The Human Body - Donmar Warehouse

[nash16]

We really weren’t taken with this last night.

A play supposedly drawing us in because it’s about the NHS, but instead we got a patronising sub-par period romance instead.

How Keeley Hawes, who is wonderful in it if not pushing herself much with the role, doesn’t throw up with the eternally revolving stage? She deserves an Olivier nod just for that.

The use of video is unnecessary in such a tiny space, and was the source of us feeling patronised: it was only used when Davenport’s movie star was onstage, but it’s like, we get it.

I think someone mentioned above about it must have been a script idea for tv or film. It definitely feels that, and has now been shoehorned into being a play, with its plentiful, super short, scenes. The technicians even get a bow at the end which is warranted, but if you took them all away the play wouldn’t be lesser than it already is.

Tom GH and Siobhan R raid the accent and funny walk box for all their worth and succeed.

But ultimately the play is dull.

No drama.

And nothing really to chew on re the setting up of the NHS.

It felt like something the old crowd at the Orange Tree circa 2005 would have gone to see to have a nice nap to.

Having said this we had two Keeley Hawes fans who had travelled from Spain next to us who loved it and on the way out were chatting about how it was the best play they had ever seen.

Non KH obsessives, like us, might find it less enthralling though.

Such an odd choice for Longhurst to depart on.

2-3 stars.

5 stars from the KH fans though.

[mrnutz]

Running time is back up on the Donmar site - 2h45m, including a 20 min interval.

[drmaplewood]

Was at press night tonight. Pretty much 70 mins each half with 20 minute interval.

I thought this was a mess. Hawkes does very well with what she is given but the staging is so clumsily done with all unnecessary camera work (and if you're sat further back in the side stalls, you will struggle to see most of the screen anyway) and the last 15 mins in particular is just baffling. Felt like polite applause at the curtain, which makes me very curious how the press will respond.

[mrnutz]

Reviews seem to be mainly three stars, with praise for the leads but not so much for the play itself.

[demelza]

I was also at press night yesterday and enjoyed it. I went in with low expectations and they were exceeded — I have also been waiting to see Jack Davenport on stage for many years now so the play could have been three hours of him reading the dictionary and I would have had a good time! The script is somewhat muddled, but I thought that the performances by all the cast were what really shone (and the brilliant work from the Stage Management team!) and elevated what otherwise could have been a dreary night at the theatre

[Steve]

Saw this tonight and it's a very odd play that doesn't really add up to more than the sum of its parts, although it's parts are quite enjoyable regardless.

Some spoilers follow. . .

At one point, Keeley Hawes's Iris says that her love affair with Jack Davenport's George is the only "technicolor" part of her life. But this contrary production is determined to turn her love affair into the very black and white "Brief Encounter," which seems most odd.

It's especially odd since "Brief Encounter" can't be bettered as a black and white movie about a stiff-upper-lipped desperate period love affair, so the movie that's broadcast on the wall behind the actors is either a mere pastiche of "Brief Encounter" or it is a commentary that Iris's love affair is not "technicolor" at all.

In any event, Emma Rice, in her eternal optimism about the human condition, already made what amounts to a cheery "technicolor" play version of "Brief Encounter," and that was more fun than this.

But this isn't meant to be fun, anyway, as it's essentially a "woman trapped" kind of play, so the spiraling stage was one of my favourite parts of the production, which, coupled with the Bernard Herrmann type music, and boosted by Keeley Hawes's clench-teethed performance, made the production as much a doomladen version of Hitchcock's "Vertigo" as it was of Lean's "Brief Encounter." This worked doubly well, thematically, but also as a democratic method of giving those at the sides a good view of the actors.

Unfortunately, the production is neither as romantic as "Brief Encounter," nor as thrilling as "Vertigo," so it never really finds it's emotional thrust.

There was one ray of technicolor sunshine in the production tonight, and it was Flora Jacoby Richardson as Hawes's Iris's daughter, constantly rabbitting on enthusiastically about Princess Elizabeth's dresses, which, unlike the NHS, will never be available to ordinary people. This was constantly funny to me, as her passion for the dresses exceeded anyone's passion for the NHS, and if the point of her character was to suggest we shouldn't be gawking at royalty, this deeply failed, as the cheery kid's enthusiasm (she even gave Hawes the most joyous "thumbs up" after the bows lol) was way too infectious, especially when compared to the dourness of everybody else. Odd.

Even Bevan (not depicted) came across badly, described as using dehumanising Trumpian language, even if his accomplishments are the very best of Britain. Again, odd.

As far as Keeley Hawes's plays go, I preferred "Rocket to the Moon" to this, and preferred this to "Barking in Essex," but despite the fact she's never been in a truly brilliant production, she herself was terrific in all three of these, serving each play with exactly the notes asked of her, so I fully expect one day she'll hit the jackpot with a truly great play.

Of the supporting ensemble, I thought Siobhan Redmond magnificently morphed into a whole range of quirky characters.

For me, this weird portrait of a woman and an NHS going round in circles gets 3 and a half stars for it's intriguing but never-melding parts.

PS: This finished at 10:15pm on the dot, and I was out by 10:18pm.

