Lost in the Wild

If only third time lucky always worked out. With another long-winded, lacklustre display from the Orange Tree, I am starting to lose patience with Paul Miller’s tenure at this fantastic theatre.

A rare early work by the Nobel Prize winning Doris Lessing, _Each his own Wilderness _is branded a play about politics with all the passion usually reserved for sex. Although there are a number of interesting and lively passages, the piece is let down by an unnecessarily long runtime and a lack of coherence in deciding its theme.

Set in 1958 London, 22 year old Tony returns from National Service to find his mother, Myra, the same bohemian activist she’s always been. Cold and disillusioned, Tony’s anger and deep political scepticism provides a lively contrast to his mother’s idealism. With a supporting cast made up of Myra’s current and former lovers, the whole political spectrum is entertainingly represented. Despite the political topic of choice, the H-bomb, having somewhat lost its significance in the last 50 years, discussion on the indifference of the young to politics and the futility of protest movements stays remarkably relevant today.

Unfortunately, while the play’s political message is rather enjoyable (for those who can stand politics), the relationship between Tony and his mother falls a little flat. Unpleasant and bitter, Tony’s anger comes across as distinctly adolescent, despite a superb performance by young RADA graduate Joel MacCormack. Similarly, Clare Holden works well in the role of Myra, but both characters are plagued by a lack of development from start to finish.

It also doesn’t help that a number of the supporting roles are a little subpar. Roger Ringrose as Mike plays a naïve, elderly Labour politician who has been openly in love with Myra for years. His performance is what one would expect from such a character but remains rather unexciting. In contrast, Phillip, played by John Lightbody, is a successful architect with the confidence to match. Having had a five year relationship with Myra previously, Myra’s longing for him is entertaining but adds little to the play.

For the first half, the cast is closed out by Sandy, Myra’s 22 year old lover, and Rosemary, a young girl engaged to Phillip. In truth, Sandy’s character is remarkably refreshing; the same age as Tony, but without all the unpleasant cynicism, he provides some urgently needed relief in the early parts of the play. But the real nail in the coffin for this production is Rosemary. Incredibly uninteresting and childish, it seems Rosemary’s character has been written into the play for the sole purpose of demonstrating what it’s like to be politically clueless. I really can’t blame Rosie Holden’s performance since the character she is given to work with is dire, but she does little to find any redeeming features.

The play seems to ramble on stuck somewhere between the political and personal for the full two and a half hour runtime. Without seeming to reach much of a political conclusion and with Tony and Myra’s relationship as frayed at the start as at the finish, it all feels a little in vain. The only real highlight, apart from the brief political commentary already mentioned, is Susannah Harker as Milly, Sandy’s mother and another Bohemian friend of Myra. Sharp, witty and with a far more reasonable tone than many of the others, Milly livens up the second half. Although there is a fair bit of tongue in cheek in the first half, Milly’s arrival really sets the ball rolling for the more comedic side of the play.

Despite what I’ve said, I don’t want to give the impression that this production is an outright failure. Particular praise must be handed to Joel MacCormack whose performance really is exceptional given what he had to work with. Equally, the performances of Josh Taylor as Sandy and Susannah Harker are fun and refreshing. The staging and scenery makes good use of the space at the Orange Tree, and although the play’s more intimate moments are a little lost in the round, the general atmosphere is enlivening.

But unfortunately, little can be done to redeem the shaky plot and lack of development in this frankly underwhelming play. It certainly wasn’t terrible, it wasn’t even particularly bad, I just expected so much more from the Orange Tree.

Each his Own Wilderness is on at the Orange Treet Theatre until May 16th. Tickets from £10. Available online