SITE GUIDE
SEARCH
REVIEWS
REVIEW ARCHIVES
ADVERTISING AT CURTAINUP
FEATURES
NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings
LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway
NYC Restaurants
BOOKS and CDs
OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
New Jersey
DC
Connecticut
Philadelphia
Elsewhere
QUOTES
TKTS
PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS
LETTERS TO EDITOR
FILM
LINKS
MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp 
London Review
London ReviewSea Plays
by Neil Dowden
|
I always wanted to be buried on dry land. — Yank
|
The first play, East Bound for Cardiff, begins with a full assault on our senses with a thrillingly enacted sea storm as the crew are tossed around like the barrels and drenched with water, while alarm bells ring. When the tempest subsides, we see a mortally wounded man slumped on his bed with his shipmates gathered around in helpless sympathy. With time running out, Carsten Hayes’s desperate Yank relives some of the highs and lows of his seafaring life with long-time loyal Irish buddy Driscoll (Matthew Travannion), while his death is followed by a moving burial at sea as the crew sing ‘For Those in Peril on the Sea."
In contrast to this elegiac ending, the mood in In the Zone is one of paranoia, as the Glencairn nears the war zone carrying high-explosives. With nerves on edge, the men suspect one of their mates of being a German spy because he furtively stashes a small, locked box under his mattress. The resulting showdown leads to a powerful scene of recrimination and humiliation as the past secrets of Jordan Bernarde’s Smitty are forcibly extracted.
The Long Voyage Home is set in a sleazy dockside tavern where the crew come to release the tensions of months at sea by drowning in whisky and beer. All except Raymond Sage’s innocent Swedish mariner Olson, who wants to stay sober so he can return home after more than ten years away, but he is no match for Amanda Boxer’s Cockney tart Freda and the other crafty landlubbers who want to shanghai him on to another ship.
O’Neill used his own experiences as a merchant seaman to give these maritime dramas an authentically salty flavour. The multinational characterization may tend to stereotype, and some of the dialogue is clunking, but there is still a strong sense of the hardship and camaraderie of long sea voyages, with the sailors having to rely on each other for survival despite cabin fever breaking out. This strange, self-contained world seems both a prison and an escape from the complications of life on land.
The performances are more impressive as an ensemble, rather than individually, but a few dodgy accents and struggles with acoustics don’t detract from the dynamic physical interaction. Designer Van Santvoord’s design of close-quartered bunk beds and low rafters enhance the claustrophobic intensity of the work, while Emma Chapman’s ambient lighting effects and Alex Baranowski’s superb sound texture of fog horns and creaking timber add much to the overall experience. It seems fitting that Kenneth Hoyt – who helms the show with such navigational assurance – is founder of Provincetown Repertory Theatre, based in the small town where the drama all began in 1916.
|
Subscribe to our FREE email updates with a note from editor Elyse Sommer about additions to the website -- with main page hot links to the latest features posted at our numerous locations. To subscribe,
E-mail: esommer@curtainup.comesommer@curtainup.com
put SUBSCRIBE CURTAINUP EMAIL UPDATE in the subject line and your full name and email address in the body of the message -- if you can spare a minute, tell us how you came to CurtainUp and from what part of the country. |
| Sea Plays
Written by Eugene O’Neill Directed by Kenneth Hoyt Starring: Carsten Hayes, Matthew Travannion, Jordan Bernarde, Raymond Sage, Amanda Boxer With: Mark Carter, Lauren Garnham, Ashley George, Gareth Kieran Jones, Michael Norledge, Chris O’Shea, Kristian Phillips, Vincent Santvoord, Matthew Thomas, Eva Traynor, Eddie Webber Design: Van Santvoord Lighting: Emma Chapman Sound: Alex Baranowski Running time: One hour 55minutes with an interval Box Office: 020 7993 7420 Booking to 18th February 2012 Reviewed by Neil Dowden based on January 31st performance at Old Vic Tunnels, Station Approach Road, London SE1 8SW (Tube: Waterloo) |
|
REVIEW FEEDBACK Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
Paste the highlighted text into the subject line (CTRL+ V): Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email . . . also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review. |
