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A CurtainUp 
London Review
London ReviewJerusalem
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This Wesley, is a historic day. For today, I, Rooster Byron and my band of educationally subnormal outcasts shall swoop and raze your poxy village to dust. In a thousand years, Englanders will awake this day and bow their heads and wonder at the genius, guts and guile of the Flintock Rebellion. — Johnny parodying Henry V |
Mackenzie Crook as Ginger, Mark Rylance as Byron, Charlotte Mills as Tanya, Jessica Barden as Pea, Danny Kirrane as Davey, Alan David as The Professor (Photo: Simon Annand) |
Butterworth's new Jerusalem sees the residents of the new housing estates of his play Parlour Song set against the traditional countryman and squatter. They object to the riotous parties, to the rubbish tip sofas but more than anything to the attraction Rooster's home has as a place for their teenage children to hang out, get drunk and experiment with drugs and sex. The faceless enforcers of the local authority court order seem to relish posting their notice and from the caravan there is the noise of a dog barking and then whining but we are told Byron doesn't have a dog!
Jerusalem may well be regarded as Butterworth's masterpiece with its skillful blend of comedy and tragedy which sees the remarkable Ian Rickson's return to the Court to direct. Mark Rylance is in fine form, having honed his comic timing at the Globe, his performance is pitch perfect as he manages to win a place in our hearts as the scurrilous, not a moral bone in his body, Byron. Mackenzie Crook is superbly cast as Byron's mournful but loyal acolyte, Ginger, who we first meet the day after the party to end all parties which the hapless Ginger has missed. As the events of the night before are conveyed to Ginger, Byron too has his alcohol driven selective memory jolted to reveal exactly what he got up to. It's wonderful to watch his humiliating reminder! As the tale emerges so do the characters who have been asleep on the site, one boy from inside a sofa, Lee (Tom Brooke) and two girls from under the caravan, Pea and Tanya ( Jessica Barden and Charlotte Mills).
Ultz's set is dominated by the aluminum coloured caravan and real trees with real chickens scratching around under the caravan. Piles of chopped logs show how much of the wood Byron himself has felled. Byron appears in fairground eccentric clothing, strange hats and military helmets, vests and tattoos. Wesley (Gerard Horan) the local publican puts in an appearance in Morris Dancer clothing, bells on his knees and handkerchiefs to wave — to promote his pub. He explains about the traditional dancing "I'm no expert, but to me it says I have completely lost my self respect." We also see Byron as a less than responsible parent in the context of Dawn, the estranged mother of his child (Lucy Montgomery) and his little boy Marky (Lenny Harvey/Lewis Coppen).
Byron is full of wonderful folklore stories like the time he was fleeced at canasta playing with some little old ladies in a retirement home outside Wootton Bassett and, after a night on Drambuie and custard creams, in the morning he saw a giant. Byron's England is ancient and mysterious woodland, with tales of Druids and ley lines, standing stones and mythical figures, about to be ruined by housing development sanctioned by the Kennet and Avon District Council who have agreed to evict Byron under public health legislation. Through the unlikely figure of the sleazy but individual anti-hero Johnny Byron we realize that Butterworth's powerful play is about the destruction of the English country side. There are only a few weeks to see this magnificent production.
| Jerusalem
Written by Jez Butterworth Directed by Ian Rickson Starring: Mark Rylance, Mackenzie Crooka; also Aimée-Ffion Edwards, Sarah Moyle, Harvey Robinson, Alan David, Tom Brooke, Danny Kirrane, Jessica Barden, Charlotte Mills, Gerard Horan, Lucy Montgomery, Lewis Coppen/Lenny Harvey, Barry Sloane Design: Ultz Lighting: Mimi Jordan Sherin Sound: Ian Dickinson for Autograph Running time: Three hours 15 minutes with two intervals Box Office: 020 7565 5000 Booking to 15th August 2009 Reviewed by Lizzie Loveridge based on 1st July 2009 performance at the Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, London W1(Tube: Piccadilly Circus) |
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