| The "Wizard" Goes to Asia |
The Wizard the Goat and The Man Who Won the War |
| Written by D J Britton, Performed by Richard Elfyn , Mochta Riady Auditorium, Singapore Management University. , December 4, 2012 |
English language-theatre in Singapore has a short but important history of one-woman or one-man shows, beginning with Emily of Emerald Hill by Stella Kon (1985), followed by two fine monologues by Kuo Paokun, The Coffin Is Too Big For The Hole and No Parking On Odd Days.For many in the audience, The Wizard, the Goat and the Man Who Won the War was a welcome revisiting of this enduring form of minimalist theatre. Before the performance, D.J. Britton apologised for the theatrical limitations of the auditorium, usually used for academic purposes. There was no need. The eminent Welsh actor Richard Elfyn delivered a rich, multi-layered and nuanced performance transporting the audience into a day in the life of David Lloyd George, the Liberal Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1916-22. The one-hour play begins on a beach in Antibes, France in 1938, where Lloyd George has brought his wife Margaret Owen to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. But unknown to her, Frances Stevenson, Lloyd George’s mistress of 25 years, (and this is just one of the many delicious ironies of the play) was already there. He has therefore to juggle their entrances and exits. The presence of Winston Churchill in Antibes reminds the audience of Lloyd George’s public life. He occupied high political office over crucial periods in European history. The liberal reforms he introduced as a cabinet minister (1906-16) earned him the nickname the Welsh Wizard (as in the play’s title). The ‘Goat’ refers to his sexual reputation and the ‘Man Who Won the War’ marks his achievements during the First World War. The play explores the fine line between the public and private life of Lloyd George. What works particularly well are the transitions between the apparent objectivity of his story-telling and his growing self-delusion as he gives his account of people and events. Britton's dramatic devices moves seamlessly from direct address to the sea ( represented by the audience), to short dialogues between DLG and the people in his life, including Margaret, Frances, the hotel manager and others, conducted in English, French and Welsh or a mix of them. Throughout, there are some brilliant lines ( I especially liked ‘I have swum in the waters of women so long…’ ). The one-line humour had the audience in stitches, but there were moments of sadness too, particularly when he mourns his daughter, Mair, who died of appendicitis. The few on-stage objects become important, sometimes symbolic: The Union Jack towel that entirely covers him at the start of the play; the walking stick which morphs into a golf club; the boots and socks signifying his modest beginning. Myth -- for example the reference to his admirers anointing him as King Arthur returning -- adds to the poignancy. On top of this, Elfyn’s Lloyd George dances and sings, activity so important in a form like this, complementing the talking, brilliant though it is. Elfyn’s sterling performance is the result of the process of collaboration between himself and the writer D.J.Britton, who moved to Wales from Australia and now leads Dramatic Writing programmes at Swansea University. Great friends, Britton and Elfyn worked closely to fine-tune the play-performance over two years, and the process is still ongoing. During the Q-and-A that followed the performance, a young Singaporean woman showed her appreciation when she said that she did not need to know that DLG was an important politician; what impressed her most was the moving portrait of a very human figure attempting to justify his actions when looking back. She spoke for most in the audience, for the dominant feeling at the end of the performance was, to quote DLG himself in a lucid moment of self-awareness: ' The trouble is, I don't feel much like a world statesman with a glittering career. I feel more like an old man standing foolishly on an empty beach with the wrong towel.' This production reminds us of the value of the solo drama form, just how good it can be, both play and performance. It deserves repeated stagings. |
Reviewed by: Robert Yeo |
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