| Beautiful and mesmerising |
Peter Gill |
| Sherman Cymru- Small Change , Sherman Theatre Cardiff , March 31, 2009 |
I was surprised and delighted to find that Small Change is a beautiful and mesmerising play. I say surprised because two previous encounters with Peter Gill’s play had left me with a strong feeling of boredom and ennui. In her first major production, recently appointed Associate Director, Amy Hodge demonstrates that she has a very fine understanding of story telling and how to get the most out of her actors. Life was very tough for a great many people in the years following the Second World War. The Driscolls and the Hartes living in one of those lines of small terraced houses near the docks in East Cardiff were typical. The menfolk, demoralised and disillusioned spent little time in the house leaving the women on their own to make the best of things. Neighbours Mrs Harte and Mrs Driscoll were comrades in arms in this hard daily battle to keep life on an even keel. They shared and supported one another in their hum-drum visionless existence. They also as mothers shared an intense love for their sons, Vincent and Gerald. The two boys living side by side enjoyed many adventures, mooching off school, swimming in the docks and in the hard concrete lined council pool that frequently peeled the skin off their knees. But they knew they were well loved and enjoyed each others company. Patrick Burnier’s set design exquisitely recreates the pre-barrage mud flats of Cardiff Bay and along with Emma Chapman’s lighting and the subtle sound design of Adrienne Quartly the greyness of life’s atmosphere is perfectly caught. Through this bleakness and through Gill’s mastery of words and the rhythm of his writing emerges a strong sense of human character and determination. But the boys grow up and the rigours of life catch up with their mothers. Lisa Palfrey as Mrs Driscoll paints us an extraordinary and totally captivating image of a woman struggling her way through the toils of everyday life only to become overwhelmed by them. Her next door neighbour, Mrs Harte is given an equally wonderful and strong performance by Helen Griffin who with her cross-over pinafore recreates the doughty and caring mam that many of us remember so clearly. Much of the revealing dialogue of the play is shared between them. In one scene in particular the strength and intimacy of the arena stage is perfectly demonstrated, they talk and laugh with a very deep understanding and sincerity, then they dance. They so capture our sympathy and emotions that they could be in large close-up on a huge cinema screen. Two very rewarding bravura performances. For two young actors to have to play opposite two of Wales’ finest leading ladies could be quite daunting. Kenny Doughty and Ifon Meredith’s job is made even more difficult as most of their early lines are not to each other but reflective and nostalgic scene painting direct to the audience. Doughty needs to take this more slowly and give time for his words to penetrate into the minds of the spectators, his occasional effeminate whisper does little to help the character he creates, the little-boys gesture they both use are an unnecessary distraction. But in the closing moments of the play, when they return home as grown men and struggle to discover how much they should seek to recreate their earlier relationship they are much stronger and effective, bringing a strong close to this affecting and very effective production. |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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