Tag Archives: Harriet Corke

Metamorphosis – 4 Stars

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Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis

Bread & Roses Theatre

Reviewed – 3rd October 2018

★★★★

“this highly original piece surpasses the usual version of events”

 

‘…at least, that’s how it should have happened.’

When the subject of a story is written about in a compelling, expressive, even beautiful manner, it is difficult to imagine that there could be any other aspect of the plot worth mentioning. Reading Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”, for example, it is hard to remember that the Samsa family have lives beyond obsessing over their son Gregor – a former travelling salesman who is now a giant insect. To be fair this is a pretty gripping plot; nonetheless, it leaves questions that are long overdue answers.

In this thought-provoking reimagining of Kafka’s tale, Sam Chittenden proposes and skilfully answers the question – “Who is Grete Samsa?” By her own admission, Grete’s role in the story is very much, ‘the sister did this, the daughter did that’. But who is she beyond this? For Chittenden, she is a young girl undergoing a transformation as dark and difficult as that of her brother: puberty. Simultaneously, the two siblings face the feeling of waking up in a new body, of being changed and looked at with newfound fascination. The only difference is that, unlike her brother, Grete must endure it unsupported, unnoticed, and unloved.

“The Metamorphosis” has been retold countless times; this highly original piece surpasses the usual version of events. Chittenden’s script is engaging and cleverly uses aspects of the original story in new and effective ways. She uses the concept of a grotesque transformation to explore the feelings of adolescent girls as their bodies change. This shift in identity (from girl to woman) is no less daunting than the prospect of waking up and finding yourself changed into an insect or animal: both displace stability and lead to confusion, hurt, and anger. Simultaneously, Chittenden keeps Kafka’s tale in focus, drawing engaging portraits of the entire Samsa family and generally refining areas that were neglected in the original.

Grete is effortlessly bought to life by Heather-Rose Andrews. Andrews effortlessly transitions between the adult and adolescent Grete, vocally and physically capturing their respective emotional cores with ease. One moment she has the audience suspended in rapture as she details a horrific instance of sexual assault; the next, her tone is light and frivolous as she mocks her parents’ inability to notice anything beyond their son’s predicament. The unfussy set – Gregor’s briefcase sits downstage, Grete’s bed upstage – allows Andrews to weave her way through the space uninterrupted, and the small moments of physical theatre add some accents of Kafkaesque absurdity. Unfortunately, the persistent music sometimes undermines the subtly of Andrews’ performance. She is more than capable of portraying the emotional depth that this piece requires of her, and it is a shame that the music artificially attempts to do this on her behalf.

Metamorphosis is a polished and beautifully executed show which deserves a much wider audience. Not only is it an enjoyable piece of theatre, but it adds to the conversation surrounding Kafka’s work and asks important questions of this iconic and much-interpreted story.

 

Reviewed by Harriet Corke

 


Metamorphosis

Bread & Roses Theatre as part of the Clapham Fringe Festival

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
Austen The Musical | ★★★★ | January 2018
Blue Moon | ★★★ | January 2018
F*ckingLifeMate | ★★★★★ | March 2018
Talos II | ★★★ | March 2018
The Buzz | ★★★ | May 2018
Once a Year on Blackpool Sands | ★★★★ | June 2018
Richard II – Shakespeare | ★★ | August 2018

 

Click here to see more of our latest reviews on thespyinthestalls.com

 

 

4.48 Psychosis – 4 Stars

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Psychosis

4.48 Psychosis

New Diorama Theatre

Reviewed – 21st September 2018

★★★★

“a productive insight into the problems of deaf mental health patients, forcing us to confront the fact that their experiences are rarely considered”

 

4.48 Psychosis is the final work by British playwright Sarah Kane, an unflinching and often violent portrayal of a life lived on the brink of suicide. It has no characters. It has no setting. It has a script, and nothing more. Safe to say, it’s not what you’d call accessible.

It’s a pleasant surprise, therefore, that this collaboration between the New Diorama Theatre and Deafinitely Theatre has resulted in something that is not only accessible to the average theatre-goer, but also speaks to a group that is too often excluded from the conversation. Deafinitely Theatre’s Artistic Director Paula Garfield reimagines Kane’s play (which, having no identifiable characters or visuals, is dependent on its dialogue) as a comment on mental health in the deaf community. Performed in a mixture of British Sign Language and English, Garfield aims to create a piece that is ‘engaging’ for deaf audiences while also exploring the problems faced by deaf mental health patients.

Garfield envisions a version of 4.48 Psychosis that has both a social and artistic impact: she achieves both of these aims. By creating a loose narrative from Kane’s fragmentary text, she effectively explores how difficult it is to explain the reality of living with a mental health condition. The play features two doctors, both of whom are hearing, and two deaf patients. The patients must attempt to make themselves understood before health professionals with questionable levels of sympathy. Kane’s dialogue shows that this is hard enough for a hearing patient; here, the actors’ evocative use of sign language amplifies this even further. From the perspective of a hearing audience member, this is a productive insight into the problems of deaf mental health patients, forcing us to confront the fact that their experiences are rarely considered.

At the same time, Garfield maintains the essence of Kane’s play. Although she makes the dialogue and its meaning feel a little more familiar, a strange, almost otherworldly quality remains. Enclosed in a tiny hospital room and shielded from the audience by a plastic screen, the characters seem like part of a dystopian fantasy. They wrestle with volatile emotions under sudden flashes of harsh light, as Kane’s lyrical text are projected behind them; they march in formation as they reveal their most intimate thoughts. Although the actors have distinct characters, they balance their nuanced and naturalistic performances with a commitment to Kane’s abstract presentation. Garfield does not attempt to simplify the content, and the actors fully commit to her vision with force.

4.48 Psychosis may not be for everyone: almost two decades after its first performance, it continues to shock and disturb. But Deafinitely Theatre’s landmark production demonstrates not only its value, but its ever-expanding potential to explore untold stories.

 

Reviewed by Harriet Corke

Photography by Becky Bailey

 

 


4.48 Psychosis

New Diorama Theatre until 13th October

 

Related
Previously reviewed at this venue
It Made me Consider | ★★★ | February 2018
Trap Street | ★★★★ | March 2018
Left my Desk | ★★★★ | May 2018
 Bitter | ★★★★ | June 2018

 

Click here to see more of our latest reviews on thespyinthestalls.com