Reviews

St Joan of the Stockyards review at Bristol Old Vic by Vivienne Kennedy

Posted on: 2016-01-16

The play has chilling parallels to present-day life, illustrating the basics of capitalism and demonstrating how detached those in the ruling minority are from the plight of the working minority; the gap between the two growing ever wider.

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Vivienne Kennedy reviews St Joan of the Stockyards, playing in the studio at Bristol Old Vic until Saturday 16th January 2016.

This is an important year for Bristol Old Vic, Britain’s oldest continuously-working theatre, as it celebrates its 250th anniversary with an exciting programme of productions and events. The theatre’s Young Company have kicked things off this week with their version of Bertolt Brecht’s St Joan of the Stockyards, and boy have they set the bar high.

Brecht wrote the play, which is based on the story of Joan of Arc, between 1929 and 1931. It was performed on radio in 1932 but didn’t become a theatrical production until 1959, three years after Brecht’s death.  Director Nik Partridge has trimmed the four-hour epic into an action-packed two hours and the Young Company fill every minute with a buzzing energy.

It’s set in Depression-era Chicago where thousands of meat packers have found themselves out of work due to corporate manipulation and an over-production crisis. It’s winter, the gates to the packing plants are locked, the masses are starving...and ready to revolt.

Enter Joan Dark, a member of The Black Straw Hats (a fictional religious group, akin to The Salvation Army), a fearless idealist who lives to challenge oppression and injustice in the firm belief that people, even corrupt businessmen, can change.

Image credit Camilla Adams

The play has chilling parallels to present-day life, illustrating the basics of capitalism and demonstrating how detached those in the ruling minority are from the plight of the working (or no longer working) minority; the gap between the two growing ever wider.

It’s a serious subject but played in a darkly comic way with some fantastic original music by Ben Osborn and some stunningly effective (and incredibly well rehearsed) work by Movement Director Maisie Newman. I found myself forgetting that the performers aren’t professionals; they are faultless in their delivery.

Perfectly cast as the female and male lead, Kate Alhadeff and Joshua Robinson were strong and believable, but it’s very much an ensemble piece and Marco Adduocchio, Richard Ainsley, Bethan Barke, Leah Bierman, Peggy Edwards, Rosa Fryer, Julia Head, Hannah Hecheverria, Zoe Hitchen, Matt Landau, Natalie Machale, Jack Orozco Morrison, Sophia Raee, Iben Robinson, Ellie Roser, Monica Silkenas, and Kizzie Tims, who each switched effortlessly between as many as five roles, deserve equal credit. Watch out for those names, in years to come they will be in theatre programmes and on TV and movie cast lists galore.

Unfortunately St Joan of the Stockyards only had a short run, it opened on Wednesday and the two final performances, both sold out, were today, Saturday 16th January. But look out for Bristol Old Vic Young Company’s next production; they never disappoint.

For further information visit www.bristololdvic.org.uk

Reviewed by Vivienne Kennedy for 365Bristol where local information matters.

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