Review: ENTERTAINING MR SLOANE, Young Vic
Photo credit: Ellie Kurttz
Arriving at the Young Vic for this in-the-round production of Joe Orton’s 1964 play Entertaining Mr Sloane, we were impressed by the sight of Peter Mcintosh’s detailed set. Above a circular carpet that sets the period well, hangs the contents of the rubbish dump which forms the location for the house in the play (and including the coffin from Loot and other Orton links). The revolving stage also appears to be built on a mountain of rubbish, and the only furniture in the flat is greyed out and insignificant, almost merging with the surrounding rubbish. It’s a striking beginning to an intelligent rethink of this deceptively difficult play.
Nadia Fall has directed with a sharp understanding of the dynamic in the play, especially that between the three family members: brother, sister and father. In these roles, she has cast actors who have not just an Orton-esque ability to suggest the secrets under the façade, but who also convince as members of the same dysfunctional family. Her programme note is astute, seeing Orton as mocking “faux civility” and is all about the “pulling off of masks.” She addresses the more problematic sections of the text, redolent of 1960s attitude to race and gender head on, and also undercuts them by her casting of the actor playing Sloane. We also see him out clubbing at the beginning of Act 2; thrillingly staged but perhaps unnecessary in a play which is all about the enclosed world of Kath’s flat. The metaphorical staging of the end of the play is perhaps more obvious than it needs to be too; we know this young man will be shared.
Jordan Stephens, in his stage debut, does not have the menace of some previous performers in the role, neither does he project the dangerous allure. In many ways, he is a modern interloper, always trying to escape the situation and frozen in shafts of light as he tries to do so. It’s an interesting take, and casting an actor of colour certainly highlights some of the more racist views in the text, but some of the feel of underlying violence is missing. When violence does occur, however, it is shocking and realistic (fight direction by Haruka Karoda), with clever use of blackouts.
That menace is certainly there in Daniel Cerquiera’s Ed, a man whose past and proclivities is perhaps more shocking now than it was in the 1960s. His casual warning to Sloane that he wants him around but only for a few years is chilling in the suggestion that he will then transfer his affections to the next young man who comes along. His uneasy relationship with sister and father is deftly indicated, and Christopher Fairbank is a wholly convincing Kemp too, keeper of the secrets of this troubled household. He may be almost blind but he sees his son and daughter for what they are.
The central performance in the play, as always, is that of Kath, with Tamzin Outhwaite a more than worthy successor to the likes of Barbara Windsor, Sheila Hancock and Beryl Reid. It’s a different take on the role however, as befits the production, and she presents a more vulnerable and troubled Kath than we have sometimes seen in the past. She also highlights all of the humour, ghastly though much of it is, and this is a very funny production despite the subject matter.
The Young Vic production of Entertaining Mr Sloane is an excellent opening to the new season and a fascinating re-examination of a troubling yet unforgettable play that is understood anew through a contemporary lens.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Chris Abbott
Entertaining Mr Sloane plays at London’s Young Vic Theatre until 8 November, with further info here.
