Theatre
satin or A SALESMAN Citizens' Theatre. Glasgow. 22-26
Stage Whispers
Feb I The loss of the greatest . . . _ , 1 . American dramatist of the last ,,. century will no doubt come as a blow to theatre communities around the wortd. Arthur Miller, , , 1,. . 1.. z. . who died aged89at his home in ‘ I. I I 1. . . Connecticut last Thursday, leftthe p z 1 ,V :I theatreworldamoresocially . ., . ., ,, I I , :.. aware and enriched placethan he 1,, 1,, i .1: I .. 1.. :. foundit.Miller’s reinvention of , w I. I, , classicaltragedyasthestoryofa a... [,2 i, , 5.1.. . common man oftheZOthcentury, ,,, H , DeathofaSalesman,standsas , ‘1. w, , . possibiythe most profound attack fl .1 ._ 1.x , ,_, ,.; uponthefalseconsciousness ‘1 ,_ I .d z ,4, ,, created by modern capitalism of L _. t by“, ' : thelastcentury. The play has lost .1. (L..- ,.‘ ,, m”, .,. none of its power since its first map... .,,. ._,.I K I ,, , production in 1949, asthemoving [,3 ,, ...,., ,5,“ d ,,, version presented attheLyceum WW {1 H... _v last year would attest. The fact I, .1 A“ _,, I . ,1 {1‘ I: ._,,,_:.,,4 that even this issue, another Molt: m ,,,_,,.m,.' .51., "x... mm, -. production (atthe Citz) prepares to BOILING A FROG l All";f;.’ll; (Ll Hw )l' : M'a: ~~ :TU 90 up anesm m its Strength 853 Touring .... 'tw'liwl l" f;."é"l 't- *l'”. I? r. " repertory Standard Everyone has an opinion about what 7:84 should be; its work is criticised lwllllé" "l ‘t'rxlli'ifl Ht? T" l But Miner’s oefmfie was far for being either too political or not political enough. With the SAC fill" MW“! “»' >l"‘r xll? *1 l ’ ’T'tl- =l ' broader?“ ""5" and ammth threatening to scrap its core funding this year, artistic director Lorenzo tht: tlf;,f;ttl > . y): mi. ' "‘l »< d some cmcs name a pea.“ Dem.” Mele must feel pressure to strike that balance. This adaptation of rjltalarttlrrx aw: ta: .: ‘art‘ ., 0f the 505 ‘f’nd 60$ ‘ dun"? Wh‘Ch Christopher Brookmyre’s novel about contemporary Scottish politics walatu mutt” )5). Hit: (M, at": suc" c'ass'cs as The cruc’b’e'_Al’ crams sleaze, conspiracy, murder, vibrators and kiddie porn into a comic mount) for ,rn tr~ taw- tn t? aha? Mysons' {View me The andge commentary on political incompetence and a nation’s prejudices. Staging a ,ot.‘ ‘.'.’lH, anti .‘Jtv; k't(:.'.f; ~.-.h.tt af‘d The Pnce owe” proguced ‘ as successful book may not be as radical as the company claims it is, but it l)l()(l1llitll)'t ttwoltt than t: anarou. {-1. :ar “'5 mos‘ creamer there '3 "0 he" works a" the same. Ill ll‘lll’ l. ho~.'.<:‘.«:r. that altht no.“ W t Of inSigm in 300.1 Iater may? as The A comedic political thriller bordering on the implausible, Christopher uxplmtl, antl /'\l."(:t|(ig:'t. I roll." n thw- La“ Yankeei.seen recean "1 a Deans‘ adaptation turns Brookmyre’s metaphor into tense action, showing £ll'(: enough (that; new: To ntnt t: a“: power“ “Y'Va' aubeAmhes' corrupt characters getting carried away. The dodgy and dithering Father a f;<3ttf;t; ot Ill‘;f;£tllf;f€l(‘li' )f‘. « ,v‘ lnlttlwr' '"deed' 't “"9” be argue? that 5° Shelley (Ross Stenhouse) helps ex-tabloid hack Ian Beadie (Stewart Porter) part. As; to whether IJS ll wt. “at, uncomfonab'e became. “'5 to frame some big names in government and traditionalist Elspeth Doyle (:ltanljml un< unoh to wake I‘m; (m. awa'mnesst bomOme "‘me and (Linda McLaughlin), feeling out of place in Scotland’s trendy parliament, l)llt'(:l\, a l(?i|(:(l’.l()lt of Motor“ on. .509“ 3°" '" 3" “"{USt soc'ety' Wat lends a hand. Reporter Jack Parlabane (Gary Mclnnes), in jail for that's up to g,on. ill/tel; ‘.“.’ats;onl " s'mp'y Mame d'mc‘f't {or {nines overzealous journalism (ie burglary), narrates the play, slowly sussing out to cope wnh so unnemng a V's'on'
