Review – Brief Encounter
Date Reviewed: 25th March, 2009
Venue: The Lowry
Following a successful West End run, Kneehigh Theatre‘s highly acclaimed production of Brief Encounter has arrived in Salford. Emma Rice’s adaptation presents this classic and popular love story from 1945 via a hybrid of dialogue, song and black and while film clips. The result is incredibly innovative, moving and beautifuly realised.
This enchanting love story focuses largely on the love at first sight experience between Laura (Hannah Welland) and Alec (Milo Twomey) whose chance meeting one ordinary Thursday leads to the start of a brief but emotionally charged passionate affair between two married people which ultimately ends in heart break and a return to ‘real life’.
Mostly played out on the café bar of Milford Train Station where the affair begins and ends, the audience are also aware of the budding relationships between Beryl (Beverley Rudd) and Stanley (Christopher Price) who are love’s young dream and between Myrtle (Annette McLaughlin) and Albert (Joseph Alessi) who are more mature but also embarking on a new relationship, all of whom witness the relationship between Laura and Alec blossom.
The intensity of the relationship between Laura and Alec builds rapidly allowing both characters to express their inner most thoughts and passions intently in a way they seem unable to do with their respective partners. The sense of guilt at indulging in an affair is accurately portrayed by Welland although occasionally lacking in passion.
The production is littered with well known songs such as Noel Coward’s “Mad About the Boy” sung superbly by Rudd and “A Room with a View” (Twomey) which help move the story along.
The musicians are a constant presence on stage, however they are often poorly lit or obscured by various sections of the set which is disappointing.
Overall this is a clever, charming production with a good cast, notably Rudd and McLaughlin, both of whom have a great sense of comic timing and enjoy good audience interaction.
Act Two feels a tad drawn out but overall the production conveys the power of instant attraction and intense love between two individuals despite the inner turmoil this can cause. It also demonstrates however much we may desire something or someone, it is not always possible to allow our hearts to rule our heads and reality does not always allow for a Hollywood style happy ending.
Beautifully staged and cleverly adapted, Brief Encounter is yet another winner for Kneehigh.
-Ruth Lovett