The Divide(Old Vic)

It's exactly like Perestroika, but the absence of a naked Russell Tovey makes it sound like 7 hours.

Yes and at the Old Vic to boot!

Off to see it tomorrow, though I'm seeing John in the afternoon too, so I'll probably be a bit zombified - I'll add my thoughts on Monday when I'm back. Erin Doherty has been brilliant in everything I've seen her in so far (Wish List, Junkyard, My Name is Rachel Corrie, A Christmas Carol OV), and Edinburgh friends say she's the highlight in this, too.

Act 4 proved to be less mundane than the previous 3 acts. The time incremental jumps were too short which just added to the vast mundaneness but explains why this was a 2 part play initially - the need to bloat. I stayed after the interval predicting (wrongly) the time shift would be more dramatic. Since this is an autobiography of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood (18yrs old) a year on year account of her life proved too much for me. Within all the bloat text exists a half decent play.However, to have any chance of seeing this would require condensing the first 3 acts into 1 act.

Ouch

I am no expert on Ayckbourn, I have only seen about 15 of his plays, he is a playwright not noted for going above people’s heads, Well he did mine. So had to visit Michael Billington in the interval, urge people to do the same. Generally I enjoy Ayckbourn subtle genius, no one captures British mannerisms and idiosyncrasies any better. Well he missed the hole here and some.

One thing I loathe and that is young adults, playing children, with that forced child accent, it is like nails going down the blackboard, this play had it From to start to finish.

On a positive note I found David Plater lighting design exceptional, the cast played their roles well, despite my reservations.

1 ⭐️

I didn't go.

Tonight was press night, though it wasn't when I booked. Saw Judi Dench, who I assume was there to see her daughter; Alex Gaumond and John Dagleish, who I assume came to support their Christmas Carol castmate, Erin Doherty; Haydn Gwynne and Rob Brydon, who probably just came to see the play, and Mark Lawson, who came to teach aspiring actors voice projection, as his cheerful chortling could be heard from outer space, I'm sure.

At first, I thought the production had been much maligned, as the first half was the kind of dystopian scifi that I love, with clear rules, and well-defined characters.

Erin Doherty's lead character, Soween, was particularly well-developed, and through her bright wide brainwashed dystopia shaped eyes, I was able to see our world anew, through her character's indignance and shock, which was wonderful. Especially as Doherty is so good at projecting willfullness, wonder, and hilariously conflicted emotions.

I rated the first half set-up a solid four stars, for entertainment, insight and Doherty's delicious performance.

(Some spoilers follow)

However, in the second half, Ayckbourn decides she's not actually the main character, just the story's narrator. Further, Richard Katz's Rudgrin, the best developed male character in the story thus far, who hankers back to the subversive art and pervasive heterosexuality of our present, is effectively written out.

Instead, undeveloped characters now take centre stage, which is utterly frustrating, given two hours investment in the above two characters.

Further, the heretofore well-defined dystopian world is now fudged and misjudged by Ayckbourn, drastically reducing and confusing the stakes. Is this world deliberately malevolent or just a bureaucratic mess? Ayckbourn doesn't really answer.

It's so frustrating to have such a great setup get such a hashed payoff.

The cast is an abundance of talent, however, and it was a joy to watch them all work. Finty Williams combined compassion and fury in a cocktail to make her watching Mum proud. Erin Doherty was dazzling, ever compelling, funny and sympathetic, even when her character is sidelined by the playwright, to the evident pleasure of her former castmates.

The second half I rate two stars, for story implosion, so I rate the whole worthwhile experience 3 stars.

The Telegraph now loves it for the reasons I didn't - the dubious, 70s sexual politics.

It was frustrating, in that it could have been good - they'd clearly thrown some excellent production talent at it - but the play itself was badly structured and some of the plotlines (especially the last few minutes) made you go 'urgh' (keep pestering her, dorky boy, and she'll come round...).