Performed by Craig Alexander and Den
Hanrahan
Directed by Shelley Higgs – Designed
by Imogen Keen
Lighting designed by James Tighe and
operated by William Malan
Camera Operated by Liam Budge –
Vision mixed by Kyle Sheedy
Composition and sound design by Den
Hanrahan
Live-streamed by The Street Theatre –
5th – 7th June 2020
Reviewed by Bill Stephens
One of the
surprising outcomes of Covid-19 has been the rush by performing artists and creatives
to embrace possibilities offered by new technology to retain audiences locked
out of their theatres as the result of coronavirus restrictions. Some theatres
and theatre companies have delved into their archives to offer free screenings
of archival videos of previous productions. Television screens are awash with
variety shows offering singers, dancers and musicians earnestly exhibiting
their skills from their lounge-rooms, with widely varying degrees of success.
Most of these performances are for free, but there are some which hopefully
request payment.
The Street
Theatre in Canberra has gone one step further, by offering three performances
of Conor McPherson’s one-person play, St. Nicholas, produced expressly for
streaming live to a paying audience. The play is performed live, in real-time,
in an empty theatre, to an audience which has chosen which performance it will
view in the convenience and comfort of its own home. The ninety minute play is
presented with an eight minute comfort break interval mid-way.
While some
might question the choice of play for this experiment, essentially a dense 90
minute monologue by an unlikeable, hopelessly jaundiced theatre critic, who
mid-way through, becomes involved
with vampires, the play none-the-less
provides an excellent vehicle for director, Shelley Hicks and her actor and
creatives, to explore a wide range of ideas both emotional and technical. However,
sometimes, too many ideas for the good of the play.
Often very
handsome to look at, and for the most part filmed in unforgiving close-up, the
production is heavy on atmosphere. Imogen Keen has provided an excellent,
textured setting, suggesting some sort of work shed. Unfortunately,
particularly in the second act, it competes with the verbal descriptions of the
environments described by the actor, leaving the audience to puzzle over the
character’s whereabouts.
Throughout,
the actor constantly moves through deep shadows, out of focus scenes filmed
through lighted candles and swinging light bulbs, with the constant sound of
heavy heart-beats in the second act, all meant to create a foreboding
atmosphere. A moody guitar-based electronic soundscape, played live throughout by
Den Hanrahan, punctuates almost every statement. This is interesting for a
while, but ultimately irritating in its predictability, finally, inexorably
slowing the pace of the production, and sapping it of any tension.
Craig
Alexander is an accomplished actor, and this role as the critic, provides him
with excellent opportunities to display his range. However, his performance is
pitched at stage level, and filmed in close-up, as it is here, his technique is
always evident, appearing as a performance rather than a character, so that the
interest in this performance lies in watching his choices, rather than being
absorbed in his characterisation.
Perhaps it’s
more a fault of the writing than the acting, but because the critic is such an
unrelentingly loathsome character, it is difficult to maintain interest in him
for the duration of the play, providing a challenge for the actor, to seduce
the audience into being interested in him despite his flaws. Saddled with an
unreliable Irish accent, and enthusiastic technical experimentation, Alexander
had an uphill battle.
No doubt
other audiences will experience different nuances during the performances to
come, for each streamed performance will be subtly different. The Street
Theatre is to be applauded for its courage in pushing the boundaries with this
fascinating experiment. While not replacing the experience of sitting in a
theatre for a performance it certainly suggests there may be a viable
alternative available for a new audience not able to get to a theatre.