Tag Archives: Harry Tennison

THE BEAUTIFUL FUTURE IS COMING

★★★★

Jermyn Street Theatre

THE BEAUTIFUL FUTURE IS COMING at Jermyn Street Theatre

★★★★

“a packed, intense, and thought-provoking eighty minutes which will leave you shocked and concerned in equal measure”

Jermyn Street Theatre and DONOTALIGHT present this co-production of a new play by Gen Z writer Flora Wilson Brown.

On a near bare stage, three scenes are acted out in rotation – cyclical duologues but miniature plays in their own right: Eunice (Sabrina Wu) is a nineteenth century New York scientist struggling to break through the glass ceiling. Husband John provides moral support but betrays his own inherent prejudices. As Eunice works tirelessly to make her voice heard, neglecting her home and her children, she is afflicted with a disturbing recurring dream, as horrifying as it is inexplicable. Scene two is set slightly in the future. Claire (Martha Watson Allpress) and Dan are environmental lobbyists taking their first steps into romance until climate-change tragedy strikes. And the third scenario, set a generation into the future, is a post-apocalyptic world in which biological researchers Ana (Pepter Lunkuse) and Malcolm are trapped by unprecedented rainstorms in the wilds of Svardbard. An inspired touch is that the man in each scene is played by the same versatile actor (George Fletcher). Conversations segue between the three zones as he morphs from one character to the next, a subtle change in vocal tone and accent signifying the change.

The four actors remain on stage primarily the whole time. There is little movement – some occasional eerie slow pacing – but in the tiny confines of this space that is all to the good (Harry Tennison director). Flora Wilson Brown attempts a realistic depiction of conversation – sentences aren’t finished, couples speak over each other – which is most successful in the scene closest to our own time. The whole ensemble is first rate, quickly paced, and the succinct writing keeps us on our toes as we listen out for well-placed clues as to backstory and goings-on elsewhere.

There is a poignancy in the final scenes as the loan male leaves the action to allow the final words to be heard solely from the voices of the women. Eunice and Claire unite in their descriptions of the desecration caused by climate change whilst Ana projects the hope for the future through her unborn child and the literal green shoots in the seeds she has nurtured.

Despite the play’s optimistic title and its many moments of humour this is not a cheery piece. It’s a packed, intense, and thought-provoking eighty minutes which will leave you shocked and concerned in equal measure.


THE BEAUTIFUL FUTURE IS COMING at Jermyn Street Theatre

Reviewed on 31st January 2024

by Phillip Money

Photography by Jack Sain

 


 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

OWNERS | ★★★½ | October 2023
INFAMOUS | ★★★★ | September 2023
SPIRAL | ★★ | August 2023
FARM HALL | ★★★★ | March 2023
LOVE ALL | ★★★★ | September 2022
CANCELLING SOCRATES | ★★★★ | June 2022
ORLANDO | ★★★★ | May 2022
FOOTFALLS AND ROCKABY | ★★★★★ | November 2021

THE BEAUTIFUL FUTURE IS COMING

THE BEAUTIFUL FUTURE IS COMING

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I Know I Know I Know

I Know I Know I Know

★★★★

Southwark Playhouse

I Know I Know I Know

I Know I Know I Know

Southwark Playhouse

Reviewed – 9th April 2022

★★★★

 

“thoughtful and powerful”

 

The young company DONOTALIGHT brings to the stage a compelling play by Flora Wilson Brown that speaks for the new generation.

A minimal set (Victoria Maytom) comprises some rubber plants positioned on random flight cases. A central shoddy brown sofa, set obliquely, doubles as the front seats of a car.

Alice (Hannah Khalique-Brown) enters the darkened space (Lighting Designer Ryan Day), her face illuminated by the screen of a mobile phone into which she is about to tell her story; the only way she can come to terms with putting her years of trauma into words.

Max (Ethan Moorhouse) and Hannah (Martha Watson Allpress) meet as old university mates, lift-sharing as they drive to Bristol for a mutual friend’s wedding. The bride is Hannah’s former flame, it transpires. Enlightened direction (Harry Tennison) has the couple move freely about the space, engaging in rough and tumble, falling into slow motion scenes, all the while the car journey continues.

These two scenarios occur together in the same space and yet lie a distance apart. Sometimes the conversations coincide and the same words are spoken. At other times there appears a parallel mood between them. At first the technique seems clumsy and I fear that I cannot follow the two stories simultaneously; I worry I am missing something crucial. But the initial clash is intended and it sorts itself out as things progress.

Martha Watson Allpress and Ethan Moorhouse both excel in the relaxed friendship between Hannah and Max. Their smiles, laughter, and repartee are natural and free flowing. If Max is just a bit too much boy-next-door to be a convincing world-leading rock musician, maybe even megastars have a day off from their on-stage personas. Hannah Khalique-Brown is outstanding as the exposed and vulnerable Alice in what is essentially an extended monologue. Her initial quirky mannerisms underlining Alice’s inherent nervousness develop into something else as she finds the courage to speak out, not just for herself but for others too. Some curious staging of a final scene as Alice talks of the future for the only time in the play is marred by her passive positioning, speaking upstage.

Flora Wilson Brown’s thoughtful and powerful script raises so many questions concerning behavioural responsibility and culpability, coercion, and self-doubt. If anyone should consider that the abuses brought to light through the #MeToo movement are only historical then Flora Wilson Brown’s direct and dynamic writing should redress those thoughts. It is only up to us to listen.

 

Reviewed by Phillip Money

Photography by Ellie Kurttz

 


I Know I Know I Know

Southwark Playhouse until 16th April

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
The Woods | ★★★ | March 2022
Anyone Can Whistle | ★★★★ | April 2022

 

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