[showgirl]

Having read the early comments here I'd been prepared to return my ticket, so although the reviews persuaded me to keep it, I'd modified my expectations and was therefore expecting less than I did of "Till The Stars Come Down", which I'd seen a few days earlier and which definitely didn't quite live up to them. The performances and staging were excellent but though I wasn't exactly bored, I did find my mind wandering at times and at the end, I was left wondering what the point had been and what Lucy Kirkwood had been aiming for. For me, the huge number of characters and short scenes worked against creating a coherent whole so that the play semed to try to have it both ways, ie to show via an epic sweep the creation of the NHS but also to tell some personal stories, so depth and scope were constantly at odds. Also, a small point but I found Geroge Blythe's swearing implausible and unpleasant.

[Rory]

I saw this last night and have to agree with much of what others have said. There's just a little bit too much going on in terms of the multiple characters, video scenes and never ending revolve for us to really focus at times on the nuances and depth beneath the surface. The scene which I thought was the best in the play was the longer beach scene at the top of Act 2, which didn't feel quite so rushed and allowed the characters to breathe a little.

Still, it wasn't dull at all and the staging is so dynamic that it didn't feel overlong (we were out at 10.10pm). I really liked the overall blue aesthetic of the set and props by Fly Davis, and I thought the acting was universally excellent. I must admit to being thrilled to finally see Keeley Hawes on stage, being a fully paid up member of the DI Lindsay Denton fan club (Line of Duty). And This Life means a lot to me as a show so I was very pleased to see Jack Davenport also. I liked the chemistry between them.

[happysooz2]

I’ve just returned two circle tickets for the evening performance on March 29th (Good Friday) if anyone’s looking. They should be on the Donmar site now.

[mrnutz]

I've returned two front row circle tickets for this Thursday evening.

Life's too short to sit through 3 hours of a 3-star play, even for Keeley Hawes!

[aspieandy]

Oh dear. Plenty of Blitz spirit on display by cast and crew, though sadly Lucy Kirkwood's patient was lost on the operating table.

Way too many - what I can only describe as - scene stubs remaining. Can only imagine the size this script first came in at.

Plenty of ideas. Great shapes lurking. Probably work best as a 350-page sweeping, historical novel. IMO!

[Being Alive]

This is an unbelievably frustrating piece.

It's two plays at the same time, one of which is diabolical and the other which has promise but isn't able to develop far enough.
The NHS play is actually appalling, but the Brief Encounter play has potential.

Any sort of enjoyment is saved by Keeley Hawes and Jack Davenport, who are both excellent with the horrible play they've been given.
Pearl Mackie good as ever, and Tom Goodman-Hill perfectly watchable.
Could not get over how awful Siobhan Redmond was though - was no one else free?

The two minutes episodic scenes are tedious after half an hour. It could easily lose ANOTHER 45 minutes and be better for it.

It's JUST 3 stars because of it's leads and how charismatic they are. But with anyone else this play is 2 stars - I think they only let it be staged in the form it's in because of who the author is personally.
I understood what Lucy Kirkwood was trying to do about 20 minutes from the end, but by that point I was so annoyed with it that I simply didn't care.

[Rory]

Love reading everyone else's thoughts on this show but I must say that I thought Siobhan Redmond was great!

[aspieandy]

Fwiw, Brief Encounter: 1h 26m

That got us to part-way through the interval last night.

[prefab]

I had tickets to see this tonight, but it got cancelled at the last minute--two hours before showtime--due to cast illness. I hope everyone's alright, but this turned out to be serendipitous, since my last-minute replacement play (Double Feature) was fantastic.

[theatre22]

I was also meant to go this evening. I think the matinee was also stopped when the cast member became ill. It’s a shame as I don’t think it will be easy to get a ticket now and it’s the one time I was organised and booked when they first went on sale in December.

[Deleted]

Keeley started struggling to speak during yesterday's matinee. Dry throat maybe. 10 or so mins into the second act she stops, apologises and walks off. Manager comes on relatively swiftly to announce the show is cancelled due to cast illness. An hour left of the show. Said they'll email everyone with next steps. No further details. But at least I saw half... :-)

[zahidf]

Due to watch this tonight, hope its all resolved!

[nash16]

I blame the eternal revolve she had to deal with in this. If you do miss it, you’re not missing a great play.

[Being Alive]

She's excellent, as is Jack Davenport, but definitely not missing a good play if it is cancelled.

[Latecomer]

Cancelled today and tomorrow matinee.

[clarefh]

I have a ticket for this on the noticeboard for next Saturday if anyone is interested.

[theoracle]

Well it starts off nicely and it’s very well lit with uniformly good performances. Are live video cameras the new rain curtain? Keeley Hawes is worth the ticket price and she is evenly matched by Jack Davenport, but they can’t save this meandering piece from being a bit of a slog. At 2hrs 45mins, the second act really feels like it’s dragging and I cared less and less for the characters or the story. I would say I enjoyed this more than Nye but only marginally which is a shame considering both are the Artistic Director’s swan songs with their theatres. Hoping Cherry Orchard will be better…

[Jon]

Saw this tonight and liked it but didn't love it. TBH I booked solely to see Keeley Hawes and she's worth the price of admission as as is Jack Davenport. The rest of the cast Tom Goodman-Hill, Siobhan Redmond and Pearl Mackie are good as well playing various characters.

I agree that it's two plays merged into one and TBH the birth of the NHS storyline could have been dropped and instead focus more the Brief Encounter type affair and it would have been a stronger play.

[A.Ham]

There tomorrow for this… I’m guessing not, but does anyone know if Keeley and Jack stage door after the matinee? Or is stage dooring not really the done thing at the Donmar?!