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The Shawshank Redemption
Derby Theatre
**** THE act of redemption is described as the
action of regaining or gaining possession of something. Considering the huge legacy of the Oscar winning
film Shawshank, redeeming it for a stage adaption might have appeared an
impossible task for Owen O’Neill and Dave Johns who adapted the original
Steven King novella back in 2009. The film version built upon the strong foundation
of the original, turning it into a timeless and well-crafted work.
Bringing this story to the stage needed the same open mind in making it
work for a different medium. Whilst the movie has a greater scope for
detail the stage adaption, even after a complete rewrite in 2013, still
follows the film version but makes no attempt to redesign the delivery
of important plot points that made the film so successful. The key thing missing is a sense of time. The
story focuseson a former banker, Andy Dufresne, serving a double life
sentence for the murder of his wife and her lover. Whilst protesting his
innocence, he forms a friendship with fellow inmate Red who helps him
adjust to the trauma of prison life. Andy’s accounting skills are freely enlisted by
the corrupt Warden Stammas and whilst working for him, Andy uses his
brain to beat the brawn of the prison system. All of this takes place
over many years but other than Red acting as a historical narrator,
there is no sense of the slow pace and resolve of Andy’s plot to escape
and his growing dedication to his lifer friend Red. There is an attempt to include more brutality in
the stage version but the effects of this seem too quickly forgotten.
Even after a brutal gang rape, Andy is seen to be quite content in the
next scene as if it’s all been forgotten. Likewise after a brutal
beating where he is struck many times in the face, he appears minutes
later looking fine with only a bandaged arm. To not make these things
relevant in some way is an oversight. The story is still a good prison tale though and
in this there r
Ben Onwukwe is the central figure of Red,
narrator and friend to Andy. Ben has had a long stage career with roles
at the RSC and the Royal Court Theatre and is no stranger to prime time
TV. He does a powerful job of portraying this confident but complex
character resigned to his sentence for committing triple murders Paul Nicholls is in the pivotal role of Andy.
Despite his long TV experience his portrayal of the growing desperation
of an incarcerated man pleading his innocence felt a little too casual.
By the second act he began to open up emotionally but throughout you
never feel his increasing frustration to break out or that he is
scheming in anyway. This casual approach works well in the film but
needs more weight to convey it onstage. Andy’s clever escape is hatched while in the free
employ of the mean Warden Stammas. Jack Ellis takes on the role,
bringing a cool blend of authority and corruption all within his
penchant for quoting the bible and his misguided view of Christianity.
Unfortunately we never get to see his final comeuppance, other than him
discovering an empty ledger book left behind in Andy’s cell. The reveal
of his downfall is left to a few lines of dialogue by the other inmates
and so the twist of the payback Andy delivers that is so effective in
the film, here is totally underplayed. In addition there were strong support
performances which came with Jeff Alexander as Bogs Diamond and Sean
Croke as Rooster who were `The Sisters’, a brutal duo who sexually and
physically terrorise the prison inmates. New inmate Tommy Williams
injects a youthful burst of gutsy energy and was played by Nicholas
Banks. His demise seems to be the last straw for Andy but again the
opportunity to show it with any degree of passion in the context of the
plot is missed. Even so, it’s still a great tale of hope and
lasting friendship and Director David Esbjornson connects the action
effectively. However if you have seen and felt the impact of the film
you will need to forgive the shortcomings of the stage and simply
appreciate the fine storytelling and skillful performances as ultimately
it fails to engage you in the same way. For anyone unfamiliar with the
tale you have the benefit of it being an evening of witnessing the
entertaining twists within a celebrated classic Steven King story. If
you have already read the book and seen the film you may be killing time
yourself, but can be justifiably content and satisfied to have now
completed the trio. To 29-10-16 Jeff Grant 24-10-16
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emains
some great things that do work .The claustrophobic setting of the
Shawshank State Penitentiary is felt by the limitations of the stage and
well thought out lighting manipulates the set from outdoors to indoors,
and into the prison yard, then to cell spaces. Along with this are some
outstanding performances.