An Enemy of the People - Duke of York's Theatre

[Steve]

Saw this tonight, enjoyed a lot of it, especially everything Paul Hilton related.

Some spoilers follow. . .

The set in the first half is some kind of Brechtian thing, hard lit despite no visible skylight, with all sorts of revolutionary graffiti on the walls, the least appealing of which was an exhortation to kill the Buddha (too chill I suppose).

The blocking also doesn't lend itself to a believable intimacy among the characters some of the time. I recall how lovely the intimacy was in Jessica Brown Findlay's Hamlet, where she played Ophelia opposite Andrew Scott, and the two of them together just won my heart. Could have used a bit more believable humanity, a bit less Brecht, as I feel you've got to really buy the humanity before it gets threatened by the plot, even if you suddenly go Brechtian later (which it does, very effectively).

On that human note, I really loved Vilberg Andri Palsson, standing in for the indisposed Zachary Hart as Billing, a character I haven't really paid attention to in the past: his earphones-on, gentle, vacant, morally-malleable long-hair was spot on recognisable from every student common room everywhere lol.

I like music, and the live music did serve to humanise the characters somewhat, even as it slowed down the plot. I wished Matt Smith would sing his "American Psycho" numbers instead though, but that's just me (I loved that production so much lol!)

This production has an embarrassment of good acting talent, so Nigel Lindsay as a capitalist ghoul and Priyanka Burford as a compromised liberal are good fun.

But it's Paul Hilton's antagonist, Peter Stockmann, who really stood out for me: the weaselly gelatinous jibbering of a Jacob Rees Mogg contained beneath a steely, aggressive Dominic Raab surface. Hilton makes every scene he's in come alive, regardless of the staging.

Matt Smith rules in the second half, especially when he gets Hulk angry. Never having attended a political event, it makes me realise why people do it, the lure and electricity of being shouted at.

Anyhow, against a witty comment from a probable plant, many members of the audience did pipe up in the interactive bit, which used mics, and involved comments from all areas of the theatre. I know they were real cos they failed to address what speech they were actually reacting to, and just got indignant about the plot instead.

The Duke of York is probably a bit too boxy and claustrophobic for really exciting staging involving audiences. I remember how, at Chichester, Hugh Bonneville got quite a work-out running up and down those broad, diagonal aisles, visible to all. But even if he is constrained physically, Smith nails the emotions.

Anyhow, I think this will bed into a 4 star show, but at this early stage, it's more like 3 and a half stars.

PS: The front 3 rows (AA, BB, A) got given Macintoshes in the interval to protect them from possible (washable) paint splashes. There weren't any major splashes tonight, but there could have been.

[mrbarnaby]

Paul Hilton really never puts a foot wrong. And steals every show he’s in. What a star

[Jon]

Feb 10, 2024 23:07:19 GMT Steve said:

Saw this tonight, enjoyed a lot of it, especially everything Paul Hilton related.

Some spoilers follow. . .

The set in the first half is some kind of Brechtian thing, hard lit despite no visible skylight, with all sorts of revolutionary graffiti on the walls, the least appealing of which was an exhortation to kill the Buddha (too chill I suppose).

The blocking also doesn't lend itself to a believable intimacy among the characters some of the time. I recall how lovely the intimacy was in Jessica Brown Findlay's Hamlet, where she played Ophelia opposite Andrew Scott, and the two of them together just won my heart. Could have used a bit more believable humanity, a bit less Brecht, as I feel you've got to really buy the humanity before it gets threatened by the plot, even if you suddenly go Brechtian later (which it does, very effectively).

On that human note, I really loved Vilberg Andri Palsson, standing in for the indisposed Zachary Hart as Billing, a character I haven't really paid attention to in the past: his earphones-on, gentle, vacant, morally-malleable long-hair was spot on recognisable from every student common room everywhere lol.

I like music, and the live music did serve to humanise the characters somewhat, even as it slowed down the plot. I wished Matt Smith would sing his "American Psycho" numbers instead though, but that's just me (I loved that production so much lol!)

This production has an embarrassment of good acting talent, so Nigel Lindsay as a capitalist ghoul and Priyanka Burford as a compromised liberal are good fun.

