The Red Barn

I watched The Red Barn at the Lyttleton, National Theatre and give it a 5/5 rating.


The sets were incredible. I think Lyttleton has always been very innovative with their sets. During the entire play, what we view is controlled by an aperture that the director, Robert Icke creates and sometimes moves it around. The scene with the snow storm through a white screen with wind bellowing is almost like watching a movie. And that's how the play starts.

In a snow storm, Ray is lost and his young wife, Mona is left waiting for him at the home of the friendly couple, Donald and Ingrid Doff. And what ensues is a psychological thriller. There isn't much to tell without giving the game away. What I can say, however, is that I have been waiting to watch Mark Strong perform since I missed his A View from the Bridge last year. And perform he did! He managed to transform into this boring hen-pecked middle-aged husband with a mid-life crisis that I wasn't sure it was him at all until he took a bow at the end of the play.
Hope Davis was wonderful in her calm demeanor. And Elizabeth Debicki was well, Elizabeth Debicki, the same sexy trophy wife/girlfriend that she was as Jed in The Night Manager. There was practically no difference.

The sets, as I said, were incredible and I can go on about them. How the Dodd's home in Connecticut has low ceilings and reeks of mediocrity while Ray's New York penthouse is flashy with modernity and high ceilings. A stellar end sees an entire room move in front of your eyes, again through that aperture that Robert Icke so wonderfully manages. The play is complete treat!

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