A reimagining of a Jacobean classic unfortunately fails to thrill

For the spectre-filled month of October, Lazurus Theatre Company have brought The Changeling to the Southwark Playhouse. By Middleton and Rowley this acclaimed Jacobean drama explores the concept of sin and how one sin often snowballs into evil and increasingly worse deeds Perhaps erroneously marketed as a thriller by Lazurus, this is less a jump scare, edge of your seats story but instead a slow expose on pride, selfishness and arrogance.

Having been written in the 1600s this play dialogue is in Early Modern English – all its unruliness and verboseness is reminiscent of Shakespeare which may make it offputting to some of the audience. Shakespeare has the benefit of being well known from GSCE English and audiences can still find a familiarity in the works and rhythm but the Changeling was hard going in all honesty. It certainly took me a few minutes to tune in my ear and I often found if any of the cast stumbled or spoke even slightly quietly I lost the gist of what they were saying.

I further dwelled on the issue of the language when on reading the programme I saw the company prided themselves on revitalising and showcasing classic works whilst making them accessible to the contemporary audience. The only nods towards this noble aim was the setting of the stage – an art deco conference table, the odd costume choice of officewear and the replacement of the ‘Madhouse’ scenes with an inhouse band. All of these felt at odds and failed to come together in a cohesive vision. Exploring the language in ways that could make the dialogue itself more accessible to those watching would have been an interesting take as would have a clear vision for this ‘boardroom style set. Instead we ended up with a few distinct directorial decisions that fell short.

The inhouse ‘Patients’ band was probably the best decision made by the company which added a bit of comedy to an otherwise miserable tale – the asylum scenes were originally intended to add levity by the playwrights so it was good to see these weren’t cut all together. Special shoutout to Mikko Juan whose song in the second half got great engagement from the audience.

The cast was undoubtedly full of talented individuals but the energy unfortunately felt mismatched. Colette O’Rourke as Beatrice Joanna was on a whole different level when it came to her delivery and characterisation – she felt fully immersed in the piece which was admirable but almost at odds with the other casts more dry delivery. Henrietta Rhodes as Diaphanta showed some real flair of attitude in her role and I wished that we’d seen more of her character. It is difficult to fault the cast for their performances as the play didn’t offer them much opportunity to delve into their characters. The dialogue often dragged on preventing much chemistry from forming between cast members as each waited for the other to finish before starting.

As an evening that promised a ‘theatrical, daring and full throttle production’ I was left wanting. With a slightly more comprehensive vision I think the cast would deliver an engaging performance but in it’s current state I found myself less dared and more damned.