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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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Twilight years in a life of memories: Lynn Ravenhill as Edie and Patrick Bentley as Arthur Visitors
The Nonentities
The Rose Theatre, Kidderminster
**** IT
would be very easy to reduce Barney Norris’s
play Visitors
to just a cosy view of a bygone era and a way of life that no longer
exists. It tells the story of Edie and Arthur, an elderly
married couple now in their twilight years, the farm they have lived in
all of their lives and the onset of Edie’s dementia. It’s poignant and
touching and uneasily funny at times and contains the sort of simple
homely values not often appreciated by a younger audience. However written in the shadow of the economic
recession in the 2008 financial crisis, its second agenda compares the
modern quest for money, success and the search for a purpose in our
lives against the backdrop of this simpler way of life and lasting
relationships. Edie is played beautifully by Lyne Ravenhill,
softly reminiscing the fragments of her fading memory, then at times
caustically joking or pin pointing other memories with complete clarity.
Arthur is her doting husband, helpless to stop the tide of Edie’s
dementia. Patrick Bentley took on the role and comfortably trod the path
between the care of his wife and the bitterness he feels at his grown
son Stephen, for leaving the family farm and its traditions, for a
career in the empty world of insurance. The son Stephen is played by Andy Bingham and he
worked his character’s anxiety well into the mix. He was perhaps a bit
young for the role as Stephen’s marriage of 20 years is coming to an end
and he has a need to return the family home. As Mr Bingham looks
not much older than a fresh 20 himself, the words seemed a bit
implausible coming from him but his intensity in the role certainly came
through. The family is aided by the Visitor, young Kate,
played intensely by Jessica Schneider. Kate is a law graduate, drifting
without a job or career or any focus in her life. Kate has entered a
programme to help care for those in need and comes to be a crucial part
of the family’s lives. Her passion came fully through in a bitter
exchange with Stephen who tries to ask her out on a date whilst
disregarding his mothers increasing illness. Bob Graham on his directorial debut has made a
good beginning with this seemingly straight forward yet complex play. It
touches nerves and asks questions that offer no answers. Visitors is
nostalgic but the treatment of and onset of dementia is often a cruel
and complex issue in any situation. Often the humour that comes throughout the play
serves as an antidote to sadder moments and the cast do a fine job of
managing these emotions in the intimate space of the studio theatre.
Norris himself has said that `Theatres are
empathy engines’. You certainly feel for the characters and members of
the audience seemed visibly touched by the story they heard. It’s not an easy play to watch but is handled
well by The Nonentities. In a culture where young relationships are
judged by their race and access to the housing ladder, it’s a reminder
that love is still the reason and at the core of any close relationship.
When you lose that, you lose your way and much more, so when it’s been
found and has lasted, it’s a cruel blow when dementia comes to steal
even
the memory of it away. To 05-11-16 Jeff Grant 31-10-16 |
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