TAKING CARE OF BABY. To 23 June.
London
TAKING CARE OF BABY
by Dennis Kelly
Hampstead Theatre To 23 June 2007
Mon-Sat 7.30pm Mat Sat 3pm
Audio-described 16 June 3pm
Captioned 19 June
Post-show discussion 19 June
Runs 2hr 30min One interval
TICKETS: 020 7722 9301
www.hampsteadtheatre.com
Review: Timothy Ramsden 13 June
By indirections finding directions out.
Cunning Dennis Kelly’s taken the vogue for social, documentary drama to investigate the identity of truth in this new play, enjoyed by Rod Dungate in Birmingham.
It seems to investigate the case of young mother Donna, imprisoned then freed over the suspected murder of her baby. A medical expert claims she has Leeman-Keatley Syndrome, an illness making people kill the most-loved entity in their life in disgust at the world’s suffering. The Appeal Judge who frees Donna doesn’t believe the Syndrome exists, but finds insufficient evidence to sustain a conviction.
Donna’s mixed-up, as are the adults around her. Mother Lynn’s an Independent whose principles disappear in political triumph; the doctor proves a suspect medic. He, like Donna’s husband, says things he doesn’t want quoted but quoted they are. Kelly’s calm voiceover explains why he asks questions as he does, to make a flowing script when his questions are edited out. When that finally does happens, what remains is incomprehensible – as meaningless as the Dumb Orator climaxing Ionesco’s The Chairs.
An opening message says the words are all taken from real sources, but have been edited. Several times the same message flows across the bank of monitors towering behind the characters, becoming increasingly mangled as it recurs. A stereotyped journalist takes us through redtop reports of Donna’s story, as mangled by the press. Do you believe what you read in the papers? Or what you see on TV?
Kelly carefully builds the evidence that what we are seeing is not what we should be getting, stretching credulity beyond breaking-point before you realise what’s happened. By revealing the panoply of earnest docu-theatre as capable of lying, he whips away theatrical trickery to reveal truth. By the end, the more the actors convince, the more they’re selling you a high-priced pup.
They all do it well, including Abigail Davies’ emotion-strewn Donna, Ellie Haddington’s conscientious-seeming mother and Christopher Ravenscroft’s initially calm, authoritative doctor. Anthony Clark’s direction is perfectly-pitched to maintain credibility long enough to show how much we accept as true merely because we’re told it’s the truth. And that’s something you can believe.
Donna McAuliffe: Abigail Davies
Lynn Barrie: Ellie Haddington
Mrs Millard/Woman/Waitress: Zoe Aldrich
Dr Millard/Old Man: Christopher Ravenscroft
Martin McAuliffe/Reporter/Man: Nick Sidi
Jim/Brian: Michael Bertenshaw
Director: Anthony Clark
Designer: Patrick Connellan
Lighting: James Farncombe
Sound: Dan Hoole
Video: Clive Meldrum
Assistant director: Noah Birksted-Breen
2007-06-14 00:49:22