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A Dickens of a classic show
Pip (Taylor Jay-Davies) and the mortally wounded Magwitch (Chris Ellison) fail in their escape surrounded by their captors. Pictures: Alastair Muir Great Expectations The New Alexandra Theatre **** THIS sumptuous production of one of
Charles Dicken's most loved novels is a fitting tribute for the writer's
bicentenary year. Writer Jo Clifford has done a great job in
compressing the story down to two hours 15 minutes missing out all the
sidelines and sub-plots to leave us just with the story of the orphan
Pip, the fabulously rich but mad as a hatter Miss Havisham and her
daughter Estella. There is a downside to this Great Expectations-
lite in that some of the secondary characters such as the ingratiating
Wopsle, (James Vaughan) the heartless lawyer Jaggers (Jack Ellis) and
even Mrs Jo (Isabelle Joss) are reduced to two dimensional cut outs from
a Hogarth cartoon – but that is the price paid to avoid turning the
whole thing into Wagnerian length. And despite having little meat on the bones the
minor characters make a larger than life impact with one particularly
poignant scene when Jaggers tells Pip how he entered the profession of
law to make a difference and help people – and after watching child
after child bred to hang now does no more and no less then
he is paid to do. Paula Wilcox is unrecognisable as the barmy
spinster Miss Havisham and her superb performance culminates in a truly
spectacular death by fire – with real, towering flames!
Director Graham McLaren uses Robin People's
single set, Miss Havisham's once spectacular and now faded and crumbling
drawing room, to good effect with a fallen picture providing an extra
entrance, shadowy figures behind a huge mirror and a large dining table
which acts as a second stage along with characters mounting and speaking
atop assorted furniture and the mantelpiece. When the flickering candles are on we are with
Miss Havisham, when they are off it could be Joe's forge, London streets
or the marshes of Kent. It is up to the audience, aided by sound effects
and lighting to fill in the scenery. The adaptation uses two Pips. Pip
the man (Paul Nivison) is first the narrator then the watcher in the
background as we watch the life of Young Pip, played by the excellent
Taylor Jay-Davies, unfold. His love for Estella, played haughtily and
beautifully heartlessly by Grace Rowe, is half the plot and the reason
Pip is so desperate to be a gentleman. Estella's inability to love or
care is the other half as we follow a doomed romance. Chris Ellison, taking a break from being a copper
in The Bill to join the criminal classes as Magwitch, is truly sinister
as the escaped convict but by the time he dies in his cell – cheating
the gallows in the process – we feel quite sorry for him. Magwitch, and his secret funding, has perhaps the
biggest influence on Pip's life but it is a close run thing with
blacksmith Joe in the background. Steve North gives the labouring
artisan a real human touch with his stuttering attempts at mixing with
gentlemen and his affection for Pip. Clifford has kept the essential story with not
too much left as a distraction from the central story of Pip's coming of
age and thwarted love and although purists might wonder where the flesh
of the book has gone she has kept the essence of Great Expectations,
which is no mean feat, and the 15 strong cast have told the tale well. Roger Clarke And in expectation . . . THIS remarkable production of Charles
Dickens' classic story, cleverly adapted by Jo Clifford, probably
exceeds the expectations of many people in the audience. Even before the cast arrive on stage, Robin
Peoples' stunning set immediately propels the audience into the action
as they gaze at the cobweb-festooned living room in the home of wealthy
and eccentric Miss Havisham who, years after being jilted, still wears
her faded wedding dress. Then the extraordinary range of characters start
to appear, sometimes hopping onto the table where her crumbling wedding
cake stands, occasionally speaking from atop other pieces of furniture
and even, in one case, strolling along the huge mantelpiece. Sounds bizarre, but it works, and there is a
spectacular scene with leaping flames when the bitter woman sets fire to
her home. Paula Wilcox impresses as Miss Havisham who
adopts young Estella and raises her to become a beautiful woman coldly
breaking men's hearts as revenge. A superb performance, too, from Taylor
Jay-Davies as young orphan Pip, wrongly believing Miss Havisham is his
benefactor when he becomes a gentleman hoping to win the love of Estella
(Grace Rowe). Chris Ellison is a suitably menacing Magwitch, the scary
convict never forgetting the kindness he received from the lad when on
the run, and there are fine contributions from Paul Nivison (Adult Pip),
James Vaughan (Wopsle), Steve North (Joe Gargery), Isabelle Joss (Mrs
Joe, Sarah Pocket and Molly) and Jack Ellis (Jaggers). Directed by Graham McLaren, Great Expectations
is part of the Dickens bicentenary celebrations. To 13.10.12 Paul Marston
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