Review: THE CONFESSIONS, National Theatre
Photo credit: Christophe Raynaud de Lage
No stranger to the National Theatre stage, Alexander Zeldin returns, this time to the Lyttelton, with a new play inspired by his own memories and conversations with family and friends. Through this international collaboration of The Confessions, Zeldin not only delves into universal and timeless socio-political issues, but also brings us face to face with core questions about life itself, by examining the story of Alice who is, for all intents and purposes, an ordinary person.
We first meet Alice in 1943 Australia as she’s about to graduate from secondary school. Like most teenagers, she is not quite sure about what her future looks like yet and is therefore steered towards fulfilling the dreams her parents have for her, rather than discovering her own. During the next two hours, we follow Alice’s journey from 1943 all the way to 2021, as she fights against familial pressures, patriarchal expectations, gender roles, cycles of abuse (physical and emotional) and personal internal conflicts. Guiding us through this journey is an older, present-day narrator Alice, whose life now lies behind her rather than ahead.
Eryn Jean Norvill as younger Alice experiences a beautiful transformation on stage as her character continuously reinvents herself. All actors give strong performances, but Pamela Rabe’s superb multi-roling abilities stand out.
The play is a very insightful exploration of self-discovery and self-actualisation, and Zeldin’s virtuosity as a writer lies in the fact that he doesn’t shy away from the complexities of human relationships and choices, while still criticising problematic behaviours.
Acting also as a director in this production, Zeldin chooses to stage a very Brechtian-style production, where we are constantly reminded through narration, multi-roling, lighting and set design that we are watching a performance. The way that the illusion of reality disintegrates the further we get into the story is a particularly inspired choice and echoes Alice’s journey as she breaks free from the “perfect life” that she is expected to follow and, like in favourite painting, steps outside the frame.
While the play deals with universal topics that are, in one way or another, applicable and personal to all, and the production itself cannot be faulted in any way, it fails in the most part to engage us emotionally and not just intellectually. Perhaps, however, this is the intended effect since, after all, Brecht’s techniques aimed to stimulate a critical response rather than an emotional one.
In any case, The Confessions is a thought-provoking new play which holds a mirror up to the face of life itself and to what it means to actually succeed in it.
*** Three stars
Reviewed by: Erifyli Gigante
The Confessions plays in the Lyttelton Theatre at National Theatre until 4 November, with further information here.