God of Carnage

God of Carnage
By Yasmina Reza. Directed by Leigh Barker. Next Step Productions. Chapel off Chapel. 19th – 29th November, 2014

Actor/Producer Leigh Barker makes his directorial debut with the much awarded black comedy God of Carnage, which must surely be one of the most produced shows in modern theatre. With a sure hand he pulls together four excellent performances from a highly skilled cast, allowing them enough freedom to explore comic business, without damaging the truth of the characters or the overall arc.

The plot, which is little more than a device on which Reza hangs her exploration of social hypocrisy, concerns two couples and their unseen sons.Before the play begins, two 11-year-old children, Benjamin and Henry, get involved in an argument. Benjamin knocks out two of Henry’s teeth with a stick. That night, the parents of both children meet to discuss the matter and what starts out as frosty middle-class politeness disintegrates and true colours are revealed.

Anna Burgess (Annette) is quite marvelous as the mother of the perpetrator, Benjamin. Immaculately dressed, with Louis Vuitton handbag and expensive coiffure, she slowly comes undone the more inebriated she becomes, and manages to be restrained during the infamous vomiting scene. Totally convincing, she has her coat on and off so many times that it’s dizzying, and her prolonged business with the cell phone and the tulips (no, I won’t explain further) shows a deep comic talent that really deserves to be used more often on the local scene. Like Christie Whelan Browne, she is extremely beautiful, but is also the complete package as a performer, and manages to make Annette a sympathetic character through a well-defined character arc and some very nuanced and underplayed acting. Even the much-discussed vomiting scene becomes believable with her at the centre.

Amanda McKay (Ronnie) is the feisty “Liberal Activist” mother of the victim and is a powerful presence. I fully buy into the idea of her being British (as the actress is) except there are lines and attitudes that don’t quite work for the character if she is not part of that American middle-class tradition. McKay and Barker could afford to make her more of an alien/ outsider and play on her attitudes being more ethically British than her American counterparts….a “what is wrong with you people?” approach.

Brett Whittingham (Michael) is solid and totally credible, though not Neanderthal, as the essentially blue collar father of the victim, dominated by his more powerful wife. The differences between them make the moment where Ronnie snaps, and pummels the living daylights out of him, deliciously believable.

Allen Laverty (Alan) plays the most unsympathetic of the four, a sartorial silver fox in love with his cell phone and his work, paying only lip service to his wife Annette and the whole idea of parenthood, and he is never less than believable.

The set – nicely realised by the director and Bryce Dunn – works a treat and Barker even utilises the actual doors of/to The Loft performing space as the front door and door to the kitchen. The show is nicely lit by Michael Brasser, who also handled the sound.

The problem for me has always been with the play itself. There is no-one to care about – although Barker’s production is certainly more three dimensional in terms of character than most – and so it’s difficult to engage emotionally. There certainly is much high-octane bitchery and some great one liners, though I personally think Edward Albee does it better in Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Wolf.  It’s hard to understand why Annette and Alan would stay there for more than five minutes….but that’s just my opinion.

Despite any shortcomings in the play itself, this is a quality production with very strong performances and a ridiculously low ticket price. Next Step Productions is making its mark and I can’t wait to see what they will tackle next. Chapel off Chapel is always welcoming, so all in all this is a great value entertainment.

Coral Drouyn

Photographer: Leigh Barker.

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