MINIMALIST HUMANITY, Bond, Southwark Playhouse

HAVE I NONE: Edward Bond
Hidden Plot and Azi Eftekhari at Southwark Playhouse: BO 020 7620 3494
Runs: 1h10: no interval

Review: Ian Willox: 18th November 2002

Bond's play provides a stark focus for the essence of human relationships.
Edward Bond is, according to the press release, the most frequently performed dramatist in France with the single exception of Molière. By contrast, productions of his work in the UK are as common as hen's teeth these days. So HAVE I NONE is a must see for reasons of rarity alone. Happily there are also more audience friendly reasons.

The play is set in 2077. Homes, possessions and families have been stripped away. Sara and Jams live in a space bare of decoration and furnished with two chairs and a table. The unexpected and illegal arrival of Sara's long forgotten brother throws them into confusion. For a start where will he sit?

Bond has removed almost all the signifiers a dramatist can use to tell you about his characters and their circumstance. Yet in his hands this uprooted world provides a stark focus for the essence of how humans relate to each other. There is no custom or habit to hide behind.

That is not to say that HAVE I NONE is a sour dystopia (unlike a lot of Bond's earlier works). The arguments between Sara and Jams over who sat in what chair provide a pulsing vein of incredulous comedy which drives them to the final tragedy. This is a short, pungent, and funny piece of writing. I just wish there were more productions of Bond's work to compare it with.

Sara: Illona Linthwaite
Jams: Peter Marinker
Grit: Paul Cawley

Producer: Azi Eftekhari
Director: Bijan Sheibani
Designer: Paul Burgess
Lighting: Guy Kornetzki

2002-11-19 18:02:11