Under Milk Wood, Dylan Thomas’s masterpiece, was not written
specifically as a stage play. It has been most successful as a radio
play, since the poetry of the language and style of storytelling is
more suited to concentrated listening than viewing. However, the stage
versions are always popular and this production, directed by Don
Mackay, is a new version of the 2005 Australian tour, with two of the
four actors, Kirsty Child and Allison Byrne, new to this production.
Under Milk Wood was first performed by Dylan Thomas and three actors in
America, and the four-person format is used again in this production.
The Comedy Theatre has the atmosphere for this 1930s play about life in
a Welsh village, but the squeaky seats made it difficult to catch every
word.
Veteran English actor Michael Craig opened the play as the
Narrator, but his rich voice was muted and his delivery understated. It
is always tempting to throw away lines that are so familiar to
audiences, but Thomas’ power is all in the words, so it does not work
in his case.
When Michael Craig took on the role of Captain Cat, dreaming in his
rocking chair, his performance lifted, to become lyrical and nuanced.
All the actors took on several roles, with Kirsty Child playing the
older women and Allison Byrne the younger ones, and Dion Mills playing
most of the other male roles. Child took turns as Narrator, but did not
seem comfortable in the static role. The Narrator could perhaps have
been given a chair, so that both actor and audience could focus on the
monologue.
Mills, who comes from the excellent Red Stitch Theatre, gave the
standout performance of the night. He switched from one character to
the next in an instant, endowing each with distinct physical and
emotional characteristics. One minute he would be the starchy Reverend
Eli Jenkins, the next Mr Pugh the would-be wife poisoner, and then
Willy Nilly the charming postman. Mills was not afraid to exaggerate,
and established his own repertoire of silly walks! If you are going to
stage this play as anything more than a reading, this is what you need
to do: milk the character descriptions to bring the bizarre story to
life.
Child’s and Byrne’s performances were good but patchy. Some of their
more convincing characters were Byrne’sPolly Garter, the most beddable
girl in town (with a delightful singing voice) and Child’sMrs Ogmore
Pritchard, still issuing instructions from her bed to her two husbands,
even after they had both died. The Ogmore-Pritchard scene was an
especially strong one, with the two men reacting in character to their
wife’s demands.
The set and costumes, designed by Jacqueline Lee, were simple and
effective. The characters were mostly delineated by the addition of
accessories. The set consisted of a door, a window, a table and a
rocking chair. The table doubled cleverly as a bed, with the addition
of a sheet that started life as washing on the line and a screen for
entrances. It all worked efficiently and accentuated the humour.
This is not a definitive version of Under Milk Wood, but is worth
seeing for Mills’ performance alone. By the way, the program is
substandard, with badly edited text and no central page giving
information about the production.
McPherson Touring presents Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas
Venue: Comedy Theatre, Exhibition St, Melbourne Dates: Thursday 22 February to Sunday 25 February 2007 Times: Thur 22 Feb at 8pm, Fri 23 Feb at 8pm, Sat 24 Feb at 2pm & 8pm, Sun 25 Feb at 1pm Bookings: Ticketek www.ticketek.com.au or 132 849
Short+Sweet Sydney 09: Week One
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Under Milk Wood, Dylan Thomas’s masterpiece, was not written
specifically as a stage play. It has been most successful as a radio
play, since the poetry of the language and style of storytelling is
more suited to concentrated listening than viewing. However, the stage
versions are always popular and this production, directed by Don
Mackay, is a new version of the 2005 Australian tour, with two of the
four actors, Kirsty Child and Allison Byrne, new to this production.
