officer (and, should capital punishment be decided upon, the leader of the firing squad too) to put to the court that Hamp is nothing more than a deserter who should be executed accordingly - not only for the purposes of punishing his wrongdoing, but also to serve as a disciplinary example to the ranks.

It’s a noble story - made all the more resonant in that it was not to be until 2006 that the British Government would posthumously pardon all of the 300+ young men who had been shot for desertion during the 1914-18 conflict. The tragedy at the Southwark Playhouse however is that the production’s potential pathos and nobility is squandered by its three leading performances all who fail to achieve meaningful depth in their work. 

Adam Lawrence as Hamp should hold our hearts in his hands, much like the court martial holds his fate. But he doesn’t - and Lawrence needs to dig deeper to deliver the subtle complexities of his tragedy. There is disappointment too from Lloyd Everitt’s Hargreaves in a performance that veers between bluster and incredulity, but never truly convinces as a compassionate yet clipped British Army officer in the early 20th century. Likewise, Henry Proffit’s Webb, who all too often descends into caricature. Where one should be moved by this harrowing saga, all too often the episodes of two-handed dialogue feel tedious.

There are moments of stunning talent that shine through the gloom. Peter Ellis as the President of the Court (effectively judge and jury) brings a perfectly weighted gravitas to the role, as Andrew Cullum’s Medical Officer O’Sullivan offers a perfect depiction of the distressingly dismissive “pull yourself together mentality” so prevalent then (and now) in avoiding the complexities of mental health. Eugene Simon’s Padre convinces too.

But for too much of the evening, director Paul Tomlinson is found to have deserted his post, allowing his leading trio’s talent to go AWOL.

Runs until 21st July

Photo credit: Richard Strnad

Hamlet

Riverside Studios, London

***

William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Directed by Zoe Ford

Adam Lawrence

There has long been debate over who wrote Shakespeare’s works. Bacon, Marlowe or the Bard himself? One thing’s for sure. They are all spinning in their graves tonight at what Zoe Ford has done to Hamlet.

With a slimmed down cast, Denmark’s Elsinore is translated to HM Prison Liverpool, in which Ford has decreed that some of the characters are convicts and others visitors or prison officials. A lengthy mise en scene (that includes Liverpool FC’s recent throwing away of the Premiership at Crystal Palace in the background, as well as Hamlet enduring a full body search) is a quirky addition that sets the tone for a maelstrom of meddling that does the learned Ms Ford no credit. This is a dumbed down Hamlet that strips the play not only of much of its verse, but also of several of its famous quotes and moments. Whilst Fortinbras’ omission from the text is understandable (and common), the players' arrival at Court is curiously transformed into a group therapy session, whilst other memorable text excisions include “neither a borrower nor a lender be” along with the whole of the dialogue between Hamlet and the Ghost in Gertrude’s closet. And Yorick doesn’t get a look in at all. (Actually that is a real shame, because some of Shakespeare’s finest humour occurs between the Gravediggers and Hamlet/Horatio. Ford’s pseudo-witty attempts elsewhere in the play at modern colloquial banter do not come close to the original and this scene’s butchery is a cut too far.)

There is a liberal use of the f-word throughout and a schoolgirl emphasis on the assonant fun to be had with “country matters” during the play-within-a-play scene, with the overall effect being a cheapening of the whole. One suspects that Ford, whose day job is as a Text Assistant at Shakespeare’s Globe, is driven by a worthy motive of seeking to make Shakespeare accessible to a wider audience. ‘Tis a noble cause for sure, but all she achieves here is reducing much of the prose to a lowest common denominator. A-level or GCSE students should avoid this production lest they quote Ford’s interpretation of the play, as set in a Scouse jail, on an examined script.

So, why three stars, when Ford’s edited text merits far less? Amongst her having made Shakespeare sensational (and there’s a quote waiting to be taken out of context if ever there was one), she has created some perceptive moments. Ophelia’s mad scene is poignant, (good work from Jessica White) Gertrude’s pain at Hamlet’s apparently insane interaction with the Ghost in her closet is a rare episode of deep emotional pain and the maleovelant and downright nasty duplicity of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern is shown in clear relief. Also, as is often the case with stage Hamlet’s, Adam Lawrence’s performance is excellent and a huge physical effort, though around him there is mediocrity as Joyce Greenaway’s Gertrude is often mumbled and Anthony Kernan’s Polonius disappoints.

Above all, this is a Hamlet that should be seen as a curiosity. If you are a newcomer to the play then sadly it will deny you much of the nuanced beauty of the finely crafted original. But if you know the play well, then go and enjoy the fun. It’s a corner-cutting novelty for sure, but at least at just over two hours including interval, it won’t leave you bored.

Runs until 22nd June 2014