David Simper bused it down to The Old Electric theatre to take in this double-handed, one act and somewhat surreal play.
Entering The Old Electric’s auditorium I headed for the comfy seats and noted the lead actor sat in the same row, the bare feet and shorts giving her away. With no raised stage and the seating on the very edge of the performance area, the audience gets an almost too intimate experience at this theatre. This is a particularly intense play.
The set is at first a mystery, its components covered in dust sheets. As the performance begins, a first sheet is removed to uncover a man seated at a little keyboard, which is used to provide accompaniment and effects throughout the performance. Other elements include a chair and screen, the latter used to facilitate the various costume changes that occur.
There is a loose plot, although it’s not clear (to me at least) if The Lodger is a single or composite character; I’m going with the latter. People are left alone in the world with little mentoring or support, they are lonely and make mistakes trying to fill that void. A family seems to have fallen victim to a con, a Sunday school teacher is morally blackmailed into looking after a child despite struggling with her own much-loved husband’s loss, a lonely widow takes in The Lodger partly for chat, but if anything ends up lonelier than ever. Perhaps most tellingly, a care leaver gets a job at Butlins with a room, some money and some self-esteem, only to have it crash around her, a victim of lack of inhibition and social ostracism. The question ‘where does one go from there?’ after crushing disappointment and no safety net, hangs in the air.
Among other surreal elements, the character, having been humiliatingly required to parade around in a pigeon costume, treats us to a series of facts about pigeons.
Among other surreal elements, this latter character, having been humiliatingly required to parade around in a pigeon costume, treats us to a series of facts about pigeons. This casts a new light on Ken Livingstone’s assessment of them as ‘rats with wings’ and the deployment of hawks to kill and terrify them.
This is a musical performance, the lyrics adding context. Here the little keyboard was well utilised. The performance was one of total commitment, the single actor being entirely believable in each role. As someone with a poor memory for lines or lyrics, I can never understand how actors do this. In this case the script was split between numerous very different characters, the timeline being non-linear, the characters dipping in and out. For interludes a mystical deer made an appearance, portrayed by a simple mask yet very effective. It must take incredible skill to perform this.
Apart from the occasional examples of audience participation, the audience was rapt and silent throughout. At the end the applause was loud and sincere. Despite the genuine pain portrayed, I felt uplifted leaving the theatre: while there had been tragedy, genuine kindness and the strength of the human spirit was also there.
This is not the easiest of pieces, although there is a lot of humour, but it’s well worth the investment. Do not miss a future chance to see it.
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