Drama
Old Times is Pinter's most delicately poignant play and arguably one of his best. Written in 1971, but timeless in many ways, it remains, and will continue to remain, breathtaking in its ability to transcend the notion of dramatic genre.
The gentle pace of the play is reflected in the idealistic setting of a tranquil seaside house. The striking black and white staging and costume places the action in a less specific epoch, which reflects some of the more existential passages in the text.
The dialogue drips in sullen patters and Tom Littler's direction ensures the themes and imagery and subtle undercurrents in the play are always noticed and have time to develop and to captivate the audience. The varying pace and trademark Pinteresque silences are spot-on and this rhythmic precision complements Pinter's textual idiosyncrasies to perfection.
The inhabitants of the house, Kate (Helena Johnson) and Deeley (Andy Mortimer) are two self-absorbed urbanites whose pointed articulation suggests at a certain darker undercurrent which is revealed by the paradigm shifts that occur towards the end of the play. The couple are entertaining one of Kate's oldest friends, Anna (Pia Fitzgerald), who is visiting them from Sicily. What results is an enthralling power struggle between Deeley and Anna as they both recall previous moments and battle as to who knows Kate better; who crafted and created her.
As Pinter has a profound ability to articulate the subtle randomness and non-linearity of the memory, the flashbacks are frequently captivating. 'There are things I remember which may never have happened, but as I recall them so they take place,' says Anna.
There is no doubt that all three of the cast are actors of experience and talent. Fitzgerald's facial mannerisms leave the audience transfixed upon her every word, whether it be some darkly amusing anecdote from the past or sleek sociological observation. Mortimer too knows how to deliver an excellent line; he also gets some of the funniest. Describing when he met his wife, watching Odd Man Out: 'It was Robert Newton who brought us together, and so it is only Robert Newton who can tear us apart.' This and other charming snippets are what really make this play something unique. Pinter has such ability to take an everyday occurrence, examine its features, twist it and warp it into something deeply dark and simultaneously hilarious.
A prime example of such lyrical precision occurs when the two antagonists start to recite classic standards to Kate, in the hope that she will recollect the moment when they were first sung with her. 'When a lovely flame dies / Smoke gets in your eyes' and other classics are disturbingly uttered to Kate, who looks at the pair cluelessly.
Unlike the other two, Kate doesn't engage in the conversational games, giving her a mystique which Johnson realises and develops well, keeping a fascinating stillness and coolness. Her apparently innocent femininity is exploited by the other two and they frequently treat her as inferior to themselves.
There are some truly fine moments of dramatic artistry in this play, and the perceptive acting does justice to the consistently challenging poetry of the script.
Francis is too fat to fit in with the middle class; too middle class to fit in at Overeaters Anonymous. This is, after all, a girl who can reach the bottom of a KFC variety bucket and keep on eating. A girl who admits to single-handedly overturning dinghies. A girl whose only use for a string bikini is for slicing cheese.
Rose Heiney's new monologue, Another Muffin, is a look into the idiosyncratic miseries of an overweight teenager stuck in a class based on attractiveness. As Francis points out, everyone else will have better husbands and better lives, but she has the best biscuits. With voyeuristic overtones, the audience is placed within Francis' bedroom, creating almost too much intimacy to remain comfortable. We watch the tussle between willpower and temptation on the smallest scale, growing quickly into an epic battle.
Charlie Covell's Francis is at her best when thoughtful - her eyes, whether fixed or flicking anxiously, convey the reality of the character. The audience is left unsure how to react; she is too tragic and steadfastly unchanging to laugh at and too sharply witty and embittered to deserve sympathy.
The script is laugh-out-loud material, laden with acerbic sarcasm. As a play, however, it suffers from being a little too akin to stand-up comedy - a problem not helped by some rushing of lines to portray sullenness.
The play can be let down by movement for movement's sake, which can interrupt the mood. Nonetheless, its rare dramatic shortcomings are more than made up for by the production's inherent wit and sheer sense of fun.
Whether you side with or against the plump protagonist, you're sure to enjoy her plight.
On Friday and Saturday of 1st week, The Oxford Revue (holding creative hands with musical theatre company MofO productions) are taking over the OFS for a comedy night.
It will comprise stand-up, sketches, and music, written and performed by some of the comedians who've emerged from last term's Open Mic nights. Basically, we're copying Cambridge and having a Smoker - a showcase of student comedy, held together by an MC. As this is our first attempt, we've unashamedly called in a professional to compere the show: Channel Four's Madame Galina (played by actor/comedian Iestyn Edwards). Come and laugh, or, failing that, heckle.
And if you fancy getting involved with The Oxford Revue, we are still hunting for new and hilarious people, be they writers or performers, to help create our summer shows at the Oxford Playhouse and, in August, Edinburgh.
At the beginning of 2005, we can look forward to a very interesting theatrical term to come. If you didn't get enough Tom Stoppard last term, get to James Bounds' production of the radio play Enter a Free Man at the O'Reilly.
At the Playhouse, the two classic shows could hardly be more different: the Italian political farce Accidental Death of an Anarchist and then Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire.
The BT has a rich mixture of shows. Lotte Wakeham, having carried off the Best Director award at Cuppers, will be directing Alan Ayckbourn's dark comedy Woman in Mind; there's a musical (I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change); and a host of others.
After a cracking comic Michaelmas term at the OFS, some darker material is proffered for this year: Kate Sagovsky directs Some Voices, Maya Foa makes her debut with Cigarettes and Chocolate, and Holly Race gives us an Elizabethan Romeo and Juliet.
13th Jan 2005