Salomé review, Olivier Theatre

Say the name, Salome, and immediately there's a vision of a young woman holding the head of John the Baptist. And that's as much as I knew as the lights went down on an extraordinary production in which the story of the young Salome is told by her older self. The style is appropriately archaic, lots of declaiming and prancing and some extraordinary live singing which is both thrilling and terrifying.  Game of Thrones came to mind on a number of occasions, except this is all supposedly true. To reinforce the point,  John the Baptist performs his role entirely in the language of the Bible: Aramaic.

Another reason we remember Salome is for the Dance of the Seven Veils - she is a seductress. In Yaël Farber's production she is an abused nymphette, constantly pawed and ultimately raped by her uncle, before being forced to bare herself for his friends. It's a deeply moving series of scenes somewhat brought short by the unveiling. As Salome, Isabella Nefar clearly did not wish to bear all. The final piece of clothing drops to reveal a kingsize merkin sitting on her pubis like a bear pelt. Surreal, yes, but totally appropriate to a piece of theatre where after a while you lose sight of what's going on.

And yet I enjoyed Salome. It was like an-out-of-body experience: camp yet evocative, harrowing yet banal. Adam Cork's music, the lights, and the brilliant use of the revolving stage, ooze atmosphere. Placed to the side of proceedings I could actually read the translations of John the Baptist's utterances. In the role, Ramzi Choukair looks like the bear from which the merkin pelt was seized. He is loud, powerful, determinedly foreign - a salutary reminder when people so often discredit the Middle East, that all the great Biblical figures including Christ, were early, swarthy, Jewish folk.

In conclusion: I loved Salome because it was mesmeric. I loved that the excellent leads were of Middle Eastern heritage. The music was great. But...  friends in other parts of the theatre were less enamoured. They thought it dry, and unclear. What I found amusing, they found risible. They were all raised with this story and I wasn't. That might be the clue to whether or not you'll enjoy it.


Salome, Olivier Theatre, National Theatre, South Bank, London SE1   Run ends July 15

Picture taken from susanhilferty.com