So far, my life and Alan Bennett’s haven’t crossed paths particularly often.
I feel strangely embarrassed to admit this but, although I’m somewhat aware of his importance in the modern play-writing world, the majority of what I know about his work comes from sketches poking fun at him on shows like A Bit of Fry and Laurie. The Alan Bennett season at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, taking place throughout June and July, is the perfect opportunity for me to remedy my ignorance.
I began my education on Thursday with Enjoy and I now find myself very keen to find out more.
When it comes to writing any kind of review, unless it’s a very serious, academic one (which this is most certainly not), I don’t believe in giving away any kind of spoilers. A play like Enjoy, with its myriad twists and turns, makes this a particularly tough policy to stick to. Set in 1980’s Leeds, Enjoy focuses primarily on the characters of Dad and Mam, played by Philip Martin Brown and Marlene Sidaway respectively, the ageing inhabitants of one of the area’s last back-to-back terraces.
As the play begins I feel like the stereotypical view of Bennett’s work I’ve been provided is, to be fair, pretty spot-on. Characters, in the twilight of their years, taking about the past, their hopes for the future and lots of humour based upon traditional afflictions faced by the elderly such a memory-loss and the gradual decline of the human body. I don’t mean this to be a criticism by the way, it’s written in such a way that you quickly feel familiar with Mam and Dad and the humour is genuinely funny. It’s just that as I sat there I remember thinking that, despite never seeing one, the world had prepared me perfectly for what to expect from a Bennett play; the theatre equivalent of sitting by a warm fireplace for a couple of hours, what followed did not coincide with this.
The big event on Mam and Dad’s horizon is their upcoming relocation to a new block of flats due to the scheduled demolition of the outdated home. The issue serves to quickly highlight the differences between the two characters. Mam is fully of trepidation, for her the flats represent community, security and are a physical embodiment of her life’s journey, dreams and memories. Dad, on the other hand, cannot get away from the back-to-backs quick enough. He sees the new flats as a chance for to rejoin modern society, a beautiful future, epitomised by chrome bath handles and underfloor central heating.
The other key topic of conversation are their two children. Firstly, there’s their daughter Linda. Apple of her father’s eye, Linda reputedly travels the world as a personal secretary, all at her bosses’ expense. As her, seemingly endless, virtues are listed by Dad you may begin to wonder how much is true, how much is simply parental exaggeration and how much may be a refusal to accept the truth. In addition to Linda, there’s also a son who falls into the ‘he who must not be named’ category of offspring. Mam clearly misses her son and wishes to reconnect with him, Dad, however, is more than happy to never mention him again, The perceived insult he’s guilty of is not explicitly mentioned but a snide remark from Dad about him moving to London for the ‘superior public facilities’ leaves little to wonder about. These moments are the first hints of a darkness within the play which only grow as the story continues.
Events take their first turn for the surreal when a knock on the door heralds an odd a request. As part of a study into how to best preserve the values of the disappearing community that Mam and Dad form a part of, the local council has sent an impartial observer to document their daily lives. After a brief argument the couple decide to let the watcher in. This is where I’m going to struggle with not giving anything away but here goes. The observer, Ms Craig, is played, pretty clearly I think, by a male actor. This is not any slight on the Rob Delaney performance, far from it, he’s wonderful in the role. He is however very tall with a very strong jaw-line (and an absolutely cracking pair of legs), so the first time the character faces the audience it’s apparent that she’s transgender. That knowledge, coupled with what you know bout Mam and Dad’s children, will probably lead you to same conclusion as me. With the proverbial and the fan so clearly established it’s with a sense of both anticipation and dread that you await their eventual meeting.
There is another major twist which, for me at least, came totally unexpected but fits perfectly if you’re happy to envelope yourself in the play’s story, tilt your head slightly and look and the world in a different way. Going into any kind of detail here though would do the production a huge disservice.
Enjoy combines a number of narratives and seems to take great pleasure in subverting the audiences’ expectations. Keeping all this together and maintaining a sense of structure is a big task and one which is achieved largely thanks to the great performance put in by the cast. Philip Martin Brown and Marlene Sidaway are a joy to watch in the lead roles. Mam and Dad could easily be fall depicted as empty stereotypes but the actors provide a depth and real-life quality which makes it impossible to look away, even in went presented with some unforgettable revelations.
For the majority of the first act Rob Delaney is incredibly understated as Ms Craig, which makes sense given her role as an impartial witness to events. Sat ram-rod straight and completely unmoved by the actions of other characters, she is a strange and unnerving presence, not just for Mam and Dad but for the audience as well. When she finally relaxes in a brief moment of solitude before delivering a beautiful short monologue the transformation is incredible to behold. Sian Reese-Williams, in the role Linda, also stands-out, managing to steal every scene she appears in. The energy, arrogance and anger with which she plays the role perfectly depicting Linda’s character. The cast is rounded out by a collection of other eccentrics who flesh out Mam and Dad’s world.
It’s also worth mentioning the fascinating use of set design and staging. The entirety of the story plays out in Mam and Dad’s living room and kitchen. For any action taking place outside of their house, such as the arrival of a visitor, the scene is filmed and projected live across the top of the stage. It’s an ingenious way to juxtapose what’s taking place happening inside and outside of the house. Later when Ms Craig uses a video-camera to capture specific moments, this footage is then subsequently projected live as well. It’s fascinating to watch a character struggle on stage in double vision, once, in real-life, on the stage, and simultaneously in close-up on film. It’s tricky to know exactly where to look and I found myself struggling to decide, despite them both showing the same event, which offered the most honest view. This issue with the portrayal of truth becomes even more striking as the story reaches its climax.
To be honest, I could go on a lot longer and I’m more than happy to meet anyone in a bar/pub of their choice to talk about what they thought of Enjoy, I guess that’s the greatest compliment that I can pay a play really. Enjoy has still got me thinking and talking about its subject matter long after the cast gave their final bow. If that isn’t enough to entice you then its also got one of the funniest and most extended erection jokes I’ve ever seen, what more do you want?
Enjoy is currently being performed at the West Yorkshire Play until 7 June as part of their Alan Bennett season. To find out more and book tickets visit: http://www.wyp.org.uk/what’s-on/2014/enjoy/