Of course we hadn’t heard of Tarell Alvin McCraney when we booked this. We simply booked it because it sounded like an interesting play, which it was.
But at the time of writing this up (March 2017), Tarell Alvin McCraney is a topical name, because he wrote Moonlight, which won the best picture Oscar a few weeks ago. Go figure. Here is a link to a recent Young Vic blog piece recognising this achievement.
Reviews were mixed:
- Michael Billington found the watery stage a bit of a distraction but still liked it – click here;
- Benedict Nightingale in The Times, similarly – click here;
- Philip Fisher in British Theatre Guide describes it as a triumph of style over content, but then waxes lyrical about the style – click here.
I must say I concur with this view. I remember the production where the Young Vic was turned into a watery stage, but I couldn’t hand on heart have told you anything about it from memory, until after I flicked through the script just now.
Perhaps Janie’s memory will do better – I’ll test that a bit later but only report back if she surprises me with profound recall.
The Young Vic published a short vid showing how they made the watery stage happen – see below.
