But it is all left me stone cold. It seemed to last a lifetime, because I had no emotional connection with any of the characters the scenes seemed to stretch out for an age. Part of the problem for me was that it is so beholden to past events which are hinted at but never clarified, there is little to play for here as it were, just the slow inexorable grind towards death and the acceptance of the divisions that have arisen in this family. The dialogue is so calculated and arch, full of oblique twists, turns and wordplay that, whilst evidently characteristic of the playwright, just heightened the irreality of the piece and muted any emotion that might have been generated: it all sounds so artificial.
Dan Jones’ sound design is probably the best thing about the show, highly atmospheric throughout, random burst of the Cure’s Lovecats notwithstanding, really pushing the ponderous mysterious air of the piece, Jon Clark’s heavily blue-filtered light helping here too. Bunny Christie’s design is partly effective, covering the space in what looked like deep blue carpet but whilst I am a fan of recycling, there’s a re-emergence of the strip of lighting around the edge of the stage that feels like it has been done so many times before at the Donmar, leaving me uninspired. And as for the beds which move automatically at random intervals, the less said the better: all I could think was just because you can do something doesn’t mean that you should!
Sometimes you just come to realise that certain things just aren’t for you. And as with
Wastwater last week, it is clear that I am no fan at all of the elliptical drama, full of unresolved mysteries, it just isn't what I want from my theatre. So much is left unsaid and unexplored here: the truth of what happened to Bridget and what her presence here really is, the grandchildren, the tangled relations between Andy and Bel and their friend Maria. But crucially, I didn’t give a jot about any of it, or any of them, and was longing for the play to reach its seemingly never-ending conclusion.
Running time: advertised as 70 minutes (without interval), was closer to 80 but remember, time is oh so very relative
Programme cost: £3
Booking until 28th May