Reviews: Farragut North @ Southwark Playhouse

Farragut North

Southwark Playhouse, October 1, 2013

The Sneeze that Brought Down Farragut North

Act 1, nearing the interval… tension is high – and in a semi-dramatic moment, the most awkward sneeze I have had the pleasure of witnessing brought Farragut North to a standstill. Well, they weren’t really standing still, both Max Irons and Aysha Kala were trying their very best to stifle their laughter. To their credit, they did an excellent job of getting back into it after they admitted their break, and the audience applauded their honesty.

           

As an American, I was skeptical to see a show performed by the English about the mechanisms of my country’s political bodies. At the end of the night, though, I walked out of Southwark Playhouse thoroughly pleased and satisfyingly entertained. It was almost strange to sit down in a theatre to watch a play about American Politics, less than 24 hours after the government shut down. In the program, it does state that the play takes place in January 2012, so this is long before this summer’s government furloughs and the recent total shut down.

            The play opens on Stephen (Irons), a startlingly young campaign press secretary for one of the runners for the Democratic Primaries for the 2012 elections. He is a star within the Democratic Party and he knows it. But no one is doing anything to temper his ego, complimented by a reporter, flirting with the hot intern– he is riding the all too powerful high of early success. But all good things must come to an end – with one phone call, that success loses all its meaning as mistakes turn to into misdeeds.

            In that first scene, when we are introduced to a majority of this small ensemble of seven actors, a very electric Irons is describing his first large campaign victory with enough energy to power the entire room. Williamson, as Paul Zara, his boss, adds to the crackling electricity in the air, feeding Irons’ energy with his own. Tucker as the reporter, Ida Horowicz, is the perfect partner to Irons in this scene, matching his energy in their dialogue with the cool calm of enlightened experience and a touch of jadedness. It’s funny, entertaining, and had me on the edge of my seat, leaning forward and pulled in by this fast-talking trio. The scenario seems impossible, the script even hints that it is, but there is an arrogant swagger and over confidence to Irons’ Stephen, that makes his success easy to believe.

As the play moves forward, we meet Molly Pearson played by the young Aysha Kole. Molly is ambitious – hell, to be an intern for a political campaign at 19, you must have something special about you. And we soon learn how special. Kala confused me at first, I wasn’t sure if I was watching someone ambitious, or love-struck, looking back, I now know I was watching both. Her relationship with Irons I found confusing, however, not because of her age like the script suggests, but I just didn’t feel the chemistry between them. There were hints here and there, but I honestly thought Irons had more chemistry with Tucker and was actually expecting that relationship to extend past the first scene.

            As the ball really starts rolling, and falling and tumbling out of control, Stephen becomes more and more desperate and one of my favorite scene changes to date occurs as a way of highlighting this. If you have not seen the play, look away now, because this is too good not to mention. The cast performs the role of stage-hand/props-run (as it was labeled at my alma mater), that’s wonderful – Director Guy Unsworth took that to new levels in Act 2 to highlight Stephen’s fall from grace. In a strobe heavy scene change, Tucker and Williamson’s characters reappear, bringing liquor to Stephen as he sits at a table while the set changes around him. It’s a moment that could have me waxing literary for days. Instead I shall just say, driving does not mix well with liquor – and that blood looked fantastic, I think my gasp was fairly audible as the lights came up.

            Someone to watch out for, both in the play and in theatre in general would definitely be Josh O’Connor as the over-eager and ambitious Ben Fowles. He starts off unassuming and hard-working but morphs quickly into an undermining and sly political devil. For my film lovers, this is definitely a All About Eve situation. One thing that really struck me, at the very end of the play, Fowles delivers a speech, I knew I was watching a young white guy, but it really felt more like I was watching President Obama speak. The pauses, the gestures and even the facial mechanics were on point, and it was more than a little chilling. O’Connor is an actor to watch out for, I feel like I can say that with a pretty safe sense of certainty.

            I really enjoyed Farragut North, I went with three of my classmates from my MA Theatre Studies at Central and we were all in agreement, evening well spent. I wouldn’t say it was five stars (or wine glasses by West End Whinger standards), but a solid four. There were times when I felt emotions were being projected rather than genuinely expressed, though from my training back in 2011, I think that’s more due to the style of drama in England. At times, my American Spidey-senses were tingling as certain words and phrases came out a tad more English than American. I would just like Mr. Irons to know that most Americans do know how to pronounce the word ‘naïve.’ I understand the American accent is not the easiest, but give us some credit. Accents aside, if you enjoy being entertained while simultaneously being educated on some of the stranger points of American Politics, this is an excellent play. At just £16 a ticket to see smart, attractive young people – this is an amazing value.