London Dramatic Arts was originally supposed to go to Dr. Faustus on the 16th April - the trip had to be rescheduled, and I'm very glad it was, because it gave me a chance to go with the Man with the Hat, who was taking his groups to The Passion of Lady Vendredi the same night. Not only that, but we got a discount on the tickets for the rescheduled date, which more than paid for the extra show.
So, this evening, off I schlepped to the Duke of York's Theatre, rather glad to be going with a group again - first time since Thursday. Google Maps wanted me to take a train to Waterloo, then the Tube; I figured I could walk from Waterloo, and that's what I did. The weather wasn't great - grey skies, blustery wind, and light rain; but it wasn't too bad: and I was early, so had time to kill. We were to meet at Brown's beforehand - just up the road from the theatre, and a lovely refuge from the weather, all dark wood and brass.
The organiser wasn't there yet, of course - but I was early. They hadn't any record of her booking, either. Didn't see anyone else I knew, and my phone chose that precise moment to die - so I took a seat at the bar and waited, in view of the door. Time ticked by. I waited. Time ticked by. I waited. Time to meet arrived. No sign. Five minutes passed. No sign. Well, she's always late.. I trotted into the brasserie to see whether I could see anyone I knew. Nope. Ordered a drink - perfect timing, when I turned around there she was, looking frazzled. Twenty minutes late - about standard for her. Really, if she can't even be on time on a bank holiday.. (and no, she hadn't messaged me to let me know, as I discovered when I got my phone to charge).
We took a booth further in, and gathered together all the menus - I was starving, so was she. The others who'd arrived so far (they'd been there while I was waiting, but I hadn't known them) weren't so hungry, and stuck to drinks. There was a bar snacks menu, an a la carte, a specials menu. I chose the chicken, and went to the bar to order - there is a separate brasserie, but you can eat in the bar too. The guy taking my order was unsure which chicken I wanted, and called over - I think it was one of the brasserie staff, to check. She asked where we were sitting, and was adamant that we couldn't eat there, we'd have to be reseated. When I went back and told our organiser, she fetched a maitre-d', who assured me that we could eat anywhere in the establishment, and chaperoned me back to the bar to order and pay.
Others in the group arrived in spurts, and ordered different dishes - but I was to be glad for what I'd ordered, firstly because they'd run out of so many dishes, and secondly because the staff had no idea which those were. Not to mention they had no apparent retention - give them a drinks order containing three items, and they will literally bring them one at a time, and have to be reminded each time that there's something else. At least the food was good, as was the conversation - I had two glasses of wine while I was there (choices B & C - they were out of my preferred choice), and would recommend neither. Insipid, is how I would describe them.
We left in good time for the theatre - I'd had a choice, as she had spare tickets, of either the very, very front row, or a bit further back. What the hey, I told her it didn't matter, and sat right up front with a couple more. She reassured us that a review had said the front row wasn't a disadvantage for this production - although you miss some views of the actors' feet, you don't miss anything of note. As we waited for the production to start, we noted the modern set, and a couple of actors came on to do innocuous things - a lady busied herself with cleaning, and Kit Harington (famous from Game of Thrones, which I don't watch) sat himself on the bed, drooling. Visibly.
You knew it had started when beings started to appear from the walls. Now, Dr. Faustus is a chap who sells his soul to the Devil, and from this production it appears as though he didn't have much of a choice - they were all around him before ever he signed a blood pact. And an eerier bunch of demonic figures I have not seen. Pale, intense - some looked morose, some grinned manically. All had dark eye makeup, making their eyes look hollow. None wore very much, and at the start, two (a man and a woman) were completely naked.
I did notice that after that scene, they slipped into some flimsy underwear - but all the demons' underwear was either white or nude, and barely-there, with something of a habit of slipping off. Or to the side. And yes, we did get a flash of Kit Harington's ass - eventually. For the moment, we contented ourselves with demons, who groped each other as occasion demanded.
They were always there, lending the play a discomfiting air. I found the fellow who played Lucifer particularly disturbing, possibly because of his near-constant grin, smeared with - ink, or treacle, or whatever they were using. They greatly outnumbered the human characters at each point, and were there to demonstrate what Hell was like, and what the hapless Dr. Faustus could expect. Frankly, had they been there to convince me, I'd never have signed the thing..
And what does Dr. Faustus want from all this? To be a magician, it seems, with the cachet of a rock star. Funnily enough, at the interval, the music was all along demonic lines - Sympathy for the Devil played as I queued at the bar for a severely overpriced drink. Dunno where the group vanished to - I searched for them, with the person I was sat beside, but to no avail. Hey-ho, we returned to our seats - and were entertained by the Mephistopheles character, who led us in a sing-song of more demonic songs before the second act (Bat out of Hell, anyone?).
I loved this. I've heard it's had some terrible reviews - I've also heard it described as being aimed at a younger audience - lots of nudity, simulated sex, in-your-face stuff. Plenty of modern references, e.g. politics. Yep, you definitely need an open mind. Also contains strobe lighting. In fact, the warning list posted as you enter the theatre is so long, I wished my phone was working so I could take a photo. But you know something? The man signs a deal with the Devil. What happens to him is supposed to be horrifying - frankly, I think they're just being realistic. What, do you want your demons polite..? And as for accusations of having lost the story - I think we get the gist. Deals with the Devil - not a good idea.
Worked for me. But you do need a strong stomach. Currently booking till 25 June.
Right then! Tomorrow is just filled with comedy shows - and for once, I found one that didn't turn me off. We Are Funny Putney has some acts that look quite good - mind you, most of them were acts I couldn't find on YouTube. Free London Events and Talks are off there - and as a plus, it's decently close to me. Although I had to Google it to find out it's in the Star and Garter.. would help if they put that on the Meetup page! Can probably drive..
No comments:
Post a Comment