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| PRODUCTION
INFORMATION |
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Written:
Gregory Murphy
Director: Ludovica
Villar-Hauser
Designer: Jason
Denvir
Costume Design: Christopher
Lione
Music Composed: Dewey
Dellay
Cast: Alison Pargeter, Nick Moran, Damian O'Hare,
Gerald Harper, Jean Boht, Deidra Morris, Edmund Kent, Chris
Garwood & Linda Thorson
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| WHERE
CAN I SEE IT? |
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4th
- 14th May
Yvonne Arnaud Guildford
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| SEE
ALSO |
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BBC
Cumbria
- 360 degree tour of Brantwood - Home of John Ruskin.
More
on John Ruskin from BBC Cumbria
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| WEB
LINKS |
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Yvonne
Arnaud Theatre
The
BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.
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| THE
THEATRE |
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Yvonne
Arnaud Theatre, Millbrook, Guildford, Surrey, GU1 3UX
Box Office:
01483 44 00 00
General Enquiries: 01483 44 00 77
Fax:
01483 564071
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The
play is based on one of the most notorious scandals in the 1800's.
In
1853 the celebrated art critic John Ruskin, his wife Effie, and
the Pre-Raphaelite painter John Everett Millais departed in high
spirits for the Scottish Highlands.
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Wonderful
staging and imaginative sets.
Photo credit Eric Richmond |
The
events surrounding the trip and the end results shocked Victorian
society.
The
Countess is based on the letters and papers of the Ruskins and Millais
found in the Bowerswell Papers at the Pierpoint Morgan Library in
New York, and on the numerous books and articles published about
the incidents it recounts.
The
play premieres Nick Moran as you have never seen him before. His
role as John Ruskin could not have been further from his famed Lock
Stock's Eddie.
I'm
not sure that his transition from film to the stage is completely
successful in this production.
I didn't
find his performance entirely convincing in the first half, although
he excelled himself in the second.
The
best performance by far was from Alison Pargeter, whose portrayal
as the mentally abused Effie stole the show.... there were several
moments where I could have happily leapt on stage and given John
Ruskin a piece of my mind (and a little bit of a slap!) in an act
of sisterhood!
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"An
absolute triumph for the cast".
Photo credit Eric Richmond |
I wasn't
sure what to expect from the play that the New York Times dubbed
" Wonderfully Witty and Erotically Charged".
I certainly
wasn't expecting to come out feeling as though I'd taken a ride
on an emotional rollercoaster!
With
more twists and turns than a dark alley in Victorian London, there
are scenes in this play when you feel like a voyeur... that you
really shouldn't be witness to such personal events.
To
convince an audience they are intruding on the private lives of
the characters, is, in this case, an absolute triumph for the cast.
Honourable
mentions must go to Linda Thorson whose stage presence illuminated
the second half and to Jean Boht and Gerald Harper, as the Ruskins
Senior whose lack of decent parenting skills could be largely blamed
for this entire turn of miserable events.
Don't
be put off by the slightly slow start, your patience will be more
than rewarded.
Are
you going to see The Countess?
E-mail us and let
us know what you thought.
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YOUR
REVIEWS OF THIS PLAY
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3
REVIEWS: LAST UPDATED 16.05.2005
"I wasn't sure what to expect from the play that the
New York Times dubbed " Wonderfully Witty and Erotically
Charged".
"My thoughts exactly and then some, not at all what I
expected.
Is it possible the text of the play has been altered significantly
after the production in America?
Has the role of Ruskin been reduced or changed in a way that
makes him less dimensional? Quite frankly, it is hard to imagine
any actor being able to convincingly portray some of the lines
give to Ruskin in the production, so many seem to come out
of nowhere.
Where is the great mind that changed the way the world thought
about art? More importantly what was Mrs. Ruskin's initial
attraction to her husband? His to her?
I was very confused. The play seems to want to emancipate
Effie Ruskin from the tag of "social climber" but
doesn't want to tell us what the basis for the marriage was
in the first place. This couldn't be all in the playing, might
we question the play itself on this count?
The story is interesting, but I don't feel I saw anything
approaching Ruskin in it. Ruskin had a great mind, we can
at least afford him that. How can the actor be asked to suggest
these qualities when the play doesn't give him the opportunities
to do so?
Perhaps the play has been revised. There is a chopped quality
to some of the scenes that suggest that. The mystery is why
revise a play that attracted such acclaim in New York.
Elena Markus 
Summer of 2000, on a trip to New York, followed a suggestion
and took in the then recently opened production of "The
Countess".
I was quite surprisingly moved by a story that I new little
about at the time. Having Ruskin drilled in at an early age,
it was a bit of a shock to see him so frankly revealed.
I found that production haunting enough and powerful enough
in memory to warrant a trip to Guildford to see the UK incarnation.
Had I known at the time it was due for a transfer, I might
have waited. Having said that, each production had and has
its strengths in memory and at present.
The Guildford production reminded me of my frustration with
the American production in that it took miles of time to get
going in the beginning but only in retrospect do you appreciate
the slowness. It takes that time to absorb the story and what
is actually going on.
What impresses most in my memory from the American production
are the scenes between Ruskin and his young wife Effie.
The lovely Ms. Pargiter is different from her US counterpart
but every bit as engaging and convincing in a different way.
Mr. Moran, whom I have noted in films, is still struggling
to find his way in this difficult part. The actor playing
Rusking from the American production was nothing short of
thrilling and perhaps, unfairly so, I am unable to divorce
that memory and see Mr. Moran's interpretation freshly.
The scene from the American production where Ruskin collapses
into madness at the end in front of his parents was one of
the most surprising and indelible theatre moments I have spent.
Likewise, the scene when Rusking tells the beautiful Effie
he believes her to be malformed doesn't even make a blip in
the Guildford production.
In New York, you could hear a pin drop as he carefully, casually,
listed her defects with the air of a professor disappointed
in a prized students marks. Quite chilling indeed. Here in
Guildford, as I say, it doesn't even make a mark.
In America, the final scene where Effie waits to be free of
Ruskin as he berates her one more time, one felt one hoped
for Ruskin some kind of help. The audience felt, due to the
actor's skill, compassion for Ruskin as much as one wished
for Mrs. Ruskin's freedom.
On the plus side for the Guildford is the dashing Mr. O'Hare
as Millais who quite surpasses his American counterpart. The
Guildford production's most fully realized scenes are those
between Ms. Pargiter and Mr. O'Hare as Everett Millais.
The lovely, Ms. Thorsen is delightful as Lady Eastlake, Effie's
advisor.
Walking away I felt I got more of the love story between Effie
and Millais but completely lost the love story between Ruskin
and Effie.
Fantastic as it might seem, from the American production,
one got the impression of a twisted, thwarted love between
the Ruskins.
In Guildford one just wants her to get away quite simply,
there are no mixed feelings for this Ruskin.
The effect, sadly, is more of a melodrama in the end, than
a complex psychological drama. Nevertheless, for those interested
in Ruskin, this is a don't miss.
Alec
I saw the production on Saturday and I did enjoy it. The acting
was good especially Nick Moran & Linda Thorson. It was
good to see Nick Moran in a part like this as it shows his
acting flexibility and how diverse his roles can be.
The first half of the play was a little stilted but this should
improve as the run continues & the actors get more comfortable
in their roles. The second half was much better and I was
intrigued to find out the reasons behind this Victorian scandal.
It was, on the whole very enjoyable with a good strong cast
who will improve as the run continues. I'm not sure however,
how long it will last in the West End but I wish it luck.
Debra.
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