THE STRONGER and STORM are two short pieces written by one of the fathers of modern drama August Strindberg. THE STRONGER was dedicated to his first wife Siri von Essen, whilst STORM was written for his third Harriet Bosse. Despite his troubled love life Strindberg possessed a gift for writing multi-layered female characters but unfortunately the production of STRINDBERG’S WOMEN directed by Jacob Murray at Jermyn Street Theatre doesn’t do any justice to his writing.THE STRONGER, a dramatic monologue in which Mrs X (Sara Griffiths) addresses her husband’s mistress Mrs Y (Alice Frankham) is a perfect example of Strindberg’s interest in the female psyche and his admiration for its strength. Unfortunately the lack of direction and understanding of the language and Strindberg’s symbolism only take away from this piece. Yet Alice Frankham is fantastic to watch even though her part is non-speaking; she is a great listener and her facial expressions and stage presence bring life to what is a very stale and under-rehearsed piece.
STORM focuses on the loneliness of The Gentleman (Paul Herzog) who lives a quiet life after his wife (Sara Griffiths) has taken their child and abandoned him many years before. In spite of the fact that The Gentleman keeps reassuring everyone around him that he has accepted the past, things begin to complicate once his ex arrives at his door step. STORM could be an interesting examination of societal pressures and marital affairs but it ends up being a poorly directed, awkwardly staged production. Actors deliver their lines in a melodramatic style and seem to be very confused about where they should look or for that matter struggle to decide how to make the best use of a badly designed set. There seems to be no clear directorial decisions regarding the use of the space resulting in actors switching from shouting into distance wanting to reach someone upstairs to speaking at a normal volume, even though still addressing a character that is off stage.
However Alice Frankham (Louise) and Douglas McFerran (Mr Strong) do their best to do justice to the story; both of them possess a natural command of classical text and their characterisation is flawless.
The most important thing about classics written by authors such as Strindberg is to always find the modern relevance in the story and make sure that everyone in the rehearsal room is on the same page. STRINDBERG’S WOMEN could have had the potential to be a decent production with interesting roles for women if only more time was spent on unlocking the language and finding its nuances. One could argue that perhaps the fault lies with the translation but Michael Meyer has been a highly acclaimed translator for not only Strindberg but his contemporary Ibsen too.
If you are hoping to see some multi-layered female characters in STRINDBERG’S WOMEN you will be disappointed for it is an under developed and muddled production.
There is no questioning the talent of both the cast and creative team here – everyone is competent and able to execute their roles well. But therein is the problem; the show isn’t memorable or extraordinary enough to merit a second viewing.