THE MOORS (PLAY)

Written by Jen Silverman

Directed by Joel Horwood

Lexi Sekuless Productions

The Mill Theatre at Dairy Road to 12 April

 

Reviewed by Len Power 26 March 2025

 

First presented at the Yale Repertory Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut, USA in 2016, “The Moors” is a deliciously crazy melodrama that uses the elements of Victorian gothic fiction to tell a dark story of repressed desires, oppressive social mores, passions and secrets in an isolated and desolate setting on the windswept moors of England.

The play looks at the lives of two sisters, Agatha and Huldey, who live with their brooding brother, a maid and a big dog in a gloomy old mansion on the moors. When a mysterious governess arrives, dark tensions and strange passions threaten to engulf them all.

Andrea Close  (Agatha)

Andrea Close plays the formidable sister, Agatha, a severe, miserable woman who rules the household. Her sister, Huldey, is played by Rachel Howard. Denied a social life and dominated by her sister, this sensitive young woman details her fantasies in a diary. Both Close and Howard give strong performances full of detail of these types of women found in novels from this time.

Rachel Howard (Huldey) and Steph Roberts (Marjory)

The slovenly and bitter maid, Marjory, a woman who has dark secrets of her own, is played by Steph Roberts. She gives a delightfully devilish depiction of this woman with attitude, dark eyes and birds nest hair. Sarah Nathan-Truesdale is a fine, Jane Eyre-like governess, Emilie. It’s a nicely controlled performance of a mysterious woman with a past.

Steph Roberts (Marjory) and Sarah Nathan-Truesdale (Emilie)

The young, star-crossed lovers are played by Petronella van Tiernan and Chris Zuber. While she may be a flighty moorhen and he may be the large and lonely household dog craving affection, their innocence and growing love for each other is portrayed by both performers with a touching sensitivity.

Director, Joel Horwood, has obtained excellent performances from his cast, keeping them all effectively within period even though the humour and satire in the script take them into unexpected territories.

Production designer, Aloma Barnes has created a creepy setting with a towering background and a German Expressionist doorway. There is the constant sound of a chilly wind sweeping over the moors outside. Sound designer, Damien Ashcroft, and lighting designer, Stefan Wronski, have complemented this setting with perfect atmosphere.

This is a ferociously enjoyable evening of gothic madness and mayhem. Expect the unexpected.

 

Photos by Daniel Abroguena

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

  

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME (PLAY)

Based on the novel by Mark Haddon

Adapted by Simon Stephens

Directed by Chris Baldock

Mockingbird Theatre Company

Belconnen Arts Centre to April 5

 

Reviewed by Len Power 20 March 2025

 

For their first official production as the theatre-company-in-residence at the Belconnen Arts Centre, Mockingbird Theatre Company has chosen a famous, award-winning play that is a huge challenge to stage successfully.

Young, autistic Christopher Boone, investigates the mystery surrounding the death of a neighbour’s dog. His determination to solve the puzzle brings him into conflict with his father, renewed contact with his mother and enables us to see the world through his eyes as he struggles with relationships and situations that challenge him.

‘The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time’, adapted by Simon Stephens from Mark Haddon’s 2003 novel, was first staged by the National Theatre in London in 2012. The play won a record number of Olivier Awards and its subsequent Broadway production won the Tony Award for Best Play.

Those who saw this original production would remember the extraordinary, expensive-looking set design for this play-within-a-play and wonder how a local company with limited resources could find a way to successfully stage it. Mockingbird’s director, Chris Baldock, has made it a fully immersive experience with clever projections, designed by Matt Kizer, on the walls and the floor of the theatre-in-the-round. It works superbly, giving us a more direct and clearer experience of the world as seen by this autistic young man.

Wajanoah Donohoe as Christopher

On opening night, the marathon central role of Christopher was played by Wajanoah Donohoe. It was a performance of skill, warmth and great sensitivity, making us care deeply for this young man as he struggles in a world that is difficult for him. Ethan Wiggin will share the role of Christopher at other performances during the season.

Richard Manning (centre) as Ed, Christopher's father

There were also notably fine performances by Richard Manning as Christopher’s father, Claire White as his mother and Leah Peel Griffiths as Siobhan, his school mentor and the play’s narrator.

Left to right: Callum Doherty, Travis Beardsley, Meg Hyam, Leah Peel Griffiths (Siobhan), Anthony Mayne, Tracy Noble and Peter Fock

The six other cast members, Callum Doherty, Travis Beardsley, Meg Hyam, Anthony Mayne, Tracy Noble and Peter Fock play multiple roles successfully, giving often quick, but effective, character sketches and impressing with their sense of timing.

Rhiley Winnett was responsible for the projection realisation and operation as well as the lighting design with Chris Baldock. His contribution to the success of this production is immense.

Director, Chris Baldock has created an imaginative production of this entertaining and important play that, because of its immersive design, was even more effective than the original production.

Photos by Chris Baldock

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.

 

 

THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA (PLAY)

Written by Federico García Lorca

Adapted by Karen Vickery, Assisted by Andrea Garcia

Directed by Karen Vickery

Chaika Theatre at the ACT HUB Theatre, Kingston to 29 March

 

Reviewed by Len Power 19 March 2025

 

Described in the play’s subtitle as ‘a drama of women in the villages of Spain’, poet and playwright, Federico García Lorca’s last play was first performed in 1945 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. García Lorca, who wrote the play in 1936, was assassinated shortly after, in the Spanish Civil War.

During a period of mourning for her dead husband, Bernarda Alba wields total control over her five adult unmarried daughters whose ages range between 20 and 39. A housekeeper, a servant and Bernarda’s elderly mother also suffer from the repressive behaviour of Bernarda. No males appear during the play and its study of female repression, passion and conformity in a strongly male culture leads to a devastating tragedy.

Karen Vickery and Andrea Garcia have produced an adaptation of this play that is highly accessible, retaining the full power and poetry of García Lorca’s original.

As director, Vickery has assembled an expert cast of performers who each give their characters an individual and believable life. As Bernarda, Zsuzsi Soboslay, dominates the stage with a ferocity that hides the fear, pain and sorrow beneath the surface. It is a performance of impressive depth.

Zsuzsi Soboslay (Bernarda)

All five daughters, played by Karina Hudson, Sophie Benassi, Yanina Clifton, Amy Kowalczuk and Maxine Beaumont, clearly show their relationships with each other as well as their own hopes and dreams. Particularly impressive is their playing of a disturbing innocence of life, due to their repression. The ensemble playing by these performers rings true every moment they are on stage.

Sisters, grandmother and housekeeper in  'The House Of Bernarda Alba'

Also giving fine, in-depth performances as the servants are Diana Caban Velez (Lucia) and Christina Falsone (Poncia) and Andrea Garcia as the neighbour, Prudencia. Alice Ferguson as Maria Josefa, Bernarda’s mother, gives a strong and believable portrait of an elderly woman losing touch with reality but still displaying signs of the strength of the woman she once was.

Alice Ferguson (Maria Josefa)

It was a clever touch having the voices of men singing distantly, but near enough to show that the male influence of this society was ever-present.

The play is staged in the round, effectively drawing the surrounding audience into this closed and repressed world.

This is a fine production of a famous play with excellent performances by the entire cast. Vickery’s and Garcia’s adaption of the original play, Vickery’s direction and the performances make this a compelling evening in the theatre.

Photos by Jane Duong 

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs.