‘Mortal Pleasure’

Press, 25 July 1986, Page 4

‘Mortal Pleasure’

“The Mortal Pleasure of Wanda Lust,” by Stuart McKenzie, directed by Robin Neate and Stuart McKenzie for the Free Theatre and with the assistance of the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council. Running time 8 p.m. to 9.3® p.m. July 24 to August 2. Reviewed by Lindsay Clark. An excursion to the Free Theatre should always be made with the spirit of adventure running high.

For those able to shake off midwinter lethargy, an outing to "The Mortal Pleasure of Wanda Lust,” billed as "a theatrical cocktail... tasted while contemplating a deep blue sky,” will prove a rewarding though sometimes tantalising experience. Stuart McKenzie’s latest play at the Free Theatre, following “The Rapist Over Suzannah” and “A Letter from L,” together with his phonetic poem, “The Joffongract,” establishes him as an inventive and enterprising writer with a certain macabre flair.

Wanda Lust, scientist extraordinary, explores through her lover’s memory the territory of the imagination. Images stimulated by her "suicide machine” are enacted for her and the audience before Endal Lust’s reluctant gaze.

Eventually however, it

is Wanda’s own suicide we witness — and even then there is a cyclical repetition of the opening scene, so that the exploration of the territory of the imagination has landed us neatly back at the anticipatory stage.

There is a distinct indulgence implicit in the play and embodied in the production. Frequent word play, “rewinds” of the images, tongue-in-cheek delivery and burlesque action all contribute to the highly coloured vision the audience is invited to share.

The good-humoured reception suggests that midwinter tolerance is alive and well. The programme notes suggested that the two main characters were intended to reveal “those aspects of love and hate, sincerity and flippancy, control and dependence that constitute a relationship” in a fully rounded way. In the event they lost clarity against the vivid and engaging antics of the images set physically and figuratively between them and the onlooker.

Among the cast, Christine Rogers as Wanda Lust and Charles Heywood as Endal Lust produced confident performances, though vocally neither was vigorous enough to carry the enjoyably heady script, and their colloquial everyday

exchanges also fell a little flat. From the supporting players (Bea Cheer, Rudolf Boelee, Stuart McKenzie, Lara Strongman, and David McKenzie) came positive contributions, well received. Rudolf Boelee and Robin Neate created an interesting, workable set, stimulating curiosity and speculation before any action took place. Similarly, Lara Strongman’s costume and make-up design sustained the exuberant spirit of the total enterprise, and Roy Montgomery’s technical responsibilities on the whole worked well. The suicide machine itself, designed and constructed by Evan Webb, deserves special mention as a metaphorical and functional focus for the play. It whined, blinked and radiated its way well and truly into our imaginations, though in the manner of children and animals it soon became a dangerous distraction. Even the programme is a stimulating experience — with far more material than most breathless arrivals could absorb.

Over all the production' is a satisfying excursion into theatre where plenty happens; there is visual sparkle and enough intellectual puzzlement to last well through late night coffee.