☆☆★★★ Wolf – A #MeToo fairytale?
Wolf is a new play by Liam Lemkin Anderson and is firmly set in the #MeToo era, although seemingly without paying much heed to the lessons that should have been learnt. Described as ‘a twisted fairytale’, Wolf was at times uncomfortable to watch as there was a genuine feeling of foreboding and unease as to the ultimate denouement of the piece.
The production synopsis neatly describes the set up as
‘Professor Hunt invites Alice to his country house (albeit at the end of the Central
line) for an evening of academic and creative guidance. As the drinks go down,
Hunt reveals that he was expecting slightly more than dinner and wine. But
Alice has a secret - one that threatens to destroy Hunt's life and career
forever.’ As with all fairytales, all is not what it seems as both characters
have an agenda - Professor Hunt’s as bright as day and sadly as old as the
hills in his lupine intentions, but Alice is ultimately an evil, manipulative
witch. And decidedly not all she would seem. Who is to blame in this slightly
tortuous setup? The answer, in my opinion, is that Hunt and Alice are indeed as
bad as each other.
"You can't be too careful, not round here. And like I say,
we really shouldn't be doing this."
Lemkin Anderson’s structure neatly uses some flashback to
explain the set up as effectively the first scene leaves the audience with a
worrying enigma as both characters are passed out in some sort of drug-induced
state, and with undoubtedly many unanswered questions. It is not until the
third scene that there is resolution/explanation.
Mark Shaer’s portrayal of Professor Hunt is assured, relaxed and
credible and it is only when he ends up naked that his character becomes
slightly unbelievable and lacks real credibility. Martha Schofield as Alice is
apparently a young woman on a mission. Not least from a student/professor
standpoint, but as a character on a mission, with a secret and a dogged
determination for a resolution of her nagging anxieties. Both actors handle the
setup with confidence, style and integrity.
My concern with Wolf is that it becomes slightly laboured and
doesn’t invest in the audiences ability to grasp what is in truth a
well-trodden plot and it would have been more challenging to explore the
relevance of the twists in the plot and those aspects that the audience may not
have experienced. Less would have definitely been more and also added to the
pace.
With little biographical background available – a cast list,
however brief would be beneficial, I am assuming this is one of Lemkin
Anderson’s early works. Wolf as a piece of writing does have great potential,
especially as multiple contemporary themes would benefit from further
exploration and expansion.
While we would traditionally boo the big bad wolf, I am not sure
that this little red riding hood is entirely the innocent that she would like
us to believe?
Wolf played at the Cockpit theatre on 31 July 2018 as part of Camden Fringe
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