STUNNING
THE PUNTERS
George
Dillon at the Cramphorn Theatre
03.10.16
George
Dillon, master of the dramatic monologue, brought his trilogy to the
Cramphorn this week.
Robert
Sproat's piece gives the show its title: a darts player in a pub on
“a
rough
old estate”, red braces, DMs, Milwall supporter, thinks
philosophically back on racist
graffiti and the lads who sprayed it. Totally convincing physically,
slightly less so vocally and mentally.
The
evening opens with a Berkoff piece, Master
of Cafe Society.
H, an
out-of-work actor envies those with
jobs,
as “hunger calibrates the day with purpose”. Excellent supporting
characters, especially his crumpled parents, and
a touching insight to the spiritual anguish of an embittered, empty
man.
The
longest piece last: Dostoevsky's Dream of a Ridiculous Man. Much more
ambitious, with lighting, props and sound used to support the
testament of a would-be
suicide
who's seen a world without sin or science, but inadvertently corrupts
this other Eden, a paradise lost. The changes of mood, and style, are
navigated with consummate skill. I found his impassioned belief in a
better world, and his guilt and uncertainty, strangely moving.
This
work was first seen in Edinburgh back in 1990, and returned there
this year. A real theatrical tour-de-force – 90 minutes without a
break – which should be required viewing for anyone who appreciates
the actor's art. Tragic, then,
that in
Chelmsford
the performer and the theatre staff outnumbered the punters ...
No comments:
Post a Comment