“The alcoholism, violence, sex, humiliation and tragedy throughout the play are meaningful yet not for the faint hearted”
The intimacy of the Brockley Jack Theatre plays a huge role in drawing the audience into this performance. From the moment you enter the space, two of our characters are already at work – the character of alcoholic May is sprawled across the sofa and the character of Flo scurries around in the background seemingly making herself useful. The atmosphere already seems tense but this is nothing compared to what will later unfold.
The audience are presented with a living room/kitchen, a detailed and homely look has been created with the furniture and there is a sense of normality, which is later shattered once the characters are introduced.
May (Rebecca Calienda) and her husband Will (Daniel Christostomou) have a strained and somewhat violent relationship made worse by the fact that Will’s elderly and invalid father (Graham Rollason) lives with them and this seems to burden and disgust May. Flo (Anna Brochmann) is the hired help, a quiet and timid character who is currently coming to terms with the death of her own father, therefore carries around an urn of his ashes.
One of the heart breaking aspects of the play is the contrast between the characters. You feel as though Will and Flo are simply trying to do the right thing, make sure Will’s father is comfortable and keep the peace, whereas May comes in like a ton of bricks and wreaks havoc on the situation. You want to feel some sort of sympathy for her and her miserable life but it is incredibly difficult to do so. For example, it’s shocking to watch when May dares Will’s boss Chase (Sam Landon) to open the jar of Flo’s fathers ashes and taste them, whilst Flo is out of the room.
The alcoholism, violence, sex, humiliation and tragedy throughout the play are meaningful, yet not for the faint hearted.
“Excellent acting delivered with a real intensity”
House of America written by Ed Thomas was first staged in Cardiff in 1988 and transferred to film in 1996. It now opens for a short run at the Jack Studio Theatre.
The Lewis family have been abandoned at a young age by their father who left to to follow his dreams of a new life in California. Living deep in the Welsh valleys, the three siblings struggle with the harsh reality of life in an environment where jobs are scarce and hopes and dreams are out of reach.
Clinging on to the distant chance of reconnecting with their father, they deal with the intricacies of their relationships and the fight to keep their unhinged mother under control. As the story unfolds and the closure of the local mine becomes imminent we see their lives begin to spiral out of control as they sink deeper into desperation.
Although the occasional lighthearted moment invites a wry smile from the audience this is a dark play with intense moments of despair.
The acting, particularly from Robert Durbin (Boyo) and Evelyn Campbell (Gwenny) is excellent and delivered with a real intensity. The lighting (Jamie Platt) adds to the sense of despair and the portrayal of grimness of life in that Welsh valley. It is also used to great effect to section the stage and provide focus for different scenes.
Although the play highlights the difficulties of living through such hard times it never fully explains the situation of the characters and as the play unfolds you are left with more questions than answers. Why did the father leave? Why did they not question mam further? Where did the incestuous relationship come from? Why did mam confide in Boyo and not Gwenny? What was the point of the labourer character?
The first half was enjoyable to watch but the second half made for uncomfortable viewing at times with story lines which didn’t seem so believable as those in the first.
An interesting play but I feel that the plot needs further development and explanation to make it feel complete.
