The Royal Court Theatre
|
The stage, which was a wooden box with one opening to see through and a small letter ‘B’ stuck on the front, was raised by metal construction poles, as if floating in the air. Due to the fact the stage resembled a construction site, this reflected the fact that Alejandra and Marcela’s plan to plant bombs was still being created and in some ways, open to change. When the play began, the front wall of the stage was lifted to reveal a simple, grey room, decorated with four chairs, a lamp, a table, some cacti and black balloons which hung from the walls; it was in this room that the whole play took place. This can be seen as a symbol of Alejandra and Marcela’s plans never making any change, because it was confined to one room.
|
Lighting and sound were used cleverly to convey the serious tone and mood of the story. Little music was used, meaning it was just the character’s voices and the silence that comes with conspiracy. However, when there was music, it was the monotonous echoes of beating drums, which were quickened to build up intensity in Marcela’s monologue. The use of lighting and colours helped shape the flow and storyline; at the beginning, there were warmer yellow hues, and towards the end, colder blues and greys, which helped create an uncertain, unstable atmosphere, when the trio (Alejandra, Marcela and José Miguel) were discovered by a policewoman.
|
Aimée-Ffion Edwards, Danusia Samal, Paul Kaye and Sarah Niles (who played Marcela, Alejandra, José Miguel and Carmen(the neighbour) - respectively) all gave captivating performances, portraying the characters well in a deep, sombre piece and had the audience grasping onto their seats, waiting to see what happens next. Guillermo Calderón explores themes, such as the fight for power, or an economic hierarchy in society, which are present today, and therefore gives the audience some understanding as to why some people would want to plant bombs and harm others.
|
One of my favorite parts of the play was the abstract aspect and how movement was used to convey this: for example, the intermittent bright-blue light on stage and blackouts towards the end, where the characters would run around on stage, screaming frantically and tearing down the black balloons, whenever the stage was blue. At the beginning, the trio wore makeshift headscarves, covering all but their eyes, which meant the audience discovered their characters through their movement around stage, body language and gestures.
|
As the play tackles serious themes, it was sometimes hard to fully understand what was going on, because the story was complex. Therefore, I would recommend this to the ages of 12+.
Overall, B is a thought-provoking, intellectual piece of theatre, and, although not for everyone, as it is serious play with strong language, it is perfect if you are looking for something different that will leave you with questions.