Machinal

Old Vic, 02/05/24

Credit: Foteini Christofilopoulou

Final rating: ★★★ ☆ ☆

There is something to be said about a terrific ensemble that compliment a production and the lead actor. In Machinal, they walk so Rosie Sheehy can run, as she gives an astonishingly blistering performance as the Young Woman.

The play opens in rhythmic fashion, with the sounds of typewriters, filing cabinets and stamps creating a beat that the ensemble hurry about the stage to. You don’t know where to look and the chaos is packed into a tight and narrow stage. The essence of the script is in repeated – almost robotic dialogue – to emulate that of a machine I suppose. And that becomes apparent immediately as Daniel Bowerbank repeatedly utters “Hot Dog” in response to every other line in the office – or later, when mundane dialogue between the Young Woman and her new Husband, goes round in painstakingly dreary repetitive circles. Husband was played masterfully by Tim Frances – with the perfect balance of creepy, unsettling and foolish.

There were some beautifully staged elements too – as the stage is plunged into a full three minutes of total darkness, where the audience can merely hear the deep sighs as Young Woman and Young Man have an intimate affair. However it did stray into ‘drama school’ territory at times, when travelling on the Underground, with the cast moving around to emulate a busy carriage. And – given the action took place in 1hr50 with no interval – naturally there were moments where the script felt as though it went on too long and could have benefited from some minor cuts. I also felt that at times it was stretching – such as the maternity ward – where a block of light on the floor was supposed to represent Young Woman’s bed, seeing characters interact with her by talking to the floor while we watch her on a bed behind flailing her limbs. I understand the intention – to signify an out of body experience – but it didn’t work quite land for me.

I too didn’t enjoy the prison scenes, where Young Woman was stuck inside her cage – desperate and now mad. That said, the indulgent use of strobe lighting during the court scenes worked wonderfully well at keeping us hooked as her trial played out before us.

For all its efforts, Machinal captured the essence of desperation, and a spellbinding performance from Rosie Sheehy elevated the production to nearly great heights.