I agree with the Director that this is one of the finest plays written in the20th century during one of the greatest surges in world drama and in English theatre.
The play is the second of the trilogy by Wesker and heralded the coming of ‘kitchen sink’ drama. The idea was to show how ordinary life was for ordinary people and how they respond, if at all, to the chal-lenges of a changing world. It charts the emotional progress of a young girl, Beatie, through her experi-ence of life a long way from the rural rigours of farm life in Norfolk and her return to her family. Her eyes have been opened to the lethargy and dreariness of her upbringing by a young Jewish socialist, Ronnie.
The opening scene is deliberately slow. We find Jenny Beales (Laura Spalding) peeling vegetables at the kitchen sink, scolding her child for still being awake and returning to the tedium of domestic chores. The entry of Jimmy Beales (Giovanni Tagliarini) emphasises the sense of tedium and crudeness of their lives. He complains of an aching back, parks his push bike behind the sofa. Neither event prompts much re-sponse form Jenny. The arrival of her sister, Beatie (Alannah Winn-Taylor) stirs things as she ‘bounces’ round the room creating a sense of energy.
Stan Mann’s arrival brought with it a momentary relief from the slightly stagnant pace. Joe St. Johanser gave a really enjoyable portrayal of a “characters “of the area. His brief ‘flirtation’ with Beatie and the earthiness of his thinking underlined the rusticity of the setting.
Act two saw another appearance by Stan Mann, now he suffered from a severe cold and had lost some his bounce. It was a moment when we saw the tenderness in which Moyra Brookes (Mrs Bryant) showed real concern and affection for the old chap. Beatie’s arrival at her mother’s home and the warmth of the wel-come and the ease of the initial relationship, gave us insight into the family relationship. Beatie speaks, although always using Ronnie’s words, of how she was discovering, if not understanding, his view of life. Beattie was always focussed, moved around the stage with great speed and confidence.
By the time Mr Bryant, a shrivelled and shrivelling man (Stephen Rowland), returns, Beatie is entirely at home, talking her head off and mixing a cake. It is an opportunity for Wesker to show just how a man dominated his home, He puts a halt to the cake as it uses his electricity for someone else! His later dia-logue with Beatie showed some concern and tenderness. Mr Healy (Robert Smithers) arrived to see how his employee, Bryant, was and brought the news that Stan had died,
The last scene opened, as did the others, with some folk singing to set the atmosphere. We met two new characters in Pearl (Sarah Wilson) and Frankie Bryant (Daniel Shepherd) who conveyed the stiffness of the occasion in the way they spoke and moved as people who feel under pressure. The table was spread with the ‘Sunday tea-time’ spread. The family gathered and the exchange of dialogue was much more suc-cessful.
Beatie and Mrs Bryant built up the pace and the tension. The exchange of dialogue here was very well handled. Mrs Bryant was suddenly released as a character and gave a fabulously convincing performance giving Beattie the support she needed to bring her role to an absolutely stunning climax. There is an art to appearing interested and engaged when you have nothing to say and everything is happening to someone else on the stage; in this scene, the other actors came into their own engaged and interested. It was an electrifying end to the play that would have delighted Wesker. It was well worth the somewhat colourless two scenes that went before.
The set was a symphony of period accuracy, as were the props and costumes. I cannot praise enough those who were involved with those aspects with what was ultimately a hugely successful performance of a great play. Once again, you did not get anything like the public support you deserve. There were no more than twenty in our audience. If you could find an audience to match your staging and selection of plays,
is bounce. It was a moment when we saw the tenderness in which Moyra Brookes (Mrs Bryant) showed real concern and affection for the old chap. Beatie’s arrival at her mother’s home and the warmth of the wel-come and the ease of the initial relationship, gave us insight into the family relationship. Beatie speaks, although always using Ronnie’s words, of how she was discovering, if not understanding, his view of life. Beattie was always focussed, moved around the stage with great speed and confidence.
