Review: Put Out His Eyes, Lion & Unicorn Theatre
An ambitious concept that places two juxtaposing characters in a life-or-death situation in order to explore class and power dynamics.Summary
Rating
Good
View from the Top Theatre’s debut production is, conceptually, very ambitious. Writer Michael Haijantonis proposes an interesting setting: a ‘distant past’, with a fallen city ransacked by nameless enemy forces, and the stakes are high. Its Princess (Hannah Omisore) and her saviour who is a seemingly harmless commoner named Daniel (Daniel Morris), take refuge in a cave overlooking the ruined homeland. The royal family are referred to as “the founders”. They have a strict rule: no one in the city can look upon them. If this is broken, the guilty party’s eyes are removed. One of Daniel’s recurring lines is “Bless the founder”, inferring they are god-like, though no other mention of religion occurs throughout. The founders are also lying to their people; a secret civilisation exists in the forest outside of the city walls, founded long before the city’s invasion by Daniel’s brother, whom he betrayed and gave up in order to avoid capture and gain favour (which he never received).
The Lion and Unicorn’s stage is bare, placing the characters and premise as the main focal points. This decision is understandable given the fact it is a fringe production, however, the inclusion of set would enhance the atmosphere created by Pia Rose Scattergood’s inspired sound design (although, the use of crackling, fire soundscapes whilst they watch the city burn becomes repetitive after the third instance).
The Princess, costumed in a blue velvet cloak and crown, strictly enforces the founders’ no eye contact rule. This does limit the movement and energy of the other actors to some extent, but director Michael Zwiauer’s staging is resourceful. Morris exhibits great comic timing here and elevates these moments. At one point he crawls in a prolonged bow to avoid the Princess’ gaze.
The setting is intriguing. It’s a world that offers a lot of scope for exploration, but perhaps a little too much in this case. Class and power are at the heart of this show, with the founding family described as having have fled the city, leaving their people defenceless, and the criticism of stark societal divides in the fictional city are a prominent point of contention for the characters. It is evident that Haijatonis cares for these topics, but the exploration is surface level, lacking focus and interaction with any overarching message or core statement. Gender roles are touched upon, although there is a lot more there to unearth, especially with Omisore’s character.
There are slick and impressive moments, owed to the actors’ performances and direction. These include the opening scenes as well as a lengthy monologue, wonderfully delivered by Morris, in which Daniel totally unravels, losing his grip on reality after watching the city burn away, eventually threatening to harm the Princess. The revelation of the Princess’s true identity is also a highlight and where Omisore really comes into their own, nicely handling the task of balancing a character with two distinct, opposing personas.
Put out His Eyes has potential to be a great, engaging piece of theatre, but as it stands doesn’t quite maintain tension or suspense. This is no slight to Omisore or Morris, who are great in their respective roles. It comes down to the script, which feels somewhat under-developed and has a few pacing issues towards the latter half. Despite the themes being clear and passionately approached, I couldn’t escape the feeling that some points had already been made just over halfway through. A trim down and re-focus on what the message really is, would help maintain the moments of tension it does have. Still, this is an impressive first production with promise.
Directed by: Michael Zwiauer
Written by: Michael Hajiantonis
Produced by: Aspen Pattinson
Company: View from the Top Theatre
Lighting Design by: Melody Mengyun
Sound Design by: Pia Rose Scattergood
Put out His Eyes has finished its run at the Lion & Unicorn Theatre.
Find out more about View from the Top Theatre via their Instagram here.