The Count of Monte Cristo (WYP, 21/04/10)

Following Alphabeat on Monday and Oklahoma! on Tuesday, was The Count of Monte Cristo on the Wednesday night - all this and the first week at a new job. Exhausting. At least I had a holiday in Cyprus the Sunday after, hence my delayed review of Cristo. 

I've never read Cristo, and I didn't know anything about it, but this was our last free/cheap performance under the government's free theatre tickets for under 26's scheme, since I turned 26 while in Cyprus. It was a great performance, and yet again for these 6 free/cheap plays I've seen, I would have gladly paid full price based on the quality of the piece and the enjoyment I derived from it. The curtain was raised on an actor holding a copy of the source text, and explaining that it was a very long book, and wondering how to adapt it, before an actor posing as an audience member in the front row jumped up on stage to help him out. A cast of just 6 then proceeded to act out numerous roles across a 3 hour running time, in a plot that was easy to understand, didn't feel rushed or like I needed to know the story beforehand, and was by turns funny, shocking and emotional. 

I'd find it hard to boil down the plot here in a few sentences, suffice to say it was part swash-buckler, part prison drama, part revenge fantasy and all brilliant. The acting was top notch, which was useful since each actor played several different parts, including across ages, nationalities and genders. The set was as basic as the cast, but all props were put to use imaginatively and there was no point where I was bored. Bits were hilarious, and I liked the way the actors inhabited the roles, but then also interacted with the audience - at one point one of the characters came out and stood in the middle of the stalls as a character on stage shot at a playing card in the first guy's hand. The energy of the piece really blew me away. 

Although I go to the theatre anyway, after seeing great productions at the West Yorkshire Playhouse that I may not have seen otherwise, I'll be more likely to take punts in future. The plays we saw for free/cheap were: Bedroom Farce, When We Are Married, His Dark Materials Part One, The Canterbury Tales, Dial M For Murder, and The Count of Monte Cristo.