ALL MY SONS. To 19 October.

Exeter

ALL MY SONS
by Arthur Miller

Northcott Theatre To 19 October 2002
Runs 2hr 10min One interval

TICKETS 01392 493493
Review Hazel Brown 3 October

Powerful story of love and the corrosive nature of guilt unfolds with few surprises.Arthur Miller’s play about profiteering in an aircraft manufacturing family business in America after World War II - involving the supply of faulty aircraft parts - still rings true today. Recent media stories of faulty British military equipment – melting boots and rifles that do not work in desert conditions – demonstrate its currency.

The head of this middle class family is Joe Keller, played by Peter Jonfield as an expansive man, joshing with the local kids, but hinting at the uncertainty in his soul by nervously jingling the small change in his pocket. This is a masterful performance, unravelling as his past inexorably catches up with him. His wife, Kate, refuses to believe that her son Larry, a pilot missing in action for two years, is dead. Sandra Duncan plays her as if on the edge of breakdown from the first moment she appears on stage, one point nervously snapping beans into a bowl. Her near hysteria throughout the play signals too clearly the cracks beneath the surface of this outwardly loving and successful family and blunts the slowly unrolling tragedy.

The innocent and ultimately most tragic figure is Ann, Larry’s former sweetheart. She is the daughter of Joe’s disgraced former partner, and she's invited back to the house as Chris, the younger Keller son, now loves and - despite strong opposition from his mother - wants to marry her. She is played with straightforward charm by Rebecca Santos, matched by a strong performance by Iain Fraser as Chris, the openly loyal and loving son. The other supporting characters are well played, with a particularly fine, bitchy performance by Sara Weymouth as the neighbouring doctor’s wife.

The majestic, white boarded house that forms the backdrop to Kit Surrey’s excellent set is well matched by Meg Surrey’s wonderful forties costumes. The actors’ American accents never falter, even when emotions run high, but the dénouement is ultimately no great surprise.

Dr Jim Bayliss: Steve Blount
Joe Keller: Peter Jonfield
Frank Lubey: Bill Nash
Sue Bayliss: Sara Weymouth
Lydia Lubey: Emma Stansfield
Chris Keller: Iain Fraser
Bert: Philip Green or Richard Sawyer
Kate Keller: Sandra Duncan
Ann Deever: Rebecca Santos
George Deever: Christopher Fox

Director: Ben Crocker
Designer: Kit Surrey
Costume: Meg Surrey
Lighting: Robert Ornbo
Voice coach: Tim Charrington

2002-10-10 09:47:54