Following on from Playwright Bryony Lavery’s much acclaimed
and award nominated Frozen, her adaptation of Graham Greene’s Brighton Rock is
a darkly delicious descent into the anguish and turmoil of a young man trying
to understand who he is and what is his place in life. Whilst Greene wrote this story in 1938, the
themes and characters are instantly recognisable today, thanks in the main to
the brilliant directing of Pilot Theatre’s Esther Richardson, who uses both
traditional and contemporary techniques to present the multiple personas constantly
in bitter struggles with themselves.
The story focuses on Pinkie, a 17 year old wannabe gang
leader who craves respect far greater than his tender age deserves meaning when
he doesn’t get it he inevitably turns to violence. Brilliantly played by Jacob James Beswick,
Pinkie is constantly on the edge, the edge of reason, the edge of glory, the
edge of sanity – Beswick’s energy is truly scary, never quite knowing whether he
is about to smile or scream. The rest of
Pinkies gang are forever tiptoeing round on eggshells, fearful for saying the
wrong word, looking the wrong way, and yet magnetised by his charisma and forthright
ambition. Sitting in the 2nd
row I felt myself shrink whenever Pinkie took on a rant and yet, like his gang,
felt attached to him with an illogical loyalty.
On Pinkie’s orders, the gang murder a rival who was
masquerading as a newspaper celebratory but find they have left a witness who
can link them to the killing, a young waitress, Rose, and so Pinkie must decide
whether to kill her too or befriend, and ultimately try and control her. Rose, played with a heart-breaking mix of
wide eyed innocence and adolescent passion by Sarah Middleton, falls for
Pinkie, despite (or perhaps because of) his manic obsessions, and agrees to not
only keep quiet, but to help him avoid further detection. Sarah is a wonderful actor and in Rose, she
is able to take the audience on an accelerated journey to becoming a woman, yet
never loses the childish binary belief of right and wrong. This is further reinforced as both Pinkie and
Rose are from devout Catholic families, brought up on the premise of Heaven and
Hell, of mortal sin and of repent and atonement. When Greene wrote his original story, there
were only two dominant paths of fate but you can substitute Catholicism for any
religion, faith or belief system making this story as true and relevant to
today’s youth as it was for those in the 30’s.
Following all this action is Ida Arnold, a seeker of truth
and justice with more than a passing resemblance (in investigative prowess at
least) to sleuths of Agatha Christie.
Ida, played by Gloria Onitiri, pieces together the fragmented detritus left
in Pinkie’s wake and begins to see that the police have either missed, or chosen
to ignore, vital clues linking several suspicious deaths all back to
Pinkie. When Ida realises that Rose is
being drawn into this underworld she vows to protect her, even if it means
taking on Pinkie and his gang herself. Gloria
gives Ida some real spunk; at first she seems like a bit of a lush, hanging round
the bars, betting at the races, but all too soon displays a steely resolve to
go toe to toe with the gangs.
The choreography and scene setting is elaborately simple – movement
around the stage is poetic, even the set shifting is done with an artistic
flourish meaning the audience never drops its gaze. The soundscape, an ever present live accompaniment
composed by Hannah Peel is possibly the best I’ve ever heard – it is reminiscent
of David Lynch’s underscoring of scenes in the TV series Twin Peaks – rhythmic heartbeats,
low and metronomic are almost imperceptible until the action, at which point
they help drive the audience into the heart of Pinkies psychosis before subtly
fading back.
Definitely recommended, this production leaves you wondering why the story can still be so true today as it was 80 years ago - is it that society has never manged to embrace adolescence or is it hard wired into the DNA of all teenagers that they must go through this rite of passage.
Brighton Rock is on at Northern Stage, Newcastle until 5th
May
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