Passion Play review, Duke of York's Theatre

Every marriage is a heartbeat away from implosion. That is the message in Peter Nichol's Passion Play, and those of us who've been around long enough - as long as James and Eleanor who revel in their love and compatibility after 25 years together - know too well that all it takes is one moment of madness to forever change the dynamic between two people.

Egalitarian James and Eleanor have always believed they are above petty sexual jealousy. Until it happens to them. What's so clever about the play is the device Nichols uses to map their internal conflicts. James, played by Owen Teale, and Eleanor, Zoe Wanamaker, are shadowed by their inner voices, Jim and Nell.  Both partners have secrets, but nothing as explosive as James' decision to secretly continue his affair with sexy Kate after Eleanor finds out. As Nell and Jim, Samatha Bond and Oliver Cotton brilliantly mimic Teale and Wanamaker's voices and movement as the couple's internal and external struggles are interwoven to create a complex whole. It's a very funny and a very uncomfortable watch as they struggle to make sense of what is happening to them.

Annabel Scholey, as the femme fatale who befriends the wife while screwing the husband,  has an unforgiving - and unforgiveable - part in proceedings which she pulls off with aplomb. It is a deeply unsettling to have exposed, the fragility of love - or the approximation of love that holds people together. They say there is a secret at the heart of every marriage, but how much do we know ourselves? Our vulnerabilities open us to exploitation by others, because we are blind to them.

In conclusion: The ending of the play does not ring true because the effect wrought on Eleanor is not consistent with her behaviour at the beginning, but this doesn't stop it being a highly accomplished and elegant piece that will disturb the psyche for a long time after the curtain comes down.

References:
Duke of York's Theatre, Tickets
Charles Spencer review in The Daily Telegraph


Duke of York's Theatre, St Martin's Lane, London WC2N 4BG      Run ends 3 August