Could the girl next door be an international terrorist? In Martin Crimp’s legendary 1997 play, an absent character called Anne is described by her parents, friends, critics and other media types in a series of stories that, as the play’s title suggests, are both attempts to describe her - and to destroy her.
Katie Mitchell’s version offers a rich mix of multi-media effects and gut-wrenching acting, keeping a fine balance between humour and horror. On Vicky Mortimer’s television studio set, a cast of 11 tell various stories about Anne, while also satirising the musical style of nineties grunge rock and ABBA revivals, the visual style of The X Files and assorted cop shows.
As Anne’s identity morphs into the countless ways that consumer society uses images of women to sell its goods, Mitchell’s cast brilliantly conveys both the panic and joy of actors improvising.
In one spiky scene, Anne appears as a brand of car, here advertised in Russian by Dina Korzun. In another, voiced by Paul Ready, she is an American survivalist. While Liz Kettle and Zubin Varla head the panel of critics that dissect the work of Anne the suicidal artist, Kate Duchene delivers some of the most moving accounts of terror. But this is very much an ensemble piece, with starkly memorable performances by Claudie Blakley, Michael Gould, Jacqueline Kington, Helena Lymbery, Jonah Russell and Sandra Voe.
Crimp’s writing always hits the spot, and if Mitchell’s production occasionally feels as if it is staggering under sensory overload, it is always impressively imaginative and visually exciting. There’s little doubt that this production rocks.
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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