MODE RN (it ASSIC GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, until Fri 5 Oct 0000
Two desperate men in a tawdry Chinese restaurant are bargaining for their livelihoods. The shifts of power underneath the conversation could represent any workplace situation where the stakes are high and the heat is on. As it is, though, there’s an extra degree of ugliness, because the money involved puts the two office workers just above the poverty line in this opening sequence of Mamet’s classic. Historically, as a play of the mid-80$ this piece represented an antidote to the big-time capitalist achievement ethic represented in such appalling films as Working Girl. Here Shelley Levine (Lou Hirsch), a man who has, in the distant past, revelled in the dehumanised nickname of “The Machine", begs for ‘leads’, that is, the names of potential clients to whom dodgy real estate is sold. His petty and venal companion, the office manager Williamson (Neil McKinven) offers the prospect of help through bribery, then cruelly withdraws it. Two other salesman, Moss (Mark McDonnell) and Aaronow (Ronnie Simon) conspire in the next scene, with Moss proposing that Aaronow rob their office of the leads, which can be sold on to a rival firm. Finally, we see the firm’s star salesman Roma (Tom McGovern) espouse his Neitzschean philosophy to a potential client (Robert Paterson), before pitching a rip-off sale at his na'i‘ve prey. The second act becomes an elaborate mystery, where a cop (Steven McNicoll) investigates the robbery of the office, with each man a suspect. Kenny Ireland’s production gets off to a slightly shaky start, with the complex idioms and
rhythms of Mamet’s jargon-enriched language proving a little alienating for actors and audience alike, but the piece builds nicely to a powerful denouement. The ensemble performances are strong, with the actors, for the most part, allowing the incantatory language to carry us into this impersonal underworld of corruption, greed and moral decrepitude. Hirsch’s burnt out old-timer is particularly compelling, creating the alternate passivity and aggression of a despairing man, while McKinven’s slippery pen- pusher rings with authenticity. McGovern’s
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Touring 0.. ‘ Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Tue u' 'I be "eesg' sel a K 2_Sat 6 Oct ... ' " ’l (H l'il" °‘ ’< ' )l.‘> ‘i‘r’i til' ' 'at " ,- l' -:;'s l' A (:apaeity audience. 80’; tenwale. Te", ‘i 'r "‘a' a l alt ' were at (‘zlasgox'x's Kings lheatre on
:"‘Il the: ‘(x ‘is' opening night to see the inusieal
"a" -:;:l a .os“ te"anf based on the life story of 100‘. farmer ‘ :::; ill ,l ' ;: ft" ' Yorkshire pools ‘.'.rinner. Viv Nieholson. f; 'iai of ts tne"1af::s_ Sara" It's a r;ig—to-ri(:hes—anri back-to-rags r‘a . ’f(,' i ':l tri l‘tl story of a strong, ‘.'.’()."r\’|llt] (:lass ll)‘ i "‘ ,-' ‘ by. her (Za'azia \‘Joi‘i‘an going from fa(:tory x'xorker to
"’l .i lci'. e , ag eguiyalent of 8‘13 inillion nowadays. into h: r . , 5“ x ., along the way. y, at: r :1 r2, M t, ‘ai “n. ' u llt' It's a remarkable life. full of pluek. M (til; """ “i <;' H. s' ' it: guts and enormous: e'tanges. but Female bonding l‘./l£i{){l(:. a ")"‘£t'l "t. 'a'
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l ie't‘ about the mad b. her "..‘_}l}£ll‘il v‘tght, l"-:: sa"‘e the ntost of life. Unfortunately Steve r;".'.arris. the many elxulis" Elbe/r" "zv‘es ti‘er Hrox'xn and Justin Greene's inusieal
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doesn't dig deep. We never get a handle
Theatre
Ayn satyre of the real estate
performance is rather mannered, in contrast to the naturalistic playing around him, a dangerous strategy given the text, but he ultimately redeems it with some nicely played and very dark humour late on.
After his much-admired View From The Bridge and Guys And Dolls last season, Ireland has demonstrated an admirable facility with American texts of recent times. This production amounts to an intelligently balanced and ultimately very powerful piece of theatre.
