Look Back in Anger at the Derby Theatre Review
Look Back in Anger
Derby Theatre
4-26 March 2016
Reviewed by Katy Nettleton
What they say;
60 years since this play smashed onto the scene and changed the face of British Theatre, we bring this searing drama to Derby.
Expect sizzling passions, dark humour and intriguing plot twists.
It’s 1956 and in a cramped flat in Derby, Jimmy Porter is angry. His upper-class wife Alison is the perfect target for his anger whilst his flatmate Cliff is the perfect sounding board. An unwanted pregnancy and the arrival of a glamorous actress take the couple into a love triangle which questions the very foundations of how they live.
The play was famously brought to life on film by Richard Burton, Mary Ure and Claire Bloom. Our production offers a stellar cast of some of the most exciting actors now performing in theatre.
What I say…
Having just sat and watched Jinny I was really looking forward to Look Back in Anger – I wasn’t sure about the connection between the two plays but after having such an enjoyable hour I was raving for it to start.
The set was the same as Jinny (with a few tweaks) and was based on a studio apartment concept (but with extra rooms off which you obviously couldn’t see but it was alluded to) which was very simple but yet creative. With the clever use of lighting you got the vision of it being windows and that the hallway was dark and eerie.
At the start I was a little confused by who the married couple was… there were 3 people on the stage all showing different signs of feelings and emotions towards one another. This just demonstrates the excellent storytelling (writing and acting) as when the story unfolded it became clear that there was “rumours” about the third person in the couple (Cliff) and that Helena (played by Daisy Badger) had feelings for him (plutonic or not?). The story was acted out really well and the use of the stage was brilliant. I am not sure if it was meant or not but you could feel the cold chill in the air when Helena and Jimmy (played by Patrick Knowles) were arguing.
The play was focussed around young love and the trials and tribulations that come with that. Helena and Jimmy love one another but is that enough to carry them through their first years of marriage together, with little money, no family support and an ever narrowing social circle?
In the second half a fourth character is introduced Alison (played by Augustina Seymour) who is a friend of Helena and one that she has confided in through writing over a number of years about her relationship. However, does Alison have an ulterior motive to stay with Helena and Jimmy? Or is it the case of the grass is always greener for them all?
The ending is not what I would have expected or if I am completely honest understood – it felt like some of the story was still needing to be told, this may be my unfamiliarity with the story.
The play was quite lengthy in my opinion, and that often the dialogues between the 3 and 4 characters were not progressing the story forward and I found myself having to concentrate in order to not ”zone out”. This is not a critical review please understand but just my view of the play as an audience member.
The story gradually increased pace towards the end and there were a couple of tussles and a few implied bedroom antics. However much of the story was told by words and simplified acting and for me it needed a bit more “drama” adding to bring the show alive, with the fights being more realistic to really illustrate the shift between the feelings of love and hate of Helena and Jimmy.
The story is part of Derby Theatre’s Retold series and is a reworked production of a John Osborne classic. Personally I have not read the original story, and therefore cannot comment on how close it resembles this or how the story has changed.
I did enjoy my evening out and Derby Theatre is an excellent venue, welcoming and spacious. There is plenty of leg room within the theatre itself and you do not feel like you can’t move in case you knock your neighbour! And I am looking forward to going back again to see more shows.
Overall I will give this 3 out of 5 as it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Rating: 3/5
Tickets cost from £9.50 to £29.50.
Look Back in Anger is at the Derby Theatre until 26 March 2016. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 01332 593939.
Derby Theatre, 15 Theatre Walk, St Peter’s Quarter, Derby, DE1 2NF | 01332 593939
