Philip Ridley's latest offering, "Angry", is a series of six monologues ranging from stories of detached heads on dancefloors and black holes, to explorations of young romance in a deserted park and lovers escaping a burning city. Performed by Tyrone Huntley (Jesus Christ Superstar) and Georgie Henley (The Chronicles of Narnia), the collection is darkly comedic, unsettling, thoughtful - and yes, it is angry.
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| Image: Southwark Playhouse |
The actors take it in turns to perform, but what's interesting is that both actors have learned each monologue, and alternate who performs which from night to night. I imagine this creates an interesting exploration of the difference between the experiences of man and woman - and how this is perceived by an audience.
Indeed, in a post-show talk earlier in the run, Henley and Huntley commented that the audience's reaction to the first monologue differed depending on who performed it. The tititular monologue, "Angry", features the actor yelling and swearing at members of the audience, repeatedly asking questions and becoming more and more frustrated as they receive no answer. While Henley explained that sometimes audience members responded to her questions, Huntley noted that this never happened to him - interesting when you consider that Henley is a white woman, while Huntley is a black man.
While it appears from reviews that press night saw the "She follows him" edition of the play, I was there for "He follows her", meaning that Henley performed monologues one, three and five, while Huntley took on monologues two, four and six.
The arrangement is interesting to say the least. I found myself both wondering how the play would work had I seen it the other way around - whether I would experience it any differently, that is - while simultaneously finding it impossible to imagine it any other way. As it happens, my housemate saw the other version, "She follows him", and told me she felt exactly the same. To me, this is testament to great skill. The monologues are written to be gender-neutral, and were directed in such a way that they never felt as if they'd been swapped back and forth between the players night after night. The actors are slick and confident; it felt like this was how the show was always intended to be performed.
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| Georgie Henley (Image: Southwark Playhouse) |
And while some critics watching "She follows him" believed it to be Henley's show, to me it was all Huntley's - another indicator that the actors are both extraordinarily capable of living up to the other's talent, no matter which of the monologues they perform. I think the case of "owning" the show really came down to who performed the final monologue, "Air", the longest and most intense of the six. While I'll admit I didn't totally 'get' each monologue, and some felt surprisingly short, I found myself almost wishing that "Air" was its own fully fledged piece.
A comment on the refugee crisis, the monologue jumps back and forth between the character falling in love and building their life, and having it come crashing down around them as their city is destroyed by war. Huntley performs with astounding skill and physicality, deftly leaping between the giddy romance and the horrors he later faces as he fights for his life, and constructing all manner of different characters throughout the tale with incredible ease. The piece is touching and intense, and makes for a stunning finish.
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| Tyrone Huntley (Image: Southwark Playhouse) |
Though somewhat confusing in parts - this feels less like a complete show and more like a series of individual pieces in development - I loved Angry. It made me think in ways I hadn't before, which, after all, is what theatre is all about, and Huntley and Henley are certainly two of the most engaging actors I've seen on a London stage.
With a unique design by James Donnelly and Cassie Mitchell (the play is performed in the round, with the actors pacing around a lowered, seemingly mirrored pit while a grid of neon lights flicker above them), and fresh direction from Max Lindsay, it's something different - and worth a watch.
