The Pillowman

“The first duty of a storyteller is to tell a story”, thus speaks Katurian, the central character in Martin McDonagh’s Olivier Award winning and Tony nominated play, The Pillowman.

Set ‘once upon a time’ in an anonymous totalitarian police state ‘far away’, McDonagh gives all four of his major characters stories to tell and in so doing poses the conundrum: do we shape the stories we tell or do they shape us? This is brutal, confrontational, disturbing, darker than dark modern theatre at it’s most exhilarating best and with a wickedly macabre sense of humour.

Director Megan Dansie has not missed a beat: gathering a good production team and an extremely strong cast around her, she delivers an enthralling and brilliant production dripping with well directed tension and comedy, while always having her actors maintain a credible sense of light and shade..

Michael Kumnick’s set gives us a great visual delineated line between fairytale (upper stage level of the Little Theatre) and the real (lower stage level) - the real being represented by a blood soaked and stained bunkeresque (there must always be something ‘esque’) interrogation room cum cell. Place Tim Allen’s lighting design on it and the stage becomes an atmospheric heaven (or more accurately) Hell.

As ‘bad’ cop, Ariel, Gary George is suitably brutish in his physicality and language and is the perfect foil for Tony Busch’s ’good’(?) cop, Tupolski. Busch is a strong actor who knows and practices the art of perfect timing incredibly well - this role seems almost written to utilise his talents to the nth degree. His understanding of the power of mind games is eerily unsettling.

Newcomer Robert Bell is stunning as ’slow’ brother Michal, masterfully evoking equal amounts of sympathy and repulsion from the onlooker. His scene with his brother, Katurian (Bart Csorba) is sheer theatrical magic.

As the major storyteller, Csorba is immensely compelling. This is an actor who knows when to underplay and when to peak, to perfection. When he tells a story, one listens: when he acts, one watches.

Strong principal roles need strong support and with Steve Marvanek, Lucy Sutherland and Kate Vanderhorst on board, that support is the strongest.

With themes such as child molestation and mutilation, abuse, retardation, police brutality and torture involved, this may not be the play to take your maiden aunt or first date to, but it is a MUST SEE for anyone who proclaims that they are a lover of true theatre.

Warning: you may never want to listen to “The Pied Piper Of Hamlym” or eat another apple ever!