The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men,
Gang aft agley,
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!
Robert Burns
Set in California during the Great Depression of the late 1930s, Of Mice and Men - a John Steinbeck novella - has been beautifully brought to the stage by Birmingham Repertory Theatre.
Two migrant workers - fleeing destitution and misfortune, yet full of hope and aspiration for a better life - rest at the banks of Salinas river, south of Soledad, California. They are on their way to a new ranch.
In the opening scene much is revealed. The fraternal relationship between the two migrants, George and Lennie, is tested and established. George is smart. Lennie is dim but strong. Lennie is attractive to ranch owners and managers, while George has direction, and vision.
They depict an idealised male friendship, unity in the face of exploitation and bitter hardship. Yet, the strong California sun shown in the opening set through a simple backdrop of dark blues and purples provides an ominous tinge, threatening to usurp solidarity with the predatory nature of human existence.
Much of Steinbeck's novella contains within it a sense of doom: hopes will be thwarted and isolation will eat through dreams. This theatre adaptation expertly transposes this foreboding through the use of lighting, movement and transitions between sets, and also through emphasising some of the key motifs from the novella, including the mistreatment of the vulnerable at the hands of a powerful few.
At the same time, wonderful dialogues and stage movements allow us to explore and understand George and Lennie's unique relationship, including the use of humour which provides welcome relief from the otherwise dark overtones.
The set was brilliantly placed against an exposed stage skeleton, with no attempt to hide transitions between scenes. Actors changed the set in choreographed flowing dance-like movements to a heavy folk rhythm. Both the set and scene changes complemented the simplicity of Steinbeck's literary style while also highlighting the nature of work. Ranch workers changed the set. Their constant work - like the work of the stage hands - was made visible.
William Rodell - who played George - sensitively portrayed a diligent friend ultimately unable to protect this bond. His performance throughout was outstanding. In his ultimate predicament, he brought to light both the ending of a friendship, and the shifting of values - of solidarity over loneliness, of dreaming of freedom over exploitation. His performance was moving, and jarring.
Although set in the late 1930s, the realities of our modern financial crisis, outsourcing of modern slavery and forced labour, and extreme weather have created new generations of economic migrants fleeing poverty and drought. They continue to do much of our collective unseen work, washing dishes, taking out the rubbish, picking oranges (or perhaps apples and strawberries in the UK) and mopping floors. Of Mice and Men remains relevant, and provides a stark warning against polarization and highlights the importance of community.
