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Present
Verdict: Birth, death, monologues
Brighton - Marlborough Theatre - 15-20 May 06 - 20:00 (21:05)
Present is a performance about the end and beginning of life from a cast of two (2M), running at 65 minutes in one act.
It consists of two sets of monologues. The characters exist separately, in their own time-frames, on the same stage, and don't interact.
A chubby Godfather (Brett Marshall)
with curly hair - a cuddly figure - talks to an unseen baby. He's shy of mixing with the unseen people attending the Christening party, so retreats with a large glass of red wine to the nursery to deliver around 40 minutes of advice.
A very tall, very thin man (Craig Ian Smith) talks to the coffin of his dead Godfather for the balance of time.
The characters may be decades apart, with the Godfather alive in one scenario, dead in the other. Or they may be different lots of people, all in the present. The programme suggests one of these alternatives, but the play leaves it ambiguous. It doesn't matter. There are factual resonances between the two situations, but mainly the symmetry is about what the two men have in common - they are both damaged.
The Godfather's advice to the baby is the product of his own bitter discoveries about life - it points towards a closing up, an ending rather than beginning of life. The Godson's address to the coffin is about his own bitter discoveries, but gradually leads towards a future.
Present feels clever, with the advantages and disadvantages of cleverness. The structure of the play and the staging are technically impressive. Both performances are assured, and the actors superb. The lines are elegantly-written and come out well.
Unfortunately, the content of the speeches is mainly unoriginal, and uninteresting. Present is often boring - particulary in the Godchild's long repetition of a fairy tale. The structure of two monologues with no interaction adds to the tedium. There's a lot of craft on display, no spark.
Some watching the play may fall discreetly asleep, like the baby and corpse. But tastes vary a lot, and Present could be one for fans of Pinter and Beckett (and James Joyce).
Brett Marshall and Craig Ian Smith are both remarkably engaging, and the frustration of this piece is how stunning they could be together in something better. Each delivers a compelling performance, even if Present is a bit of a stinker.
Cast Credits: (alpha order): Brett Marshall - Godparent. Craig Ian Smith - Godchild.
Company Credits: Writers, Directors (alpha order) - Brett Marshall & Craig Ian Smith - Godchild. Designer - Jude Kerr. Company - Continuum. Thanks to: Michelle Bradford, Perfect Print, Hove; SE Skinner & Sons, Funeral Directors; Kath Perry, Brighton & Hove Arts Commission; Rhys Thomas; Gareth Farley; Karen Courquin; Keith Hanlon. Marlborough Theatre: Artistic Directors – Nicola Haydn & Eden Rivers.
END
John Park
reviewed Tuesday 16 May 06 / Marlborough Theatre
Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2009