Certainly not all of the criticisms he received were entirely just. Much abuse was heaped upon him for After the Fall (1964), a piece which American critics claimed was about his failed marriage to the, by then, deceased Marilyn Monroe. Miller denied this, yet what was seen as an outrageous breach of decorum saw his work coldly received in the States for three decades after. It is, perhaps, to the credit of the British theatregoing public that his work has remained more consistently popular here than in his own country. if you love theatre, don’t be ashamed to raise a glass to the
. old boy when you’re next down the Nl SEASON
A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT b°°’°" Oran Mor, Glasgow, Tue 21 Feb—Sat 30 May
the real sleaze. Meanwhile, his wife Sarah (Kate Dickie) is at home shagging the doctor (Robbie Jack). A fair amount of role-swapping brings a range of voices, opinions and prejudices, which convey the identity of today’s Scotland.
Satire seems to extend to the set, as Becky Minto’s three-wall collage of artsy wooden squares reminds us of another fashionable addition to our parliament. The play may be topical, but farcical entertainment and brilliant performances, particularly from Stewart Porter and Kate Dickie, take precedent over politics. And yet there’s a refreshing sense of optimism here, something lacking in previous plays such as Gilt. Devolution has brought little significant change, but it’s still early days, and changes can still take place. Nodding towards this rosy message with little trace of patriotic sentiment, the play criticises religion’s prominent place in the supposedly secular Scottish parliament, while quietly questioning the open-mindedness of the average Scot. Believe it or not, this is edge-of- your-seat stuff, sure to set off some communal nail chewing. And it feels neither too passive nor too preachy. (Claire Piela)
After the resonnt’ling success of ti; ‘nltlal season last ,ear. the folks at Oral; MC“ room (to lzttle else but launch a no.2 ()l'()(}r£1ll‘lYl(: ot llill’LllIl'Y‘f,‘ theatre. The tltil; of Ms: llttle ltlea says it all. and glyen sow: of the writers appearth In the ’gorr‘rrg lzne-llp. the only thing; you‘ll na.e to ‘.'.'onj. about Is what's In the (Mr. Ba? .9. ’;éll‘ worn. {ilYDLll that a't\.~.-.'here.
\.\’hat's so interestth about these StJ-n‘tnnte plans ts the opportnrt:t, the, '.“(:r' to see the work of winters who n‘tg‘nt not regalarl, show at; m ear/ting hills. Nox'ellst \‘nlllant Maclllx'anney. for example. proonced a .er, .'.”8?’;7l£il)l‘: new; rr‘ O," the Soc/shes last ‘, ear. aha follows an .wth The Pnsor‘er fits me around so too. ill Fog. COll‘lC Bruce Morton's niece which lacks oft the progran‘rr‘e. 3.4; see a space created for a ‘.'.’.’ll€l ct taler‘t who e.enlng theatres mghz 72:37:: sr‘, 9?. Along mth these. Such established .‘.~nters as Lzz Loot‘heaa whose one-acto' 73'»;- Ceremonl ends the season. are also present on the hilt. Ths (ll/ijlI, of es and approaches WIH t‘ake tOr a ‘.erttaoie lunchtn‘e srt‘o'gasoo'd for We (jar-refs of Glasgow: leanng one unionoertng :mer‘ Edmhurgh .-..t: get the more 9“. Wu,- Mmer “915.2005, Steve Cramer,
', .1 " THE LIST 93