REVIEWS REVIEWS
Sharman Macdonald's new play "The Girl With Red Hair" tells the story of a small Scottish seaside community coping with the death of one of their number, a young woman named Roslyn. The characters reflect a cross-section of the community: there's a pair of elderly women, a middle-aged inn-owner and her customer, a young couple and two teenage friends. The girl died a year before. All of the characters knew her in some way, and her death has touched each of their lives, making them consider their own more sharply.
The most striking thing about this production is the seaside town set. Upstage right is an old inn with a veranda outside, which looks over the beach. Upstage left is the flat roof of a house that the teenagers sit on, watching the world go by. Below them is the town cemetery, in which lies the girl's grave. The entire thing is utterly realistic, even down to the stray stones and branches on the beach. It is also solid and well-made, without the creakiness or wobbliness normally associated with theatre sets. Hampstead Theatre is not enormous, but Robin Don's design manages to fit an awful lot into the stage space without making it look cramped. Most plays these days have very bare staging, often due to the financial constraints on theatre. A play's set design is commonly little more than a few chairs and a table. It's a refreshing change for a drama to have an elaborate, realistic set.
Gerry Jenkinson's lighting design bathes the stage in a warm orange glow, making the location look more like the Mediterranean than the Scottish coast. Coupled with the Spanish sounding guitar music of Tom Zwitserlood's sound design, the only thing to confirm that the play isn't set in Spain is the cast's Scottish accents.
The design is strong, as are the performances. Patricia Kerrigan turns in an absorbingly subtle performance as the dead girl's mother, numbed by grief. She doesn't have many lines, but her longing stares over the empty sea speak volumes more about her pain. Sandra Voe and Sheila Reid provide some lighter relief as the two nattering old women, reminiscing together and sniping at one another.
The problem is the play itself, it lacks any sort of plot. The characters sit together in their pairs and talk, but nothing actually happens. The dialogue is realistic and at times, amusing, but like real life, doesn't make any real point. Although the actors are all very easy on the ear and easy on the eye, after the first forty minutes it becomes obvious that nothing is going to happen. As the play's pace matches the languid summer sun of its setting, it gets rather soporific to watch. © RW
“The Girl with Red Hair” is at the Hampstead Theatre London on the 23rd March to the 16th April, 2005.
Is there an Air Conditioning certificate prominently displayed in your theatre foyer stating the date of manufacture of the appliance and when the system was last inspected and serviced - if not, complain to the theatre management.
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