If asked to name a play by Yasmina Reza, surely every avid
theatregoer would suggest Art, the play that achieved global
success in the last decade of the millennium and cemented
Reza’s reputation as a talented playwright. But her first
theatrical work, written in her native French and only translated
into English after the triumph of Art, is just as intricately
constructed. Director Andrea Ferran has chosen a play which is rarely
performed, yet full of subtlety, and with the help of a competent
cast and an acute sense of the tragic, she has created a
production of unusual humanity. The play is concerned with the responses of two brothers and a
sister to the death of their father, coupled with the
complications developing from the unwelcome presence of Elisa
(Cassie Browne), formerly the mistress of one brother and now in
love with the other. The burial of the corpse has unearthed hidden enmities which
force themselves to the surface despite great efforts to conceal
them. The cast rise admirably to this challenge, presenting a
crowd of characters all unable to express themselves properly to
each other. Edith (Poppy Burton-Morgan), the wistful daughter, sits with
her knees clasped to her as if trying desperately to protect
herself, and her brother Nathan (Alex Baker) represses his inner
turmoil under masculine bravado. The stand-out performance is
that of Tegan Shohet as Julienne, trying to articulate
unutterable emotions in a faltering stammer that is
simultaneously funny and sad. The most poignant aspect of this play is that the
characterisation is instantly recognisable from reality.
Reza’s merciless portrayal of these men and women does not
sentimentalise family life at all. She has been attributed with
saying that “human beings are vile” – and judging
by this play, her insight is horrific and true.ARCHIVE: 2nd week TT 2004
Conversations After a Burial