But it's Paul Hilton's antagonist, Peter Stockmann, who really stood out for me: the weaselly gelatinous jibbering of a Jacob Rees Mogg contained beneath a steely, aggressive Dominic Raab surface. Hilton makes every scene he's in come alive, regardless of the staging.

Matt Smith rules in the second half, especially when he gets Hulk angry. Never having attended a political event, it makes me realise why people do it, the lure and electricity of being shouted at.

Anyhow, against a witty comment from a probable plant, many members of the audience did pipe up in the interactive bit, which used mics, and involved comments from all areas of the theatre. I know they were real cos they failed to address what speech they were actually reacting to, and just got indignant about the plot instead.

Anyhow, I think this will bed into a 4 star show, but at this early stage, it's more like 3 and a half stars.

What was the witty comment? You can put it in spoilers if you like. 

[Steve]

Feb 10, 2024 23:10:54 GMT Jon said:

Feb 10, 2024 23:07:19 GMT Steve said:

What was the witty comment? You can put it in spoilers if you like. 

SPOILER: Click to show

Railing against the price of tickets and asking for refunds for everyone.

A person who actually paid for a ticket would hardly start that sort of thing, as it's a confession he's a mug lol

[nottobe]

I went to see this last night and enjoyed it but it wasn't perfect. I personally am always interested when productions class themselves as 're-imagined' and especially when it is slightly avant-garde European productions.

This story is really one that is still as persistent as when it was first written. I enjoyed Matt Smiths performance here more than him in Lungs and felt he held the play together well. I enjoyed the rest of the cast too but some of them felt a bit under utilised like Nigel Lindsay and even Jessica Brown Findlay.

I personally felt like the audience participation scene did not add anything to this production. From what I was gauging, as it is a piece of fiction an audience don't care too much about voicing their opinion or elaborating on it too much. It is not a real life story so the stakes are really not that high. That is not the fault of the audience at all but it felt like the director wants it to be a moment that probably won't happen across the whole of the run. It is always going to be a room full of more left leaning people who just want to sit and watch a play, not be asked questions.

I think this would have worked more as a 90 minute straight through play and cut the non needed music sections. Why did they need to be a band ?

But despite these comments I did enjoy my time and had an engaging night out.

[Mark]

I won the front row lottery today. Thought the whole thing was excellent. Stage is fairly high but don’t feel I missed much.

Didn’t know the play at all, so it was all new to me, but I all just worked so well for me. Highly recommend

[dip]

Saw this Saturday afternoon and adored it.

[demonbarber]

Hi all, have put it in the Noticeboard but realise that doesn't always get read. Have 1x stalls ticket (C3) for An Enemy of the People, sold out this evening, 19/02. Paid £43.80 but open to offers. Drop me a message if interested!

[bigredapple]

Has anyone won a single lottery seat for this?

I always enter for just 1 ticket and haven’t won

Wondering if I’d have more luck trying for 2, as I’ve read some rush tickets won’t give you 1 but will give you 2

[theatrefan77]

I loved it, it's a great play and the update to modern times works really well. The acting is really top notch, particularly Matt Smith and Paul Hilton.

[Mark]

Feb 19, 2024 23:09:49 GMT bigredapple said:

Has anyone won a single lottery seat for this?

I always enter for just 1 ticket and haven’t won

Wondering if I’d have more luck trying for 2, as I’ve read some rush tickets won’t give you 1 but will give you 2

Yes, on my first attempt for the Saturday matinee. Seemed at least another 3-4 solo winners in the front row when I went too.

[alessia]

Really liked this! I have never seen the play before, but I loved this adaptation, a lot of random details involving the audience which I won’t spoil but I was in second row and at some point things got … interesting 😅also really liked how it was staged.
*spoiler* (please add bc I can’t!) my friend insisted that the people speaking from the audience were all actors, because they were too articulate. I don’t think so??
I loved most of this maybe except for the choice of song when they all sang together in the first act (oasis, really??) apart from this small detail I loved this. The programme is expensive but it’s much more substantial than the average flyer you get these days and is worth the price for a change.

