August 15, 2006
"I stand before you on legs of fire!" proclaims Ashley Harvey from the spotlit balcony of the Old Fire Station, as director Bruce Delamitri, accepting his Oscar for the Natural Born Killers-style movie Ordinary Americans. But his moment of glory doesn't last long: the Mall Murderers, a dysfunctional couple on a killing spree who are suspiciously similar to his hero and heroine, are breaking into his house and it's all downhill from there.
Ben Elton's pitch-black comedy is a play about characters who are conscious at every moment of being in front of an audience, who in situations of deadly peril snap at each other not to slouch on camera, who believe they can be redeemed by being on national TV, and it's a very interesting experience being part of that audience – even before the spotlight is turned on us.
Harvey, one of the founders of BMH Productions which aims "to fill the gap between the adult companies and the youth companies of Oxford", is excellent as the blustering, bewildered Delamitri. Wayne and Scout, the Mall Murderers (Benjamin Watts and Kerry Chaundy), are also fascinating – he an explosive combination of cunning and hair-trigger rage, she a dizzy, vulnerable idealist fiercely loyal to her kill-crazy boyfriend.
Early on, the second half seems to sag a little compared to the first, even though there's considerably more action-movie carnage – there are also more speeches which don't always ring completely true, and it seems the satire works better when it's being shown, not told. Still, the tension builds until in the end the play becomes a battle between two directors to control what gets seen on the screen, with everyone's lives in the balance.
Some of the accents were unconvincing and the closing speeches came across rather shakily, but for the most part this was very absorbing – a play with a lot to say and, despite the many laughs, a bitter sting in its tail.
Ben Elton's pitch-black comedy is a play about characters who are conscious at every moment of being in front of an audience, who in situations of deadly peril snap at each other not to slouch on camera, who believe they can be redeemed by being on national TV, and it's a very interesting experience being part of that audience – even before the spotlight is turned on us.
Harvey, one of the founders of BMH Productions which aims "to fill the gap between the adult companies and the youth companies of Oxford", is excellent as the blustering, bewildered Delamitri. Wayne and Scout, the Mall Murderers (Benjamin Watts and Kerry Chaundy), are also fascinating – he an explosive combination of cunning and hair-trigger rage, she a dizzy, vulnerable idealist fiercely loyal to her kill-crazy boyfriend.
Early on, the second half seems to sag a little compared to the first, even though there's considerably more action-movie carnage – there are also more speeches which don't always ring completely true, and it seems the satire works better when it's being shown, not told. Still, the tension builds until in the end the play becomes a battle between two directors to control what gets seen on the screen, with everyone's lives in the balance.
Some of the accents were unconvincing and the closing speeches came across rather shakily, but for the most part this was very absorbing – a play with a lot to say and, despite the many laughs, a bitter sting in its tail.