★★★★★

“a joyous four-hander with deeply nuanced characters and a master’s eye for pace, plot and humour”

Can history change? Our understanding of it certainly can. One little piece of information, one small scrap of evidence, can shift the whole narrative. In the case of ‘Rosenbaum’s Rescue’, it is the Danish occupation in 1940 and subsequent ‘rescue’ (or ‘flight’) of Danish Jews across the Øresund to Sweden that comes into question. How important are the myths we create for ourselves? What traces of history do we let steer out lives in the future?

William Fricker’s gorgeously wooden design places the action in a Danish country house that puts IKEA catalogues to shame. As light glides in through the skylight above, married couple Abraham (David Bamber) and Sara (Julia Swift) are preparing for a visit from their son Henrik. Before he arrives, old friend (and lover) Lars (Neil McCaul) arrives with German daughter Eva (Dorothea Myer-Bennett) to interview Abraham for a book he is writing on Danish resistance. Snow and a power cut keep the group together longer than planned, and as Danish history gets uncovered, there are more family secrets waiting around the corner.

A. Bodin Saphir has constructed a joyous four-hander with deeply nuanced characters and a master’s eye for pace, plot and humour. It’s a witty and erudite production that, despite its naturalistic and restricted setting, bounds with energy, is stunning to look at, and keeps you guessing until the end. Who is Henrik’s real father? What exactly was Abraham’s relationship to Lars’ father? As the pieces of each person’s history fall into place, we understand the depth of the relationships on display. Bamber plays the put-upon husband well, and the history between him and Lars is self-evident in how the actors interact. Myer-Bennett provides much appreciated cynical wit (as well as her own ‘dramatic’ reveal) and Swift counsels and advises her way through it all. “Come and help me in the kitchen” becomes her catchphrase to create space and give her two cents worth.

Kate Fahy has done a stunning job with direction. Moments of busy action keep the piece moving, but even in stillness, the ensemble keep the audience well in their grasp. Family drama has never been so gripping. ‘Rosenbaum’s Rescue’ is a show with heart, spirit, and style and ought not to be missed, especially for anyone with a passing interest in new perspectives on a war we all think we know well.

Reviewed by Joseph Prestwich

Photography by Mark Douet

The Other Place

Park Theatre

Reviewed – 24th September 2018

★★★

“the moderate dynamics throughout jar with the harrowing threads of the story”

Neurologist, Juliana Smithton, is successful and self-assured but while presenting her recent work – treatment for dementia – to a group of specialists, she becomes distracted. Karen Archer’s strong performance portrays a Juliana fighting to deny the signs of illness and come to an acceptance of the past. Scratching the surface, we discover a vulnerability disguised as assertiveness and then, as the layers peel away, we begin to understand her fragility. ‘The Other Place’ is not just about dementia. It also depicts what, when and how we remember and the relationships it affects.

Sharr White’s writing is cleverly structured to follow Juliana’s state of mind from confusion to calm. The fragmentary scenes of the first part which mirror her illusion, disillusion and reality lead to her refuge in ‘the other place’, her childhood house, where she feels secure among her memories. The make-up of the story, however, is less well shaped. Dementia and its life-changing consequences for everyone involved is already a distressing situation. Adding a tortuous family tragedy to illustrate the entanglement of her thoughts undermines the poignancy; the loose ends ensuing from that part of the story leave us curious as to the uncharacteristic behaviour of the parents towards their daughter. Heavy-handed humour comes across as deliberate light relief rather than naturally through personality and the whole play wraps up just a little too neatly.

In contrast to Juliana’s hostile accusations and frustrated forgetfulness, Neil McCaul, as Ian, gives us some moving moments as a husband trying to cope with the wife he loves and whose familiarity is disappearing, though his behaviour towards her is, at times, oddly blasé. In supporting roles Eliza Collings draws three well-defined characters who challenge Juliana in different ways and Rupinda Nagra has a reassuring presence on stage in contrast to the surrounding disquiet. Claire van Kampen astutely directs this experienced cast with a focus on Juliana’s puzzle of past and present but the moderate dynamics throughout jar with the harrowing threads of the story and the interpretation feels underplayed in relation to the language of the script.

The simplicity of the stylish wooden set (Jonathan Fensom) is perfect for the comings and goings of the action and as a backdrop for Paul Russell’s classy lighting design. Beautifully inventive and atmospheric, it works in conjunction with the creativity of the sound (John Leonard) to paint the scenes. With a strong technical flair alongside confident performances, touches of drama and humour, food for thought and an ending full of hope, ‘The Other Place’ brings to the Park Theatre, a piece of good, intellectual entertainment.

Park Theatre

Reviewed – 15th January 2019

★★★★★

“a joyous four-hander with deeply nuanced characters and a master’s eye for pace, plot and humour”

Reviewed by Joseph Prestwich

Photography by Mark Douet

Rosenbaum’s Rescue

Park Theatre until 9th February

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

The Other Place

Park Theatre

Reviewed – 24th September 2018

★★★

“the moderate dynamics throughout jar with the harrowing threads of the story”

Reviewed by Joanna Hetherington

Photography by Mark Douet

The Other Place

Park Theatre until 20th October

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Reviewed this year at the Park Theatre