Review: That Face at the Landor Theatre

That Face

Landor Theatre

Reviewed on Thursday 14th November 2013

There's only one piece of set in Polly Stenham's That Face; a large double bed. It never moves. Around this bed, all of the action takes place. It's upon this bed that we witness the humiliation and drugging of Alice (Imogen Byron) in a boarding-school initiation ceremony gone horrible wrong at the opening of the play. It's also where we find Henry and Martha (Caroline Wildi) as they awaken in the next scene.

It's not immediately clear what their relationship is but the uncomfortable reality soon dawns: this is a mother and her son, albeit a pair with an uncomfortably close relationship. Henry has dropped out of college to look after his unstable and alcoholic mother and the pair are getting by, just about, until sister Mia arrives; her expulsion from school for the initiation ceremony starts the disintegration of this family. Daddy (Tony Donnelly) flies home from 'family number two' to save the day, bringing about the near-breakdown of both Henry and Martha.

Polly Stenham wrote this play when she was 17 and it is a work of impressive scope and maturity. However, towards the climax it starts to become overwrought, full of angst and shouting. I understand that the piece deals with emotive themes, and of course it's only natural that the characters are upset when in crisis, but the last fifteen or so minutes of the play lack clarity. Moments run into each other, the actors lose control of the pace and although this may be an unavoidable scenario in a play written by a teenager, I wonder if more disciplined direction from Tara Robinson might be called for.

Otherwise, the performances are good. Rory Fleck Byrne excels as the gentle Henry, full of kindness and commanding our empathy. Stephanie Hyam's Alice plays the bolshie teenager well and remains truthful as the content becomes more challenging and Georgina Leonidas excels as the sixth-form's uber-bitch! 

That Face is a play written at the beginning of Stenham's career; she's written two plays since. It's exciting to see what someone with so much early potential will go on to achieve.

Reviewed by Jody Tranter
contact@westendframe.com

That Face runs at the Landor Theatre until Sunday 1st December 2013.

Please visit www.thatfacetheplay.co.uk for further information and tickets.

Photo Credit: Darren Bell

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