(Steve Cramer)
throughout it all Vl‘.’ Niei'iolson finds the l'(}fSll|(3ll(I(} to go on. sontehoy'~/ niaking
Dickson display
y'xorse. we don't (:are. Who is to blame?
"g'. fine ltiitis‘“ "‘iai'is‘r-L-a"~ theatre. ‘-t " tr: itati a'mai exi:»:;:::at on. on Nicholson. Her story unfolds and we
e eat. .g gums -.,« t, the .. . e .,.'.-.,-i .o lei ..e|. don I understand what nakes her ti(,k Sriiit'i‘. ‘.'.'ll.ll .e ees like (Eta-"‘9. ,ei. get the picture. l'he (:on‘posers and the director.
(/iii'efil and lids", i,.'<,' 'eu i<;.~.,-' s text f>.l'l17lf)(i't>'.'..l".
a"‘r,";; fret". leese ters a ts g-:.-"-:,-ra iiii"";iii.t,. i()l(ll‘.l"(l
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bang ttte partial-(tr histtx iga lli'llléiflnfg and lllllltl"i(l "io'nents seore. {:Xl,l:ll(:,'"(I-Z: :,' .'.i)t‘](:t‘. tr; Eve of o. to the .'.:>"ieii's shared
staee. :3, '.".e end of fine l,€:"’)(l. (;X(;(;'i(:f‘.(Li:. Kei‘ Alexander and e' The legit "late gv'e.a' .e
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i,ei"g accosted l). se'r‘e actress isn't-er l-Eo'iziage' iv i'l an ":e"tl l. '."e ‘o,ev. ‘.'.lt(; mould a‘fu-fat‘. l;i.t :o.e:es:‘ "‘arizaoe and izeizite alo.t tl‘(:ie new; l‘f. A"" Scott ,loiies as, the troubled ‘er'1aiet,;iitf;intiietl‘eatte. l,,.t a<:<;ei,t "g "‘i-(llllfil of a
No.2. l ’i';'i". .'.ant to pgeoii .'.'a. .'.';:"l. slgliti, handicapped
i ll, .).ir, \ r’,.':7 W Hill: (laagiiifi '. A geozl shes.
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accta” erl as a §;im;,.r; sheatl"'1i)i(>'.e'.'.’itl‘ touring. ma" re r,‘ '.' genre. it ias -f)te.e(,ia"1ev
l)(}t'l‘.’£tll\.’(} of Willy l-tussell's inusieal inasterpieee. Blood Brothers eyen down to the set of doors against the back \.'.rall. Spend, Spend. Spend doesn't explore (:l; ss or the lot of woman ‘.'.’Illl Insight. Unfortunately. it also laeks a n‘en‘orable
Surprisineg for a ll‘tlfSlCétl. the singing laeks (:larity. Often it's hard to deeipher the lyrics. .lereiny San‘s' l)"()(lll(:ll()ll is workn‘an like. though hardly speetaeular. A ‘3 ta l l-:;"'leif:::i‘7s prorluetror: f‘zif; (:onyeyor belt is used to good effect. Nieholsen's sueeession of six husbands slide on stage right. her repossessed goods slide off stage left. There are l knoekout moments. the dynainie 'Sexual l lappening' as young Viy in‘agines a “it"«l’ilriit’ ,- étlif‘r' “NY-"ii? HIT E\>‘i"1‘=¥l‘/<flll><37l<>'"‘a:i<:es.toe. bewy of would be loyers. and the aleoholie duet 'l)iinkii‘.g In America'. But in a
l story about physieal abuse. lViy was hit by both her father {tl‘tl (:ountless the fight seenes are laughable and poorly (:horeograi)heti.
Barbara l):(:kson plays the (:urrentday Nieholson ‘.‘.llll a fine singing yoiee. but she is inainly a narrator. and has little (:haiaetei. On stage throughout. Dickson is
loyersi
(:alled upon to do a lot of looking at her younger self. played by Rachel l eskoyatf. She proyides lots of guts and spit and is bursting ‘.‘.’|lll healthy sexual appetite and yigoui. (‘iiant Anthony offers strong support as her seeond husband and true loye. lhe message that true loye cant be bought needs to be explored in a more dynan‘ie. original and lll(}llt()l'étl)l(? way. itlohn Binniei
.3-9.‘ ‘1 f .‘ THE LIST 59