Cat on a Hot Tin Roof - Belvoir St Theatre

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Sat 16 Feb 2013 - Sun 21 Apr 2013

Tennessee Williams 1955 play 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof', set in Southern USA, works around themes of "social mores, greed, superficiality, mendacity, decay, sexual desire, repression, and death". I have deliberately cut and pasted this list from Wikipedia to cross-check against my own experience and I can confidently corroborate it's exhaustive accuracy yet again. All hail Wikipedia! (and for everyone who is unsure of the meaning of mendacity, fear not, the word itself gets specific attention in the play, I learned it in there).



But what can be said about Belvoir's now resident director, Simon Stone's production? The play utilises extended sections where particular characters confront the audience with waves (of walls) of words. Phrases progress in nearly identical lines, moderated further in tone than language to layer the characters sentiments without relying on specific points or sentences. This moderated ramble is effective but at times painfully gradual. Sometimes however, locked into the pace of theatrical monologue, these characters fail to materialise.

The minor characters pop in at intervals to break tension and punctuate these larger sections of dialogue. They are a backdrop who only interject to symbolise their greater existence. Some really cute performances from the three kids and the stiffly nervous male family members are all very well executed.

Stone came out to speak to the audience before the play started and explained a major mishap the production had experienced in the shape of one of their lead actors (Big Daddy) dropping out a week previous. This meant the fill in actor, who'd read the play for the first time a few days before, had to read the play from a script in certain sections. Despite this he may have given the best performance. Visually he is perfect for the role and his gruffly commanding voice is pleasing even when crassly comedic.

All in all the play worked. Stone uses the swivel platform extensively for long walk and talk sections, scene transmogrifications and literal carousel style scenes. a line of multi-coloured streamers splitting backstage from front is an obvious but earnest metaphor for disconnect, obstruction, appearance and the act of performance, for the family and in the play itself. The play is funny with some powerful moments. All the characters are desperate, naïve or have given up. Some of the direct conversation sections lose and gain intensity artificially and seem to reset, ignoring the build-up of the 5 minutes previous which can be frustrating.

3/5 stars.

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!date 16/02/2013 -- 21/04/2013
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