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Pro’s: Intensely dramatic and beautiful adaptation of classic; not one to miss.
Con’s: Anything that wasn’t quite up-to-scratch was forgiveable, and more than made up for.
Summary
Rating
Excellent
A wonderful retelling of an old story that uses a family conflict to shine a light on grander themes. The passion in the story is more than reflected in the attention given by the amazing cast.
This adaptation of what is, at its simplest, a family conflict, ties together the grit of a tragic love story through the utter realism of the events with poetic overtones of grand proportions. An equally-matched cast of seven shocked, moved and amused us through the evening, and those that shone brightest did so in style. Members of the cast who had two roles showed not only an amazing talent, but a true understanding of where and why they fit into this beautiful ensemble piece. Yorgos Karamalegos as the Father was unrecognisable when he returned as Moon; Camilla Mathis gave us two smaller roles, Friend and Neighbour, but really let us see their importance.
Mathis deserves applauding as well for her musical efforts. Her original music, deftly performed and sung by herself and other members of the cast, was characterful and exciting. The music was cleverly used at poignant moments, and the ensemble’s physical style at these times provided engaging moments of pause from the text.
The first half is much longer than the second, which might have been unavoidable in this adaptation; but it made for a clear divide between the real and the abstract. The second half didn’t necessarily have less to say as a result – if anything, there was an awful lot to follow in such a short space of time. Karamalegos as Moon after the interval was equally terrifying, funny and (maybe a little uncomfortably) sexual, but was the cherry on top of a work of art.
I often find myself struggling to get my thoughts in order when I leave a production on its press night, wondering what really shone, and what might be right to give a bit of criticism. In leaving Blood Wedding I knew that there were moments that weren’t perfect, but I couldn’t stop myself thinking, simply, “wow”. To the cast: you’ll be seeing me in the audience again before the run is over. To those reading: I hope to see you there, too.
Author: Federico Garcia Lorca
Director: George Richmond-Scott
Composer: Camilla Mathias
Producer: Lauri Cryan
Box Office: 020 7498 4699
Booking Link: https://www.omnibus-clapham.org/blood-wedding/
Booking Until: 23 September 2018
