Dumb Show at the Royal Court

By Gene - 30th Sep 2004

Tabloid manipulators seek to find a story no matter what the costs to individual destruction. Any, and all events in a person’s life are up for scrutiny and contortion by the ‘blood hungry’ paparazzi looking for the ‘next big story’. Drugs, sex, family and even an irritable bowel can be skewed by the hungry tabloid press in order to sell a newspaper; the aim, they say, is to inform the public and to enlighten them to stop idol worship and bring the famous to their knees.

Joe Penhall’s hilarious Dumb Show uses comic clichés, worn jokes and archetypal situations of entrapment to tell a tale of manipulation and ‘the next headlining’ destruction of a comic coming to the end of his career. The comic form used by Penhall beautifully crafts itself around the adage of – comedy should make you laugh through recognisable truths; once the laughter has died away there is left in the base on the stomach a sediment of anger. And, there certainly was a lot of laughs with the entire theatre looking at each other as they recognised the satire and comic verve of this cleverly constructed reflection on the 21st Century press as bloodhounds and soulless manipulators.

Douglas Hodge as Barry, the end of the road comic: drunk, drugged and oblivious, was a tour de force in comic timing and physical dexterity. A mix between Mr Bean and Tommy Cooper, Hodge bounced off the stage and used the text as a springboard, maximising every line, be it pathos or out-an-out lovable stupidity. Ably matched were Anna Maxwell Martin (Liz) and the beautiful crafted performance of Rupert Graves (Greg). Graves, who starts off as a simple sop, trying to fit into the showbiz jargon, turns into a monster who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. He destroys everything he touches in a selfish and astounding disrespect for the human condition. A real Jekyl and Hyde. Anna Maxwell Martin is equally manipulative until the realisation that Barry’s wife has in fact died of cancer and he was telling the truth all along – she shows an amount of sympathy towards the end realising that she has gone too far in her search for a story – or does she! A clever femme fatal who still gets a story methinks.

Es Devlin’s design, with beautiful evocative lighting by Bruno Poet was enhanced by episodic sound bites from Ian Rickson. In all, the overall design concept and execution was excellent. Terry Johnson’s direction kept the characters and the story slightly out of reach and a gnat’s whisker away from reality. This tantalising effect on the audience allowed the superbly written play by Joe Penhall to attack the system without carrying a banner for change.

The comedy, the tragedy, the manipulation and the theatrical verve of this production makes it a must see before it disappears from the Royal Court. Extended until the 16th October there is no excuse for you to miss this ‘laying bare’ of the much hated and much read British tabloid press at their most manipulative – comically and tragically; therein lies the truth sic!

Gene David Kirk