The Faust myth seems to be all the rage in London at the moment, what with the ENO’s recent production of Gounod’s The Damnation Of Faust and now this new staging of the oft-told story by the Icelandic company Vesturport. It is, however, more than likely that you won’t have seen anything quite like this kinetic production, which cheekily takes its ‘adapted from Goethe’ tag and twists it until it almost yelps. At the same time, anyone who’s seen Vesturport’s earlier stagings of Woyzeck or Metamorphosis will know that they’re in for a visual treat.
The first twist on the Faust legend is that, rather than a young man searching for the secrets of the universe, the scene opens on a retirement home where an old actor, Johann (Thorstein Gunnarsson), entertains the other residents with hammy Shakespearean recitations and lusts after the beautiful young nurse, Greta (Unnur Osp Stefansdottir). As fate would have it, the devilish Mefisto (Hilmir Snaer Gudnason) appears, in acrobatic form, to offer him a deal – his soul for earthly achievements – and, in time-honoured style, Johann agrees.
To say much more would spoil the remarkable achievements and surprises of the multi-talented Gisli Orn Gardarsson’s production, which moves from laugh-out-loud hilarity (there’s a running joke involving Faust’s name straight out of Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein) to deeply moving scenes towards the end, as Johann comes to realise the true price of the bargain he has struck. The score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis proves key, moving from moody atmospherics to banging rock to heartbreakingly beautiful piano-led lamentation. This is classy, funny and often viscerally thrilling theatre. On the night I saw it, the audience reaction at the end was more like that of a particularly successful gig than a conventional play. You’re unlikely to have much more fun on a night out in London at the moment.
Until 30th October. www.youngvic.org