By the time Mr Bryant, a shrivelled and shrivelling man (Stephen Rowland), returns, Beatie is entirely at home, talking her head off and mixing a cake. It is an opportunity for Wesker to show just how a man dominated his home, He puts a halt to the cake as it uses his electricity for someone else! His later dia-logue with Beatie showed some concern and tenderness. Mr Healy (Robert Smithers) arrived to see how his employee, Bryant, was and brought the news that Stan had died,
The last scene opened, as did the others, with some folk singing to set the atmosphere. We met two new characters in Pearl (Sarah Wilson) and Frankie Bryant (Daniel Shepherd) who conveyed the stiffness of the occasion in the way they spoke and moved as people who feel under pressure. The table was spread with the ‘Sunday tea-time’ spread. The family gathered and the exchange of dialogue was much more suc-cessful.
Beatie and Mrs Bryant built up the pace and the tension. The exchange of dialogue here was very well handled. Mrs Bryant was suddenly released as a character and gave a fabulously convincing performance giving Beattie the support she needed to bring her role to an absolutely stunning climax. There is an art to appearing interested and engaged when you have nothing to say and everything is happening to someone else on the stage; in this scene, the other actors came into their own engaged and interested. It was an electrifying end to the play that would have delighted Wesker. It was well worth the somewhat colourless two scenes that went before.
The set was a symphony of period accuracy, as were the props and costumes. I cannot praise enough those who were involved with those aspects with what was ultimately a hugely successful performance of a great play. Once again, you did not get anything like the public support you deserve. There were no more than twenty in our audience. If you could find an audience to match your staging and selection of plays,
parks his push bike behind the sofa. Neither event prompts much re-sponse form Jenny. The arrival of her sister, Beatie (Alannah Winn-Taylor) stirs things as she ‘bounces’ round the room creating a sense of energy.
Stan Mann’s arrival brought with it a momentary relief from the slightly stagnant pace. Joe St. Johanser gave a really enjoyable portrayal of a “characters “of the area. His brief ‘flirtation’ with Beatie and the earthiness of his thinking underlined the rusticity of the setting.
Act two saw another appearance by Stan Mann, now he suffered from a severe cold and had lost some his bounce. It was a moment when we saw the tenderness in which Moyra Brookes (Mrs Bryant) showed real concern and affection for the old chap. Beatie’s arrival at her mother’s home and the warmth of the wel-come and the ease of the initial relationship, gave us insight into the family relationship. Beatie speaks, although always using Ronnie’s words, of how she was discovering, if not understanding, his view of life. Beattie was always focussed, moved around the stage with great speed and confidence.
By the time Mr Bryant, a shrivelled and shrivelling man (Stephen Rowland), returns, Beatie is entirely at home, talking her head off and mixing a cake. It is an opportunity for Wesker to show just how a man dominated his home, He puts a halt to the cake as it uses his electricity for someone else! His later dia-logue with Beatie showed some concern and tenderness. Mr Healy (Robert Smithers) arrived to see how his employee, Bryant, was and brought the news that Stan had died,
The last scene opened, as did the others, with some folk singing to set the atmosphere. We met two new characters in Pearl (Sarah Wilson) and Frankie Bryant (Daniel Shepherd) who conveyed the stiffness of the occasion in the way they spoke and moved as people who feel under pressure. The table was spread with the ‘Sunday tea-time’ spread. The family gathered and the exchange of dialogue was much more suc-cessful.
Beatie and Mrs Bryant built up the pace and the tension. The exchange of dialogue here was very well handled. Mrs Bryant was suddenly released as a character and gave a fabulously convincing performance giving Beattie the support she needed to bring her role to an absolutely stunning climax. There is an art to appearing interested and engaged when you have nothing to say and everything is happening to someone else on the stage; in this scene, the other actors came into their own engaged and interested. It was an electrifying end to the play that would have delighted Wesker. It was well worth the somewhat colourless two scenes that went before.
The set was a symphony of period accuracy, as were the props and costumes. I cannot praise enough those who were involved with those aspects with what was ultimately a hugely successful performance of a great play. Once again, you did not get anything like the public support you deserve. There were no more than twenty in our audience. If you could find an audience to match your staging and selection of plays,you would be appreciated for what you are, a very valuable village asset.
Polly
Roots review http://t.co/vjCrF5U75G