Review: MAKESHIFTS AND REALITIES, Finborough Theatre

Photo credit: Carla Joy Evans

As part of their ReDiscovered season, the Finborough Theatre is offering the chance to see a triple bill production dealing with issues of patriarchal society and the mistreating of women, in one of the twentieth century’s most striking and controversial dramatic debuts, and the first London showing for 100 years. 

Alex Marker’s set design immediately sends us back in time with a comforting homely ambience, only emphasised by music and the hum of chatter from an intimate crowd as they fill their seats, like stepping into another world, or rather, a part of another world being stripped from its home so that we may witness its ups and downs and twists and turns and study them like a lesson, with fluid and seamless transitions assisted by Jonathan Simpson’s lighting.

Undeniably one of the best things about theatre is when the set becomes like its own character, somehow representing the overall themes and concept of the show all at once, but also working with the actors from scene to scene for calm and effect in its beauty and storytelling power. This intricate, imaginative set absolutely achieves this, allowing a single room to - in fact - be three different rooms, in three different places, in three different moments in time.

The next thing you know, the stage fills with ghosts, a flashback, a real glimpse into life. To them, everything is quite real but we sit with the silent knowledge of all the time that has passed as we grieve for the way people, for the way women, used to live, sprinkled with moments of sweet sympathy because, quite simply, they have no clue of the years to come. 

This is a show that can awaken you to the magic of theatre. There is not a still moment. A cast of naturally talented performers with impressive experience let every pause and breath have meaning, to create a space where the unsaid is just as loud as the said and the audience is kept stimulated throughout, just as you should be when experiencing art.

There is substance and intention built into every choice. Through every relatable, conversational piece of dialogue, there is something behind it all and when Farokh Soltani’s sound design is added, it is subtle, well thought out and beautifully effective.

The production is largely made by the brilliant contrast in characters from perspectives of class, gender and ideals and the way they choose to demonstrate distribution of power, all the while remaining clearly careful of the sensitivity and seriousness of what they are dealing with. 

Director Melissa Dunne utilises the talented actors at her disposal extremely well, as they share the space with a working attitude of give and take and push and pull. From their designed voices and impressive projection to the way they hold their characters in their posture, we see a spectrum of completely different personalities, in some cases from the same performer.

From the start of the performance, Poppy Allen-Quarmby’s is a face that the eyes cannot help but land on, becoming a pleasing and familiar face as we are guided through multiple storylines. Her characters flow through her, in her voice, in her body, in her eyes as, with subtle emotional control, she keeps the crowd on the tip of her finger. 

Eyes cannot help but drift to the beautiful costume design by Carla Joy Evans, creating stunning silhouettes and only adding to the ambience. Beth Lilly literally transforms in every way from character to character. From blasé confidence and stature to instantly lovable innocence, her presence is undeniable. 

Phillipa is natural and full of life in all its complexities and an overflow of emotions from Akshay Sharan glistens the eyes and brings an interval of subtle smiles at fellow spectators, also collecting the beginnings of tears in pools on their fingertips and feeling a lingering powerful solicitude.   

Joe Eyre makes an epic impression from his first steps on stage, featuring a subtle modernity to the character he becomes casualty in this observation on society, with animated bravado and expert delivery that commands the stage almost as much as it does the female characters of the story. He brings with him a notable uproar of laughter and gossipy gasps from crowd amidst drips of silent tension.

As the show goes on, and the nature of the production brings yet another clean slate, it runs the risk of losing momentum. Similarly, Andrew Hawkins takes some time to find his character but once he does, gives the feel of a classic performer with some striking presence. 

Suzan Sylvester is warm and heartbreaking simultaneously, with a kind of motherly touch that puts the crowd at ease. Her eyes and smile hold a secret weapon in her powerful performance through inner and outer conflicts.

As the final storyline slowly builds and implicitly lets us in on some secrets, we get that wonderful experience of slow realisation, that unmatched feeling once you have unearthed that new level. 

Overlooking some frequent, but overall forgivable, stumbling over words, the show is a constant and consistent flowing wave, with the specialty of the show sitting at those moments at the peak-height of drama.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Louisa Clarke

Makeshifts and Realities plays at London’s Finborough Theatre until 2 September, with further information here.