Post by mkb on May 23, 2022 12:23:50 GMT
Act 1 is badly in need of significant pruning and re-writing. It has very little to say over 71 minutes, and Moses and Governor Al Smith are played as larger-than-life stereotypes who speak to everyone as though it were a hustings speech. At times, Fiennes roams the large thrust stage simply because the space has to be filled, not because his character has any motivation to do so. The narrative is dull.
Act 2, as others have commented, improves considerably, and there is at least a glimmer of the human side of the characters. I was aching to know what Moses was like outside the office: did he socialise?; how was the relationship with his wife and family?
Hare's dialogues favours grand-standing rather than nuance. Expositional information is shoe-horned unconvincingly into the conversation between characters: you would think this was the work of a novice playwright.
There are some good performances, particularly from Siobhán Cullen as Moses' right-hand woman. However, Hare never manages to fully explain why she stood by Moses for so long if he was as monstrous as portrayed.
Three stars.
Act 1: 19:36-20:47
Act 2: 21:08-22:11
(I wish The Bridge would revert to its original policy of having Sunday performances and later evening starts (at 19:45 usually). When they opened, their scheduling policies were a breath of fresh air to those of us who have to travel from outside of London. Saturday evening shows are impossible without a hotel stay thanks to the rail policy of closing the West Coast Mainline mid-evening Saturday, so Sunday shows were very helpful.)
Act 2, as others have commented, improves considerably, and there is at least a glimmer of the human side of the characters. I was aching to know what Moses was like outside the office: did he socialise?; how was the relationship with his wife and family?
Hare's dialogues favours grand-standing rather than nuance. Expositional information is shoe-horned unconvincingly into the conversation between characters: you would think this was the work of a novice playwright.
There are some good performances, particularly from Siobhán Cullen as Moses' right-hand woman. However, Hare never manages to fully explain why she stood by Moses for so long if he was as monstrous as portrayed.
Three stars.
Act 1: 19:36-20:47
Act 2: 21:08-22:11
(I wish The Bridge would revert to its original policy of having Sunday performances and later evening starts (at 19:45 usually). When they opened, their scheduling policies were a breath of fresh air to those of us who have to travel from outside of London. Saturday evening shows are impossible without a hotel stay thanks to the rail policy of closing the West Coast Mainline mid-evening Saturday, so Sunday shows were very helpful.)
