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I'll admit, I was nervous about seeing this production. An interpretation of William Blake's 'The Night of the Four Zoas', I feared it would be incomprehensible - that the ticket was issued along with a plot synopsis did nothing to alleviate this fear. Unlike the avid fan who accompanied me, I know nothing of Blake, and was hoping for my preconceptions to be destroyed. On behalf of Blake, I am happy to report I have no complaints. On behalf of the production, I'm afraid I can say no such thing. 'Writer', director and artistic director Michael Stewart spent two years preparing this piece for the stage, and every moment of that agonizing time was conveyed in the sheer lack of fluidity of this piece. Its aims are laudable, and with an able cast and some good use of music and movement in places this production attempted to raise itself above the precipice. Yet what was truly required was courage, and passion, and this was never in evidence. The adaptation was bitty. Scenes were short, staging was clumsy, and the slow, badly-rehearsed scene changes made the production drag and prevented the actors from really getting into the flow of the intense emotions the piece attempts to convey. Under-rehearsal was obvious, with audible whispering back stage indicating that even the cast were unsure of events to come. In a production consisting of many long, solo speeches, passion and variation is imperative, but I am sad to report that more passion floated down from the quiz in Wadham bar above us. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the evening was the possibility that Sophie-Charlotte Buchan (as Enitharmon) would lose her toga; a close run second was the fire drill in the interval. If attacked with more conviction this could have been an amazing piece. As it was, the incongruously toga-wearing cast were inhibited by script and costume, and the static and uninspired nature of the direction. In addition, they often seemed to lack any understanding of the lines they were uttering. Bihani Sarker, playing the alluring Vala, was a notable exception to this, captivating the audience without feeling the need to shout, as some other members of the cast did. Inherently, I feel it is an insult to the effort put into staging plays to give such bad reviews, but after two and a half hours (of which I would not be surprised to learn at least an hour was scene-changes), I was left with nothing but a desire to escape the theatre and seek solace in a wine glass. Read the poem, definitely. But, I'm sorry to say, give the adaptation a miss. Rebecca Smith, 5.3.3 |