No Man's Land

by Harold Pinter

seen at Wyndhams Theatre on 16 November 2016

Sean Matthias directs this revival of Pinter's 1975 play with Ian McKellan as Spooner, Patrick Stewart as Hirst, Owen Teale as Briggs and Damien Molony as Foster; the set is designed by Stephen Brimson Lewis.

Hirst has invited Spooner - a shambling down-at-heels writer - back to his house in Hampstead, an eerily grand affair featuring a room with a curved wall of rather cold blue panels, with a well-stocked bar. Hirst, also apparently a writer, seems bemused by Spooner's meandering speeches, though some of his responses are extremely sharp, even if only by way of a look of mock alarm or distaste. Each drinks heavily as Spooner attempts to discover the nature of the household and Hirst gives little away; suddenly two retainers appear, the brutish Briggs and the cocky and almost camp Foster. They might be dangerous for Spooner - they might even have some hold over Hirst: they are blankly watchful when Hirst collapses and crawls out of the room.

The Broken Heart

by John Ford

seen at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse on 24 March 2015

Directed by Caroline Steinbeis with Brian Ferguson as Orgilus, Amy Morgan as Penthea, Sarah MacRae as Calantha, Owen Teale as Bassanes, and Luke Thompson as Ithocles.

The play is set in Sparta, with references to the gods, Delphi and oracles to underline its pre-Christian milieu. The word 'spartan' evokes notions of stoicism and self-denial as ideal character traits; the modern connotations of frugality and austerity arise as the consequence of rigorous personal self-control, not as mere descriptions of the physical or economic environment. Thus there is an atmosphere of self-denial and self-control assumed to essential aspects of civic virtue, and this permeates and poisons the relationships in the play.