Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Underneath the Lintel



Starring Richard Schiff - previously seen on TV's 'The West Wing'. This play is currently been performed at London's Duchess Theatre. An amazing one-man show - only one act but Richard Schiff is on stage (alone) for 80 minutes - and how well he does it too! He holds the audience from the moment he walks on stage. This is a voyage of self discovery. The play begins with the actor arriving on stage with the pretence of giving a lecture about what? An ex-librarian becomes obsessed with discovery the truth behind the book he finds in the returns file - it is over a century overdue. He then attempts to trace the owner of the book through a dry cleaning ticket from London, a tram ticket from Bonn, and so on and so on. This is good, old-fashioned story telling, and depends so much on the abilities of the actor - it is a monologue but Schiff uses his voice and body and the few artifacts with tremendous skill. There are a few visual aids, and some sound effects, but remarkably understated. Schiff's self discovery is about religion, the existence of God and about a man finding out about himself and his relationship with the world.
A remarkably good play. Rating: 8/10

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