Going into this show, I honestly was not expecting much. I did not really know much about it, the poster did not seem very interesting, and the most that I actually did know was that it was over three hours long. The play was also showing in the National Theatre, which is the same place that we had seen Boys From The Blackstuff earlier in the trip, and while that show was good, it was not the best show in my opinion. So, in all honesty, I was going into this show with a relatively negative mindset towards it. The staging for the set at house open did not exactly help dispel my mistrust, as the show opened with the entire lighting rig almost to the floor, a mishmash of random chairs and tables spread throughout, and not much else of particular note.
Then the lights began to dim, and the first song (I also did not know that this show had music) began.
And I stood completely, utterly and so very happily corrected.
The show begins with the cast crawling out of the orchestra pit, quite literally dragging themselves and their story out of the River Thames, underscored by tense and foreboding music that gave me chills across my entire skin. The energy of that music remained throughout the entire show, with each song having its own equally and uniquely thrilling track behind it. The live band onstage did a fantastic job with the music, and really tied the emotional impact of the songs and scenes together. I also thought that it was a good choice to have a live band, as it better incorporated the music into the overall flow of the show, allowing the tension and energy to remain consistent throughout, as well as having an overall better, more vivid sound quality when compared to a canned music track. Having them onstage also allowed the play to utilize the orchestra pit in its choreography, which it makes great use of as a representation of the Thames.
The choreography and blocking of each of these scenes was incredible, and really helped to further envelope me in the world of this play. At the start of the show, we see Gaffer and his daughter Lizzie rowing around the tides, searching for bodies to loot and turn in for reward. To show this however, rather than just having the actors stand and pretend to be in a boat or building a full boat to have the actors use, they had two chorus members holding a plank of wood and moving it to the raucous ebb and flow of the tide. This decision allowed for greater realism in the play, which could not have been achieved through pure miming, as well as a far greater range of motion, which could not have been achieved through pure practical effects. The energy and technique of this choreography from the beginning stayed steady throughout the show, from carriage rides to party scenes to lyrical confessions of the heart. Another point where the choreography truly shined is in the fight scenes, especially with one towards the end, where two characters fought each other within the raging tide. As they fought, a translucent sheet of plastic was waved and shaken in front of them to give the image of the tide enveloping them as they fought, slowly succumbing to its force and drowning in the Thames. This scene was a visual spectacle and not only showed impressive choreography and acting ability for the two fighting, being able to keep the fight going even with that sheet constantly battering against them.
One part of the fight there did fall a tad flat for me, however, as while watching their movements, it did not seem like they were impeded by being under the tide at all. They moved quickly and fluidly enough that it could more believably be on the ground, which did take me out of the scene a little bit. The acting and performances for the rest of the show, however, were incredibly well done. Each of the actors portrayed their characters with such emotionality and energy that they seemed like real people. The characters had an intensity in their songs and scenes that gave me goosebumps almost throughout the entire show, and the comedic timing of the cast was on point, and helped to keep the energy while lowering the dramatic intensity that made up the majority of the show. The actress for Miss Potterson, Crystal Condie, did an especially good job at being able to move between that line of dramatic and comedic, with her scenes and lines being split almost evenly between the two extremes, and her ability to carry both of them with an equal amount of quality. I especially liked how she used the stage space, particularly when it was in the bar setting, making use of many of the props lying around to help it feel more alive.
The set design for this show was somewhat bare, and relied mostly on lighting, which worked absolutely perfectly. The lighting rig for the show became an integral part of its design, with the lights moving up and down to help frame and shape the stage, and moving in time with the action of the show. There are multiple times when the lights of the show move in a wave pattern, just like the tides of a river, reminding us of the story’s permanently entangled relation to the river itself. The characters and the stories are washed beneath the tide, and everything about the set, from the movement of the lights to the prominence of rotted dock wood planks, is used to remind us of that fact.
The story of London Tide ebbs and flows between states much like a river. Its characters go through great hardship and great fortune all throughout, never settling to a steady calm. Overall, London Tide truly surprised me as the phenomenal piece of theatre it ended up being, and while I may not have talked about everything I wanted to (I could easily go on for another 1000+ words) I would highly recommend this show to anybody who has a chance to see it.
And it really needs to change its poster.
Theatre in London U of A 