Edward Albee's
Three Tall Women
Reviews
Irina Brown's economical production gives it, and all the emotional and tonal shifts in Albee's complex text, plenty of space to resonate. Brown clearly appreciates the value of stillness, and during the first act, when the dialogue is dominated by A's reminiscences, she wisely keeps Diane Fletcher's wry but solicitous B and Anna-Louise Plowman's sharp, patronising C at the margins, allowing Marjorie Yates's excellent A to bask in the spotlight. Yates beautifully captures A's contradictions: she is proud, needy, vicious and vulnerable all at once. Small wonder that, in the second act, when all three actresses take up her story, Plowman's C shrinks in horror from the reality that this is her destiny. This is not a flashy production; but its unadorned precision is the perfect accompaniment to Albee's elegant dance of death.
THE TIMES **** 4 May 2006
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,14936-2163417,00.html
Finely-balanced performances in a sympathetic production.. strikingly beautiful..But what makes Brown's sensitively-handled production are the three well-balanced performances...Marjorie Yates, an unfussy, truthful actor, clarifies the old woman's path through sadness and laughter...Diane Fletcher's quicker-moving 52-year old lives in present-day rage, being highly impressive in her major flight of furious disappointment.. And Anna-Louise Plowman matches these fine performers in her smiling, light-mannered youngster, full of initial certainty...Will I be like that? How did I get from there to here? Such frequently asked questions about ourselves are presented with deeply-moving clarity in this fine production.
REVIEWSGATE.COM 4 May 2006
Gripping stuff...always beautifully acted and directed and a credit to producer Tish Francis who is responsible for this latest 'home-grown' Playhouse production.
OXFORD MAIL 4 May 2006
This production is an ideal showcase for the quality of the writing ... holding the audience in its grip from the moment the action starts... Marjorie Yates, Diane Fletcher and Anna-Louise Plowman all give nuanced and polished performances, It would be unfair to single out any individual in such a strong ensemble piece... an outstanding piece of theatre. It is touring to Guildford and Cambridge and would certainly grace the West End should the opportunity arise. The performances deserve that sort of exposure. Go!
Dailyinfo 3rd May
http://www.dailyinfo.co.uk/reviews/feature/927/Three+Tall+Women
Razor-sharp timing, powerful performances and some beautifully crafted writing make Three Tall Women a thought-provoking and moving experience. Albee tackles the themes of ageing, change and death with dexterity and dramatic power. There is a danger when writing a play about the elderly to veer towards the overly sentimental, however, Albee retains a devilishly dark sense of humour throughout this play, and his heroine, whilst intriguing and seductive, is certainly never sentimentalised.
The play focuses on the life of 'A', an imperious, commanding matron in her nineties. In a series of monologues, she reflects on her past, its joys and disappointments, triumphs and disasters, revealing to the audience the events that transformed her from a light-hearted twenty-something into a bitter and suspicious old woman.
Albee once said 'I always think I'm writing a string quartet when I am writing a play', and the dialogue of this play really is almost musical; the timing of the interchanges is immaculately precise, and certain words and phrases are repeated throughout the play, weaving in and out like a refrain.
The work is driven by dialogue rather than action, and this is both its strength and its failure. A's monologues in the first act are beautifully written and delivered, but they are lengthy, and given that A is an almost completely immobile character, the pace did drag in places. However, the second half is flawless; the dialogue is absolutely luminous here. There is a sublime moment when twenty-six year old A looks across the room at a ninety-two year old version of herself and yells 'I will not become you.' We know, of course, that she will. Sterling stuff.
Another feather in the cap for Tish Francis who is steadfastly putting the Oxford Playhouse on the map as a producer in its own right.
Reviewed for Theatreworld by Anna Michelle Jordan Thurs 27th April - Sat 13th May
'Less accomplished actresses might well have failed, but Marjorie Yates as the woman at 91, Diane Fletcher as the 52-year-old version and Anna-Louise Plowman as the still-unmarried 26-year-old all draw out whatever meaning lies in their lines, and director Irina Brown has obviously worked hard in helping them to achieve this.'
ROGUES AND VAGABONDS 3 MAY 2006
http://www.roguesandvagabonds.co.uk/cgi-bin/newslist.pl?bid=9008