[blaxx]

Feb 20, 2024 7:07:13 GMT alessia said:

Really liked this! I have never seen the play before, but I loved this adaptation, a lot of random details involving the audience which I won’t spoil but I was in second row and at some point things got … interesting 😅also really liked how it was staged.
*spoiler* (please add bc I can’t!) my friend insisted that the people speaking from the audience were all actors, because they were too articulate. I don’t think so??
I loved most of this maybe except for the choice of song when they all sang together in the first act (oasis, really??) apart from this small detail I loved this. The programme is expensive but it’s much more substantial than the average flyer you get these days and is worth the price for a change.

They're not actors 🤣

And this is a very good staging of the play, though I must say it had more humor than other productions I've seen, which was refreshing.

I feel awful for whoever has to reset that mess between performances.

[dip]

Feb 20, 2024 7:07:13 GMT alessia said:

Really liked this! I have never seen the play before, but I loved this adaptation, a lot of random details involving the audience which I won’t spoil but I was in second row and at some point things got … interesting 😅also really liked how it was staged.
*spoiler* (please add bc I can’t!) my friend insisted that the people speaking from the audience were all actors, because they were too articulate. I don’t think so??
I loved most of this maybe except for the choice of song when they all sang together in the first act (oasis, really??) apart from this small detail I loved this. The programme is expensive but it’s much more substantial than the average flyer you get these days and is worth the price for a change.

They definitely aren't all actors. We had a woman get tied up over her words and ending up saying something to the effect of 'people from council houses commit more crimes'. Saw her as we were leaving and she was desperately looking for reassurance from other punters.  

I think maybe there are a couple of plants in the crowd just to get things rolling though. 

[alessia]

Thanks for confirming that I was right 😂 I’m going to let him know/ I think last night we had particularly well spoken - articulate people in the audience !!

[blaxx]

Feb 20, 2024 9:18:31 GMT alessia said:

Thanks for confirming that I was right 😂 I’m going to let him know/ I think last night we had particularly well spoken - articulate people in the audience !!

I feel people who volunteer their opinion is because they have a clear idea of what they want to say.

During the performance I attended, the actress did have to cut one long-winded rant short. She clearly knows how to support and guide those participating, and keep the dynamics concise and on topic.

[drmaplewood]

Extra week just added, a sprinkle of £30 front row.

[bigredapple]

Feb 21, 2024 10:22:31 GMT drmaplewood said:

Extra week just added, a sprinkle of £30 front row.

Thank you for sharing! Wasn’t having any luck with the lottery so I’ve grabbed a front row for the extra week

[starlight92]

They don't pick on people in the audience participation scene do they? Otherwise I will definitely not want to be front row!

[juicy_but_terribly_drab]

Feb 21, 2024 15:44:03 GMT starlight92 said:

They don't pick on people in the audience participation scene do they? Otherwise I will definitely not want to be front row!

No, you've got to raise your hand and they bring a mic to you as if it were a Q&A.

[zahidf]

Thought this was great overall! Poll maybe?

[cavocado]

I liked this. It was slow to get going, not sure about the music, and a couple of things didn't quite work with the modern setting, but otherwise it was very good. Matt Smith was good, but for me Paul Hilton and Priyanga Burford were the standouts.

I liked the audience interaction, although there was a bit of strange behaviour from some of the audience when I went. I went in feeling sceptical about how that part would work, and thought it might take me out of the play, but it actually had the opposite effect and I almost forgot these people were audience members and couldn't take my eyes off the characters and how they were dealing with the random comments - all done brilliantly, especially by Priyanga Burford.

[jm25]

Watched this last week not expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. There are perhaps some pacing issues with the first half, but it's necessary to set up the brilliant second half where the play totally springs to life. You could really sense the audience sitting up and engaging more with what was being said.

I don't know if the cast look forward to or dread the second-half audience interaction - I'd be terrified! But, as cavocado has said, Priyanga Burford in particular is brilliant with her very quick, funny rebuttals. I also enjoyed Matt Smith taking umbrage at one audience member who suggested he go to Russia if he doesn't like it here...!

[Jon]

I think if I was chosen to be an audience member who got picked for the Q&A, I'd probably take a more humorous stance to the proceedings. Nothing worse than an audience member being po faced and serious.

[theatreliker]

Intrigued to see this next week.
Sorry, what are audience members saying in the Q&A? Any questions about ATG booking fees?