The Coast of Utopia: Voyage

Synopsis

The Coast of Utopia comprises three sequential but self-contained plays, 'Voyage', 'Shipwreck' and 'Salvage'. They tell an epic story of romantics and revolutionaries caught up in the struggle for political freedom in an age of emperors. Set in the mid-19th century in Russia and Europe, the trilogy follows a group of friends who come of age under the Tsarist autocracy of Nicholas I. Among them are the idealist and anarchist Michael Bakunin who was to challenge Marx for the soul of the masses; Ivan Turgenev, author of some of the most enduring works in Russian literature; the brilliant, erratic young critic Vissarion Belinsky; and Alexander Herzen, a nobleman's son and the first self-proclaimed socialist in Russian history, who becomes the main focus of a drama of politics, love, loss and betrayal. The action, involving more than fifty characters, takes in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Paris, Nice and London.

Our Review:

5 August 2002

It's amazing and brave and epic to watch a playwright marshalling some 70 characters, dozens of different locations and shifting time frames, public and private themes and fierce intellectual debate. The playwright in question being Tom Stoppard, all of this emerges in a veritable torrent of words, thoughts and ideas. And the plays in question being The Coast of Utopia - the umbrella title for three separate, sequential but self-contained new works by him receiving their simultaneous world premieres at the National Theatre - there's no stopping the phenomenal verbal fireworks for over nine hours.

On trilogy days - which could be re-titled 'Saturday at the National with Tom' - you can see all three plays in one go, kicking off at 11am and continuing until almost 11pm, including a couple of 75 minute meal breaks (you can also see the plays separately on week nights).

This isn't, of course, the first time the National have invited us to do this - the David Hare tril...

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Latest User Review

USER: Whatsonstage.com - 16 October 2002:

If this were anyone but Tom Stoppard, I would have happily walked out. But my longtime admiration for the playwright--along with infrequent glimpses of his wonderful wit--kept me in my chair for all nine hours of this painful, turgid, ridiculously overwritten play. "Voyage" is the most enjoyable segment, though Chekhov did it better. "Shipwreck" has some strong moments in Act II, but the unrewarding "Salvage" is poorly named. The film backgrounds look like computer-game animation and quickly wear out their welcome. But nothing is more annoying than the projection of the month and year of what seem like hundreds of scenes (March 1835, April 1835, May 1835, etc.)--most of which consist of two people sitting listlessly and discussing political philosophy. Stephen Dillane, Will Keen and a few other actors distinguish themselves to, ultimately, little effect....

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