Summer and smoke - Almeida Theatre

Has anyone else seen the play, please?

I know, hence "else" - I haven't seen it yet but have tickets, so I'm interested in views. Thank you very much for yours.

Saw the Saturday matinee. I loved this. Less sense, more sensibility, powerfully directed (verging on over-directed) this claustrophic, insightful take on William's play about body and mind is set almost entirely in Alma's mind, with an excellent atypical naturalistic performance from Patsy Ferran.

Some spoilers follow. . .

To me, this felt like a diametrically opposite take on the play, about the horror of mind and body disconnection, to the West End Rosamund Pike version. That version was all body, this version is all mind.

Rebecca Frecknall sets much of the play squarely in Alma's head, by having her under a spotlight, addressing her dialogue into the ether, while characters she is talking to lurk behind her in shadow. The effect is discombobulating, and will be irritating to some, but I found the approach, which echoes the thematic content of Tennessee Williams play, by explicitly dividing mind from body, powerfully effective at suggesting just how much of our worlds occur in our own heads, rather than in an objective reality.

Patsy Ferran's Alma begins with a scream of panic, suggesting the pain and fragility of her divided consciousness, whereby she is all soul, and no body, and her Alma claustrophically continues in a level of fear induced internal panic for much of the play.

The lack of naturalism in presentation extends to the lack of a set, and the shadowy lighting, with the Almeida stage being more lonely alienated cave, of the mind, than at any time since Simon Stephen's "Carmen Disruption."

Until now, I have most appreciated Ferran for her incredible physical and verbal comic dexterity,with her Speech and Debate, My Mum's a Tw*t, As You Like it and Blithe Spirit appearances standing out in my mind as tour de forces of comedy acting. But here, her comedy bones are harnessed, and Ferran's Alma, while having traits, of hysteria and nervousness, that some might consider funny, comes across as deeply empathetic, and desperately trapped.

Alma's love interest, Matthew Needham's dark and restrained John Buchanan is considerably more threatening than Chris Carmack's more overtly flirty and sexual West End version, as befits a production squarely centred in Alma's psyche, reflecting her fears.

There is fantastic support from Nancy Crane, as the epitomy of the unrestrained, nightmarishly sensual, ice-cream-licking, person that Alma fears, and from Anjana Vasan (who I will always love for being Hermia in Emma Rice's debut Globe prodction), who sings an exquisite version of Portishead's "Glory Box," as good as the version I heard from Portishead themselves, when I saw them in concert.

All in all, the extreme direction of this show will make it a marmite production, that many will reject for it's rejection of naturalism (I myself felt constrained at points), but which others will love for delving deeply into Williams' thematic concerns, presenting them from the inside out.

4 stars.

Still plenty of seats available. Just got a couple for 31st March.

I booked a while ago, luckily - had to reschedule from a preview to the last day because of the weather so I won't look through your comments, but I think Patsy Ferran's already one of those actors who make anything worth seeing!

I've just looked at the website and many dates are now sold out - I wonder if it will transfer?

I would love if the Almeida would consider some further live cinema relays after their foray a few years back with Ralph Fiennes. So much good stuff there.

At the cost of sounding schizophrenic given my previous misgivings on this production, I am very happy to see it so well-received. And reading the reviews, I understood the meaning of the set and some details I had not actually seen (kind of worrying since I was in the stalls...). I hope Patsy Ferran will be remembered when award season comes.

Not any more. Entire run now sold out. Good for them. 

I would imagine that's being explored, but it might be stymied by the lack of an available house. The Gielgud, Wyndhams, Coward, Duke of York's, Pinter, Theatre Royal Haymarket, Apollo, Duchess, Lyric, Vaudeville, Ambassadors, none are immediately available.

WAIT.

Trafalgar Studios 1 isn't programmed after Grinning Man closes on 14th April, which is a week after Summer & Smoke closes at the Almeida. I wonder........

I saw this on Tuesday and was blown away by Patsy Ferran. I felt so lucky to see such an exquisite piece of theatre. It reaffirmed my love of Tennessee Williams and marked Rebecca Frecknall as a director to watch. Forbes Masson's vocal performance was also a revelation to me. Oh this will be hard to beat and Patsy Ferran deserves best actress nominations by the bucket.

I tend to avoid praising actors if I can help it as theatre is a collective art form, but seeing Patsy Ferran last night, it felt like a privilege to see her perform, even the toes on her feet were in tune with her portrayal, a wonder to behold.