Mockingbird Theatre Company
Belco Arts
Until 22 August
Reviewed by Samara Purnell
“It’s all about the bit that’s missing, about what’s not there….”
Rachel wakes from a drunken blackout with blood on her head and no memory of what happened leading up to it. The woman Rachel has been watching through the train window on her commute to London is missing. And soon enough, suspicion will fall on her.
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| Morgan Heath-Williams as Rachel |
Many viewers of Mockingbird’s The Girl on the Train will have seen the 2016 movie, starring Emily Blunt, or read Paula Hawkin’s book. Conveniently, much like the main character of this play, I could only remember parts of what I’d seen and had mixed in bits from similar movies, so this was still to be a suspenseful night regarding the plot.
Rachel (Morgan Heath-Willians) maintains a strained relationship with ex-husband Tom (Robert Wearden), much to the annoyance of his new partner Anna (Sabrina Fu). Rachel has been reduced to an alcoholic, catching the train each day to London and living vicariously through the lives of others, especially Megan and Scott (Susie Todd and Timothy Cusack). When Megan disappears, Rachel becomes determined to get involved in solving the case, but continually raises the suspicion of Detective Gaskill (Paul Sweeney).
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| Paul Sweeney and Morgan Heath-Williams |
Strange coincidences are occurring and the rumours are swirling. The media gets involved and the pressure mounts. Tension rises between every relationship, as Rachel, the detective, Tom and Anna, even the psychologist (Ankush Singh Khanchi) have her questioning her own memory and reality. Will Rachel remember enough to resolve the mystery with the detective, or will she remain a suspect?
Director Chris Baldock, who is also credited with most of the creative aspects of the show, has cast an ensemble with actors new to the company (in its 30th production).
This is the first lead role for Heath-Williams, who is new to theatre acting, but a seasoned performer in other fields. She holds her own, maintaining good timing and an urgency in her interactions, giving a committed and sustained performance. Her wardrobe, lack of makeup and long, multi-toned hair, described by Tom as being unwashed did give the appearance of a woman struggling to get her life together, in the fog of amnesic intoxication and repressed grief, but lacked the nuance that perhaps she had not always been in this state.
Megan’s backstory unfolds in glimpses. Whatever her actions may have been, Todd presents her with poise, grace and polish. Her hair, nails and makeup are done, and she is dressed in a silk blouse and black pants. Todd gives a measured and mature performance, creating genuine shock, empathy and sadness in the audience.
Fu was well cast as the new wife, delivering organic meals and spitting words at Rachel with just the right amount of exasperation and control. Dressed neatly and on trend, she looked like a poster girl for Uniqlo. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the remainder of the cast, whose wardrobe would benefit from some attention to detail.
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| Sabrina Fu |
Singh Khanchi’s voice and presence is gentle and calm as he guides his clients through their therapy sessions. Meanwhile Cusack embodies a bewildered, slightly unhinged husband, wanting answers and Wearden manages to calmly and delicately balance the demands of the women in his life. Experienced actor Sweeney was aptly cast as the detective, his haphazard one-liners land well and he holds the line between authoritative and suggestible, stopping short of farce.
The small cast has varying degrees of theatre experience, but all perform their roles with aplomb, holding space for their characters and each other’s. The show is presented in the round, of sorts - an interesting layout which segments the audience into wedges between four short walkways, meeting in a small central sunken square.
It is deliberately set up to make the audience feel like voyeurs, observing other observers, and so close to the actors that we are literally sitting right next to them in the therapy room, on Scott’s couch, and with Rachel as she dances around her living room. We find ourselves fellow commuters on trains and trams, observing the actors and each other.
White sheets cover the whole area behind the seating so that projections and imagery can fly, or float past. Flashes of light and the sound of trains created a realistic feeling of travelling in a train carriage. At other times, Megan’s face looms over the action.
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| Timothy Cusack |
The actors shuffling items and walking across the set at times seems distracting except that they are intended to be just that - a realistic representation of how events unfold, the point being that we miss details, don’t see everything, our recall can change and there will be slight differences to someone else's.
Motherhood, grief, truth and perception, manipulations and ultimately violence by or against women are woven throughout The Girl on the Train and the acting and certain story threads are quite emotionally impactful.
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| Susie Todd and Timothy Cusack with Paul Sweeney in background |
With The Girl on the Train, Mockingbird Theatre delivers an immersive, intimate audience experience in this engaging and engrossing evening of theatre: A psychological thriller of infidelity, grief and mystery.
All photos by Chris Baldock
