The Woods

I saw this tonight, and have to concur. The production was very slow, which may have been meant to great a dream like atmosphere, but mostly just left me cold. Brilliant performance from Leslie Sharpe, and some great sound design, but mostly just felt like a bunch of blokes trying to tell us how a woman feels when losing a child via the means of standard patterns of abuse.

It thought it was far cleverer than it was. 

Caught this tonight. My friend felt more moved than I.

It's "The Wonderful World of Dissocia" all over again, but there is absolutely no joy or comedy in Robert Alan Evans world.

Confusion of location and accents reign, until it's all revealed and tied up just before the end when you discover the issue. (It's semi sign posted throughout, but there is definitely a scene where they spell it out).

It is a frustrating 95 minutes though and I'm not sure hindsight does it any favours.

Some of the images are beautiful. Get ready for some fire and then some more fire.

And the acting is good all round. Sharpe is good at grief and lifts everyone in the fleeting lighter moments. Tom Mothersdale has a crack at multi-roleing and does well, but to what effect?

Ultimately, Neilson did this better, although his focus was different to that of this play's protagonist. It seems odd to see a younger playwright use the same format, but with less surprise and much more frustration.

The accents used are purposefully slipped in and out of, but by gad it was annoying.

I haven't seen this yet but have served the playwright in the bar over the last few days...he's a really lovely guy and I'm interested to see it now!

Saw the matinee yesterday, and liked it. Goes nowhere, as that's what happens when you're lost in "the woods," but has a really foreboding feel to it, and Lesley Sharp is terrific.

Some spoilers follow. . .

Think of this as a psychological "Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Event" (in the singular), whereby Count Olaf (here called "The Wolf"), played by a suitably malevolent Tom Mothersdale, mans a series of disguises to torment Lesley Sharp, who is lost in a dark landscape in "The Woods," nurturing a sick boy, Finn Bennett.

The play is big on atmosphere, with a soundscape of scary tones, a lot of chiaroscuro light and dark, but it suffers from that disease of modern plays, the smug puzzle, which elusively taunts you to solve what's going on, and is so pleased with itself, that it decides that the solution to the puzzle is everything you need to know about everything, and that's that.

As the tormented and hunted woman, Lesley Sharp couldn't be better cast, as no actor does haunted and harried quite like she does. Entranced by the atmospherics, I felt very creeped out, in a good way.

The smug-puzzle remained unsolved by me, at the end, with my inner Loyd Grossman nasally taunting me with "Through the Brainhole" clues, asking "What could be happening in a mind like this?" I came up with some dark solutions, some darker solutions, and some nightmarish ones, but the problem with not knowing for sure, is that every moment solving the smug-puzzle is a moment of failed empathy. I can't feel for the character(s), as long as I'm not quite sure what happened.

And I'm not buying the text to solve it. If the play tells me I'm not smart enough to fully understand it, I'm willing to accept that, and chastened, move on.

3 stars.

Going to see this next week. Is it the 'standard' upstairs layout ? i.e. one set of tiered benches which we all have to shuffle up on ? Any recommendations of where to avoid sitting ?

Thanks so much for that. I had skipped over any posts fearing a spoiler. Will take up your tip!

I actually quite like this. It definitely didn't fly by but I wasn't sitting there bored. I felt just mystified enough. It's interesting flicking through the reviews now where there are some critics complaining that the mystery of the play is obvious and that steals the dramatic tension, and others that it's too mysterious for too long and it's arduous flitting through these confusing scenes without an idea of what's going on. I was somewhere in a much more pleasant middle. Some of the runs at comedy felt a little bit awkward because in such an intimate space with such a heavy dark atmosphere nobody really wants to laugh, so you just get this bristling noise as people stiffen in response to a line. Lesley is great, and the set, sound, music, lighting is all really excellent. I wasn't choked up as such at the end, but I was definitely feeling... something... and that's better than half the stuff I see at the theatre. Great stuff.

I know this production got 3-4 star reviews, but mine always get 5.

Yes, it did. The Royal Court doesn't reveal anything on the evening which could spoil the theatregoing experience or give away hints of the plot. I think it's a great system. However, like you, these things make me very anxious and the RC are VERY good at giving you the information if you phone/email/ask on the evening. This gives me peace of mind and doesn't spoil the show for everyone else.

Just got out from the final performance and I probably wouldn't usulsy post my comments but I just feel I have to get it out my system. If I had to some up this play with a song I would say Killing Me Softly. I felt like I was being slowly tortured watching this play and I don't really know how feel about it. Some nice design, sound and lighting elements and liked the wolf. It just felt so long and gruling and I wish I had stayed at home and watched strictly.