| A cuckold weeping in his Y-fronts |
At Louche Theatre |
| Louche Theatre- The Ruffian on the Stair , Aberystwyth Arts Centre , May 13, 2006 |
Last night’s performance of ‘The Ruffian on the Stair,’ by Louche Theatre was not the first time the play had been performed under this company name. Although many of the production’s current cast would have been incredibly young during Louche’s previous performance of this play in the early eighties, this does not dampen the proceedings at all. It is, however, a testament to the resonance of ‘The Ruffian on the Stair,’ and its mature and convincing cast, that the play communicates so well with a contemporary audience. It does so by the quality of the writing, and by the important part ‘The Ruffian on the Stair’ plays. in Twentieth century theatre. First performed at the Royal Court Theatre in 1966, it was written, like all of Orton’s plays, during theatre’s ongoing conflict with the Lord Chamberlain’s office, the official censors of the London Stage. It was these ongoing conflicts that led to the eventual abolition of the Lord Chamberlains Office in 1968, though sadly, Orton’s death in 1967 meant that he was unable to reap the benefits of this. This has not supressed Orton’s influence, which can be seen in the work of such playwrights as Sarah Kane and Mark Ravenhill. Directed by Harry Durnall, ‘The Ruffian on the Stair,’ is a naturalistic piece first written and performed in 1966 and deals with, amongst other things, homosexuality at a time when gay relations were still illegal. It wasn’t until 1967 that the Sexual Offences Act was passed; allowing men over the age of 21 to have sex with each other. Orton’s work might have upset some of the British theatre going public but it was certainly topical. The play opens and takes place in a London bed-sit which is home to Mike (David Glaysher) and Joyce (Sharon Williams). There home is rather run-down though homey, a comfortable, if somewhat tatty setting, though from the beginning, in which we see the two actors unflinchingly rutting in the onstage bed, we know that in spite of the familiar and secure surroundings, the play itself will be anything but. Mike, it seems, is something of a chancer, who’s involved in a number of shady dealings, while his partner Joyce is completely oblivious. Likewise Joyce, a dim and dowdy housewife figure, is not entirely what she seems. Into this London bed-sit enters Wilson (Zack Polanski), an erratic young man with a death wish and a score to settle, and its from here on in that the plays violent denouement is inevitable. Although from the commencement of the play we are given nothing to suggest that the character of Mike is anything more than a rather despicable specimen who has nothing to redeem himself other than his love for Joyce, he turns out to be far worse than the audience suspects. However, he is ultimately a rather pathetic figure (in both senses of the word), who at one moment is a slimy, repulsive hit man, and a seeming cuckold the next, weeping in his Y-fronts and socks. Sharon Williams as Joyce portrays a woman who has a more sordid past than her domestic exterior would imply. As the play progresses we are unsure whether or not she is the victim of an overactive and paranoid imagination or more aware of the danger that Wilson represents to her and Mike’s idyll than her street-wise partner. Lastly it is Zack Polanski as Wilson who shatters the veneer of respectability the play first proposes. Demanding both revenge for the murder of his dead lover, and release from his grief, it is this character who perhaps is most difficult to pin down. Currently on tour throughout Wales and Ireland, ‘The Ruffian on the Stair,’ is a unique chance to see one of the forefathers of contemporary theatrical writing at his best. |
Reviewed by: Melissa Dunne |
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