Review- The Endurance
Date Reviewed: 24th October, 2008
Venue: The Royal Exchange
The Endurance is a highly-stylised examination of the value of ambition and the limits of the human spirit. Performed by Ben Faulks, directed by Al Seed and co-written by them both, the play opens with a striking image; against a howling wind, a lone figure drags a piano along a railway track.
Looking at his ragged evening clothes, we can tell that the journey has been long and more challenging than he expected. In flashback we find that he is an actor on a quest to find The Stage. This is a legendary venue with magical attributes capable of enhancing any performance so that it alters the perception of the audience. As the actor continues his quest he uses his shrinking number of props to combat his growing isolation, hunger and sexual desire.
The nature of both the quest and the act that is to be performed there sound so silly that it could be concluded that the authors feel that such events are futile rather than admirable. As the play develops it clarifies that the value of a quest is not achieving the goal but demonstrating the heights to which the human spirt can aspire.Yet there is a tentative feel to the play which blunts the edge of some scenes so that we are uncertain as to whether they are meant to be funny or a demonstration of the pointlessness of the expedition.
There is also the problem of how to convey the stress and tedium of such a long journey without boring the audience. A character on the edge of starvation will become obsessed with the contents of food cans but this does not make a song about them interesting.
This is not to say that Faulks’ performance is not admirable. He is a skilled physical performer and his twisted limbs show the hardship that he has endured but at the same time his bow-legged splay- footed stance suggests that of a circus clown. Even though he is on the edge of desperation he maintains the standards of his art.
The mental strain suffered during the journey is illustrated in a remarkable series of conversations between an increasingly lonely actor and a sock puppet. The comedic highpoint of the show is the verbal picture which Faulks paints of The Stage. An increasingly ornate description continues for several minutes before concluding “and that’s just the carpet.”
Overall, a more decisive tone might have been welcome. Even so the slightly surreal approach taken by the authors does suit the ambiguous ending and does not detract from a remarkable performance.
-Dave Cunningham