Buried Child is a tragic, symbolic tale of the breakdown and disillusionment of the American Dream. Set in 1970’s America it reflects the economic stagnation and the postmodern disillusionment with American mythology. The characters once were ‘All-Americans’ as they describe themselves. Now they are lost, angry, broken and nursing their failed dreams. This is an extremely powerful play, with obvious resonances with the credit crunch and post 9/11 world. At times it is shocking, other times tragi-comic, always thought-provoking and richly symbolic.
This production by OUDS lives up to this subject and this play. The performances are quite excellent, with each character portraying deep anguish and sullen, petulant rage at themselves and each other. Tom Palmer as Dodge, the father of the family, gives a brilliant performance and immediately conveys that there is something deeply wrong with this family home as soon as the lights go up on him. There are some equally excellent performances by the rest of the cast, Anna Popplewell portraying Halie, the brittle, distant matriarch, with a powerful presence. I would say the best performance of the night was Sam Kennedy as Bradley, giving a genuinely creepy portrayal of a man straight out of a horror film, with outbursts of giggling rage and childishly sexualised dominance over the stranger Shelley who finds herself alone with him.
Harriet Madeley plays Shelley, the girlfriend of the prodigal grandson Vince, played by George Duncan-Jones, who is returning to the family home. Both Vince and Shelley are disturbed and confused by the dramatic malaise and insanity they discover in the house and try to understand what has happened, leading to some quite disturbing revelations.
The set was very well made, with a screen backdrop that allowed some good stage direction. The direction by Sam Caird was excellent, with explosive violence and quivering tension always close at hand. My one criticism was the direction of Halie, who spoke too much of her dialogue directly to the audience rather than interacting with the set or the other characters. This, early on during a particularly wordy speech, broke the tension and the sense of the play. But the rest of the play was so well done this scene was quickly forgotten and the audience were once again plunged into the thick of things.
I was very impressed with this performance and I would most definitely commend it. The cast and crew were exceptional and they gave a performance that sent chills down my spine. Highly recommended.
This production by OUDS lives up to this subject and this play. The performances are quite excellent, with each character portraying deep anguish and sullen, petulant rage at themselves and each other. Tom Palmer as Dodge, the father of the family, gives a brilliant performance and immediately conveys that there is something deeply wrong with this family home as soon as the lights go up on him. There are some equally excellent performances by the rest of the cast, Anna Popplewell portraying Halie, the brittle, distant matriarch, with a powerful presence. I would say the best performance of the night was Sam Kennedy as Bradley, giving a genuinely creepy portrayal of a man straight out of a horror film, with outbursts of giggling rage and childishly sexualised dominance over the stranger Shelley who finds herself alone with him.
Harriet Madeley plays Shelley, the girlfriend of the prodigal grandson Vince, played by George Duncan-Jones, who is returning to the family home. Both Vince and Shelley are disturbed and confused by the dramatic malaise and insanity they discover in the house and try to understand what has happened, leading to some quite disturbing revelations.
The set was very well made, with a screen backdrop that allowed some good stage direction. The direction by Sam Caird was excellent, with explosive violence and quivering tension always close at hand. My one criticism was the direction of Halie, who spoke too much of her dialogue directly to the audience rather than interacting with the set or the other characters. This, early on during a particularly wordy speech, broke the tension and the sense of the play. But the rest of the play was so well done this scene was quickly forgotten and the audience were once again plunged into the thick of things.
I was very impressed with this performance and I would most definitely commend it. The cast and crew were exceptional and they gave a performance that sent chills down my spine. Highly recommended.