REVIEW -- THE CARETAKER by HAROLD PINTER

The Dukes, Moor Lane, Lancaster
Thursday 9 March to Saturday 1 April 2006

A cracking production of a landmark play

The theatre work of Nobel Laureate Harold Pinter (b1930) is not everyone's idea of a fun night out. Some people -- including me - find The Caretaker, his early triumph of 1957, less accessible than his later work. As with much Pinter dialogue, the text of The Caretaker is not dissimilar to the nihilistic existentialism of Samuel Beckett, whose monumental Waiting for Godot was written in 1952.

That said, The Caretaker is arguably a classic landmark, as is the Beckett and, as such, has every right to be revived, particularly in the light of Pinter's Nobel Prize for Literature last year. So brave and timely it was that The Dukes' decided to put it on -- and the decision was taken before the Nobel was announced, too, I gather.

The choice of the Studio for this particular play was an excellent notion. Pinter is nothing if not about intimate, sometimes claustrophobic theatre, and the close proximity of the audience to the action, on all four sides, added to the drama.

Staging was authentically 1950s tatty London bedsit, complete and replete with clutter. Costume too matched the period, and the ‘savvern' accents were convincingly delivered. The three characters -- the bumbling and forlorn Davies, the spivvy and violent Mick and the unhappy and withdrawn Aston were intelligently and powerfully played by Colin Procktor, Alun Raglan and Keith Woodason respectively.

Ian Hastings' direction showed yet again his sharp eye and ear, and his superb attention to detail. No gesture, movement or line was wasted - quite the contrary: every single nuance (and pause, of course) beautifully and sensitively underpinned and highlighted Pinter's text.

Set, lighting and effects further intensified the drama. The audience, alert to the black humour of the dialogue (yes, there's more than you'd think), were spellbound -- me included - by this impressive, cracking production.

Copyright © 20 March 2006 Michael Nunn