Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 10 June 2009

Keith Fleming as Peer Gynt (Photo - Manuel Harlan)

THEY SAY ignorance is bliss and this certainly turned out to be the case for me when I witnessed the National Theatre of Scotland & Dundee Rep’s co-production of Peer Gynt. I knew nothing about the play when I walked into the theatre, and that meant that was I saw was an amazing revelation.

The play began in the Foyer of the theatre when the place was suddenly invaded by a drunken wedding party. It was the sort of wedding reception we have all been to and dread. Everyone was drunk and emotional, singing off-key pop songs and always on the verge of a fight. Then the wedding guests simply wandered into the theatre and on to the stage and the play began.

What unfolded on the stage was an incredible piece of theatre. This is an earthy tale that rampages across the stage like a bull escaping through a market place. Peer Gynt arrived on stage dishevelled and wild-eyed after being carried away across the mountains on the horns of a huge stag.

The real question is who is Peer Gynt? He is a man struggling to find his identity. Cast out by the community because of his tall tales and drunken womanising he lives in a shack in the forest. The play follows his life as he travels from abject poverty in the woods to become a wealthy arms dealer in Africa, all the while struggling to find his true identity and walking away from the woman he loves.

I discovered later that the original author of this classic play, Henrik Ibsen, had actually believed it might be impossible to stage. This, however, was a hugely imaginative contemporary adaptation of the play by playwright and translator Colin Teevan. The original was first produced in 1876, but it has been brought right up to date for this production.

Set in today, Gynt’s struggle for identity is as modern and relevant today as it was when Ibsen first wrote this chaotic piece of drama. The adaptation constantly wrong foots the audience, and you never know what will appear next as the play takes in an amazing number of scenarios.

We are treated to a surreal scene as Gynt travels into the underworld of mountain Trolls and is seduced by the daughter of the Troll king. There is a band of apes, a scene in the desert, and at one point a quad bike roars onto the stage, driven by a man with a pig’s head.

The whole performance moves at an amazing pace with actors changing roles with impressive ease. The set was spectacular and for this show the Empire theatre had been stripped bare, with a huge scaffolding ramp assembled on stage as the backdrop for the play.

Keith Fleming’s performance as the young Peer Gynt is excellent, a powerful portrayal of the passion and the fury of this young man as he copes with life, love and the need to find out who he is. In the second half of the production Gerry Mulgrew puts in an equally strong performance as the older Peer facing his demons as death approaches.

The play was so well acted overall that it is hard to select any particular performance, as all the roles were well performed by all the cast. Robert Patterson, however, was particularly memorable for his menacing performance as King Bastard, the ruler of the Trolls. Spinning about the stage in his electric wheel chair he was reminiscent of the emperor of Dr Who’s daleks, and he brought a chilling menace to the role.

Dundee Rep’s production helped me to remember something. It reminded me just how powerful a medium theatre can be. It reminded me why I go to plays and recaptured the fascination that was born in me when I first saw theatre in Liverpool’s Everyman. As long as you are not faint hearted enough to be put off but the foul language – and there is a lot of it – this play is a celebration of just how good theatre can be.

I intend to see it again before the company leaves town, and I’m going to read Ibsen’s original work to see if I can drink from the source of Teevan’s considerable inspiration. I have seen a lot of 5-star performances, and this show deserves even better than that. This play has broken through the ceiling; this is a 6-star show.

© John Burns, 2009

Links

• National Theatre of Scotland

• Dundee Rep Theatre

• John Burns at Purple Comedy