Theatre review - Dorian at The Brewery Arts Centre

Dorian (Rick Ferguson) and Harry (Chris Casey)

As the picture in the attic of Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray bore the brunt of an ageing, imperfect body when published in 1890, so the human takes the strain of the perfect image on social media in the 21st century – and the implications for self and those around us are explored in Proper Job Theatre Company’s contemporary re-telling of the classic novel says Karen Morley-Chesworth.

This touring production brings the colliding worlds of father and son into stark focus – the middle-aged widower Dorian played by Rick Ferguson seeks to regain his youth, appeal and the perfect body. His son, Sam played by Neil Balfour yearns to been appreciated for his music yet his appearance leads him into a downward spiral of bulimia. The catalyst for both is the false, fake and impossible to achieve images of themselves created online. The idea that you have to look right to get people to listen to you.

Chris Casey as the gym instructor, the detached and terrifying Harry is financially gaining from the myth of creating the perfect human body to order – yet at a cost to his own mental health and wellbeing. We all have the flyer for the 10 per cent off to ‘Get hench with Harry’.

Sam’s girlfriend Sarah, played by Elizabeth Harborne is the online ‘spiritual wellbeing’ guru and Photoshop master creating the unachievable images of self which fuels the anxiety and depression in all who look at their own ‘perfect’ image.

This one-act play packs a punch and makes you question your own view of body image and use of social media. When we start talking to the images on the screen rather than the person in front of you – and when the self becomes more important than our own social group – we are heading for disaster.

This brilliant play is a true tragedy, which we can see around us, outside the safe walls of the theatre. It is a warning which these four actors distil with perfection to dismiss our own goals of the unachievable. It is a warning of the ‘monster in the mirror’ we all need to face up to.

This is also a very beautiful piece of theatre to watch. Proper Job Theatre Company has their ‘roots’ in the Russian theatre technique of Meyerhold’s Biomechanics – where their emphasis is on the training and the process, which results in physically precise, visually exciting and dynamic work.

This is most clearly seen in Ferguson’s portrayal of Dorian where his movements capture the transition from hunched, uncoordinated ageing body to bodybuilder caricature. The face-off workout scene between Ferguson and Casey is another high-point of drama where the physicality of the actors magnifies the interaction between the two characters.

And the confrontation between Ferguson and Harborne as she tried to connect with her boyfriend’s father to hold up a true mirror to what he has become and what he is in danger of losing is beautifully choreographed to maximise the impact of their lines.

Music plays a major role in this production, and Balfour’s interpretation of the score beautifully adds colour and texture to the performance – as does his to camera break down scene, taking the audience from laughter to concern within seconds.

The use of selfie filming and big-screen sharing of live recordings brings the virtual world into the real world – and help the audience to wrestle with the ethics and dilemmas of the storyline as it unfolds before us.

The play was written by a poet, Andrew McMillan who has struggled with his own body image issues, eating disorders and unhealthy relationship with gym workouts. This is a play written with passion and deep understanding of the issues, which bring the story of the Dorian Gray and warnings of the dangers of narcissism and self-image to a new audience, in a new way which could save lives.

The programme comes with information on support services and helplines for those living with eating disorders, and the Kendal performance after-show ‘audience with’ the actors also included a representative from the local suicide support charity, Action for Wellbeing – whose message is ‘One death by suicide is one too many’. As she explained three times more people die each year in the UK due to suicide than road traffic accidents the fictional drama we watched becomes an important piece of communication about mental health issues.

This autumn tour 2019 of Dorian is both compelling and terrifying – very much like social media and visits to the gym can be. This is a production that could save – and improve lives by helping audiences to accept their beautiful and imperfect selves as they are.

4/5 stars

Dorian – Autumn Tour 2019 dates: