Annie Baker’s Pulitzer winning play THE FLICK an off Broadway hit arrives at the National Theatre this spring. Running at three and a half hours, this story about a falling Massachusetts cinema and the people who work there proves to be a hard watch, yet it’s strength comes from pioneering and unusual directorial choices.Avery (Jaygann Ayeah), a young African American gets a job at THE FLICK, a shabby and run down old cinema, its days of glory long gone. He is being trained at his new workplace by Sam (Mathew Maher) a thirty-something film geek whose life is far from perfect. Whilst chatting about movies and cleaning the cinema’s rows Avery soon becomes friends with Sam and the cinema’s operator Rose (Louisa Krause). But as the story slowly unfolds and the characters grow closer to each other so too grows our understanding of their desperation and inability to connect with others.
The complexity of the characters in Baker’s THE FLICK is what makes Sam Gold’s production gripping at times; in many slow and intimate moments, acted by an ensemble of subtle yet talented actors we not only see the power of Baker’s writing but we also witness a completely new way of watching theatre. David Zinn’s design: a simple yet effective auditorium of a small movie theatre, creates a world so vivid and familiar, yet so long gone. Like Avery we feel the nostalgia of the days that have come to pass.
My main problem with this production has nothing to do with its content, but with the fact that THE FLICK is very uneven. Although Baker is a superb writer I craved more drama and less cliché jokes. I guess I wanted more Woody Allen instead of “Friends”.
Although not flawless Sam Gold’s production, full of moments where seemingly nothing happens and pauses so long that even Harold Pinter might have had enough, is like a Wes Anderson movie. It won’t be to everyone’s taste (I noted some empty seats after the interval) but despite being tedious at times due to the slow pace THE FLICK brings something different to the London stage.
PHANTOM OF THE OPERA has been an integral part of the West End for over a generation. For years, it was a sold-out success and alongside other Andrew Lloyd Webber shows such as CATS, STARLIGHT EXPRESS and EVITA spread British musical theatre around the planet. So revisiting such a show after a quarter of a century brought with it some trepidation and nostalgia. However within 5 minutes of the show’s beginning I had forgotten I was there to review and was swept up in its visual and musical splendour.