Akos Armont and John Gaden in A Life in the Theatre. Image via Darlinghurst Theatre Company.
This early Mamet play, A Life in the Theatre, is a love letter to the theatre. It is at times very funny at other times extremely moving. Mamet uses The Theatre as a metaphor for life and it is a captivating portrayal of artists at work.
Stage veteran Robert (John Gaden) and young would-be major star John (Akos Armont) have previously worked on numerous plays together and have become more than familiar with each other, but their lives do not intersect outside the theatre – the generation gap is definitely an elephant in the room. John respects Robert but is considerably younger. John’s star is rising and he has developed a following and garnered critical praise – he has little time for Robert’s old school pedantic advice and superstitions.
There are some great comic scenes in A Life in the Theatre – wardrobe malfunction, a prop malfunction in the operating room scene.There are lots of quick costume changes as they perform roles ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous – pastiches of old chestnuts such as shipwrecked mariners, earnest Russian gentry, a Shakespearean play, surgeons and trapped men in a trench in WW1 for example (and not forgetting the French barricade scene).
The set is designed to be with the ‘stage’ at the back so we see the cast playing the scenes of their touring shows with their backs to us. The ‘show’ is visible on the backstage monitors. The ‘auditorium ‘ is the Eternity’s heritage dome. At times, we the real audience become the mirror that Robert and John use.
Music ranges from cool jazz to reworkings of Bizet’s Carmen among other things. Lighting by Christopher Page is dynamic and atmospheric. Under Dallimore’s loving direction the play is excellently paced and fluid, although the many frantic tightly choreographed costume changes required on stage do at times break the mood a bit. The play shows fragmented views of the often rather crazy moments commonly experienced by those who work in the theatre – both awkward and golden – but always honest and relevant.
Theatre legend John Gaden as Robert was magnificent in a finely nuanced performance. He is charismatic as the vain older, garrulous actor with a glorious voice whose life is the theatre is the smell of the greasepaint and the roar of the crowd. Gaden as Robert tries to pass on his knowledge and experience to John the younger actor as played by Akos Armont. He poignantly reveals the emotional self-doubt and uncertainty beneath the carapace of his autocratic professional demeanor. There are some very moving scenes especially towards the end when Robert reveals his tiredness and fragility and he has a powerful inspiring monologue to close the show. He transmits the delightful melancholy of an actor’s life which while producing a cornucopia of memories, quickly fades like a dream. What is reality?
The backstage drama swiftly moves in brief scenes that detail moments when tutor and pupil begin to switch roles. John begins to tune out Robert’s advice but Robert retains his elegant dignity. We are always aware that John will eventually take over Robert’s role as established veteran of the theatre in the never ending cycle of life and art. A wonderful show for anyone who loves theatre.
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
A LIFE IN THE THEATRE
BY DAVID MAMET
Cast
John Akos Armont
Robert John Gaden
Director Helen Dallimore
Production Design Hugh O’Connor
Soud Design Jed Silver
Lighting Design Christopher Page
DARLINGHURST THEATRE COMPANY AT ETERNITY PLAYHOUSE NOVEMBER 2016
Running time 90 minutes no interval
A Life In Theatre runs at Eternity Playhouse 4 November- 4 December 2016
