Herman Melville Archives - thespyinthestalls.com

★★★★★

“It is one of the finest pieces of theatre I have seen”

Simple8 present an ambitious adaptation (by Sebastian Armesto) of Herman Melville’s epic 1851 adventure, directed by Jesse Jones. There is a minimal set (designer Kate Bunce) of scaffolding on either side of the stage. Through the haze can be discerned a cache of musical instruments – fiddle, cello, dulcimer, drum.

Ishmael (Mark Arends) – a well-spoken, well-dressed schoolmaster – sets the scene. He has come to Nantucket to join a whaling ship, just for the experience. As he moves from bar to bar, he hears talk of the mysterious one-legged Captain Ahab, and the name Moby Dick, anathema to many, whispered in hushed tones. Overnight, Ishmael befriends the gentle savage Queequeg (Tom Swale), and together they join the whaling ship Pequod, fatefully chosen at random.

Now the story can start in earnest. The stage is transformed as the brilliant ensemble, singing and playing throughout, builds an impression of the ship using just wooden planks and ropes. A life at sea is recreated – swabbing the deck, sharing some rum, singing songs. If much of the period dialogue is somewhat stilted, the ensemble excels at their dumbshow set-pieces. The crew man the capstan, turning the imaginary wheel with cries of heave and haul, the efforts of their hard work clear to see. A beautiful rendition of a sailing ballad is heard (Jonathan Charles musical director) as the backcloth shines in green and blue reflecting on the romance of the sea (Johanna Town lighting designer).

And then the spell is broken by the sighting of the crew’s first whale. A most brilliantly conceived and executed scene ensues. The crew row out to chase the whale, to subsequently haul it in and demonstrably kill it. The stage is flooded with red light to emphasize the bloody nature of the deed. It is one of the finest pieces of theatre I have seen.

The narrative, as in the novel, is driven by Ishmael and Mark Arends gives a towering performance in this central role – quietly spoken but assured. Captain Ahab (Guy Rhys) does a lot of shouting – the mantra is “Kill Moby Dick” – but we don’t get to the bottom of his obsession beyond that of having lost a leg. The well-spoken Hannah Emanuel gives rather a too light touch in the important role of Mr Starbuck who is the only crew member able to stand up to Ahab. Something more appropriately rougher is provided by the first mates (James Newton & William Pennington). But this is ultimately an ensemble piece with music and movement (Rachael Nanyonjo movement director) central to the storytelling and this talented cast of actor-musicians are excellent throughout. Special mention too for the cellist whose imitative sounds of whale music, especially during the final chase, is so central to the effectiveness and poignancy of the scenes.

Moby Dick

Jack Studio Theatre

Reviewed – 10th October 2019

★★★★★

“Technically slick, the lighting, sound, music and movement coalesce to create a West End experience in miniature”

When Ishmael arrives at ‘The Spouter’ run by Peter Coffin, it’s clear Moby Dick’s author, Herman Melville, loves an ominous portent, so he would have loved the fact that the opening week of Douglas Baker’s stage adaptation started with a dead humpback in the Thames. However, with humanity’s disregard for nature a central theme of both the book and this radical new envisioning, Melville would have seen the current climate change protests as just as relevant and a dark testament to his prophetic work.

Rather like Theatre Workshop’s ‘Oh! What a Lovely War’, the full throttle irreverence in the treatment of a deadly serious subject is a powerfully winning formula for this ‘So it Goes Theatre’ production. Accentuating the homoerotic undercurrents and humour of the original while modernising its scope to encompass the problems of junk food, plastic waste and reckless corporate behaviour, the show miraculously manages not only to remain faithful to the essence of this literary leviathan, but to make it fresh and accessible though the inventive use of projections, Baker’s own video design and some corking sea shanties (Alex Chard).

It’s not immediately clear that the approach will hold water. The opening sketch leading to the book’s iconic first line ‘Call me Ishmael’, is inspired, but seems to be based on the trivial fact that Starbucks derived its name (fairly randomly) from the Pequod’s first mate. However, the storyline cleverly pivots into Ishmael’s meditation that whenever life becomes formless and incomprehensible on land he hankers for the sea, where a sense of comradeship, structure and purpose creates, paradoxically, more certainty. Which is all fine until Captain Ahab’s obsession with the great white whale increasingly becomes a madness that embraces murder and waste without conscience.

Charlie Tantam conveys Ahab’s destructive will with increasing force, assisted by a terrifyingly exaggerated limp. Equally accomplished are Rob Peacock as Old Ishmael and Ben Howarth as Young Ishmael; collectively they comprise an ingenious narrative tool allowing the book’s narrator voice to survive alongside the thrill of the protagonist’s journey. Stephen Erhirhi is a distant and disengaged Queequeg at first, though his detachment takes on heavy significance later as he accepts the fate that the humanity of which he is a part has in store. Lucianne Regan plays Starbuck fairly straight too, but as an ensemble they are well balanced and create the movement of the ship in a storm and the hunting scenes with great skill. Technically slick, the lighting (Toby Smith), sound (Calum Perrin), music (Richard Kerry) and movement (Matthew Coulton) coalesce to create a West End experience in miniature, overseen by Douglas Baker’s direction. This format for Moby Dick neutralises the dense 19th Century prose without losing some of its finer passages, whilst delivering quite the topical punch.

MOBY DICK at the Royal and Derngate Theatre

★★★★★

“It is one of the finest pieces of theatre I have seen”

MOBY DICK at the Royal and Derngate Theatre as part of UK tour

Reviewed on 10th April 2024

by Phillip Money

Photography by Manuel Harlan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

MOBY DICK

MOBY DICK

Jack Studio Theatre

Reviewed – 10th October 2019

★★★★★

“Technically slick, the lighting, sound, music and movement coalesce to create a West End experience in miniature”

Reviewed by Dominic Gettins

Photography by Carl Fletcher

Moby Dick

Jack Studio Theatre until 26th October

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue: