DOUBLE INDEMNITY till 3 April
Nottingham
DOUBLE INDEMNITY: James M. Cain adapted by David Joss Buckley: Nottingham Playhouse
Tkts: 0115 9419419. (www.nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk)
Runs: 2h 25m: one interval: till 3rd April: 7.45pm, matinees Sat 27th 14.30pm, Thurs 1 April 13.30
Review: Jen Mitchell: 16th March 2004
Sex and money serve to be a deadly combination in this adaptation of James M Cain's classic 1930s thriller.
The femme fatale figure of Phyllis Nirdlinger proves irresistible to the hapless Walter Huff, insurance salesman and run of the mill kind of guy. Phyllis is a fascinating and seductively dangerous woman who, from her first meeting with Huff, begins to weave her web of temptation around him, preying on his loneliness and physical desires.
Falling for her charms and flattery yet at the same time driven by his own passion and greed, the two embark on their affair, clearly instigated by Phyllis. Somewhat alien to the modern audience, Huff (Hywel Simons) clearly demonstrates the urgency of his desires whilst both characters remain fully clothed, giving a smouldering sexuality to the whole piece. Once involved, the boundaries between the two characters blur. Huff formulates the plan; Phyllis follows instructions. It is no longer clear who is in control but as the tension mounts and the cracks in the relationship begin to show it is clear somebody is going to double-cross or be double-crossed.
The use of the characters as narrators is employed skilfully, past tense changes to present, until the point where they meet the point at which the play began. But there is more to come, at this point the narration has to end and we are in the present for the almost inevitable conclusion for two characters that have no route to redemption.
Barton Keyes, the tenacious insurance investigator ironically informs Huff of the three factors required to commit the perfect murder and it is Barton Keyes who is the only character capable of untangling the increasingly complex web of relationships, clouded by smokescreens, to reach the truth. A single-minded man who, by his own admission, doesn't like many people, his disappointment and disgust at the actions of Huff is palpable.
Theatricality is subtly employed throughout; ghostly figures appear to float across the black stage, their relevance not revealed to those who don't know the piece until the conclusion, as the net tightens around the main characters.
Walter Huff: Hywel Simons
Phyllis Nirdlinger: Lucy Cohu
Barton Keyes: Lou Hirsch
Herbert Nirdlinger: Robin Bowerman
Norton: Trevor White
Jackson: Chris Burdett
Lola Nirdlinger: Melissa Simpson
Belle/Violet Nirdlinger: Elaine Donnelly
Violet Nirdlinger's Wards: Laura Mansfield, Hannah Wilson, Sareena Samra
Director: Giles Croft
Designer: Mark Bailey
Lighting Designer: Nick Beadle
Choreographer/Video Director/Composer: Matthew Bugg
Video Designer: Kit Lane
2004-03-19 09:12:06