THE WINDMILL. To 14 February.

London

THE WINDMILL
by Gloria Tessler

Union Theatre To 14 February 2004
Tue-Sat 7.30pm
Runs 2hr 10min One interval

TICKETS: 020 7261 9876
Review: Timothy Ramsden 29 January

Explosive material which, like the memorial candle one character tries to light, fails to ignite.Nazi concentration camps, like atomic bombs and AIDS, are dangerous ground for a dramatist. Each matter generates such a force, it's easy for them to be exploited as dramatic temperature raisers. Gloria Tessler's account of her forebear artist Peter Kien's imprisonment at Terezin a staging-post to death at Auschwitz, - is clearly heartfelt and well-researched. The trouble is, it doesn't offer much dramatic heat.

Everything seems to have been decided in advance; there are no surprises or significant conflicts, and few developments. The story of Peter and his women plods along, propped on dramatic clichés. Jealous women, wife and lover, in Terezin argue their feelings at soap-opera level. The developing romance between Peter and Ruth is a passionless affair. Hardly surprising - neither script nor Ben De Wynter's tepid production seem to encourage the technically competent performers beyond sketchy celluloid shorthand when it comes to characterisation.

The title sums up the problem. A windmill apparently signifies something the more dangerous because it seems harmless. The metaphor's stated, then forgotten. All sorts of intriguing questions are begged does an artist's suffering affect judgement of their work's value; how do you survive, as Peter did for several years, by working for your captors while keeping your integrity.

Serving the Nazi's demands by day, Peter collaborated secretly with composer Victor Ullman on an opera, The Emperor of Atlantis which savaged the deadly Nazi regime.

But no answers are given. The opera's plot is described. But we're never taken into the heart of the feelings which created it. Everything's served up as a cold platter. And that's true throughout. Clearly it matters to its writer. It may resonate within the consciousness of others personally close to such experiences. But there's nothing to draw anyone else into the word of this young artist.

What, for example, would we say of his philandering under his wife's nose, if these people had been free? The question's implied at the start. The situation's presented near the end. But nothing's explored, and the only fire and life comes from the two musicians perched at the side.

Peter Kien: Aidan Crowley
Helga/Ruth: Susan Travers
Tour Guide/Young Helga: Charlotte Marisa-Moore
Gina: Lisa Rose
Ilse: Belinda Peters
Kathe: Sinned Jons

Director: Ben De Wynter
Lighting: Steve Miller
Composer/Pianist: Russell Hepplewhite
Cellist: Rebecca Hewes

2004-01-30 06:51:15