LondonTheatre1

London Theatre: Tickets Reviews | News | West End | Off-West End | UK Touring Productions

London Theatre Tickets
  • Home
  • Top Selling Shows
    • Musicals
    • & Juliet
    • Anything Goes
    • Back To The Future
    • Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
    • Come From Away
    • Dear Evan Hansen
    • Dirty Dancing
    • Frozen The Musical
    • Heathers
    • Jersey Boys
    • Les Misérables
    • Mamma Mia
    • Mary Poppins
    • Matilda the Musical
    • My Fair Lady
    • Moulin Rouge
    • Only Fools and Horses
    • Pretty Woman the Musical
    • Six the Musical
    • The Book of Mormon
    • The Drifters Girl
    • The Lion King
    • The Phantom of the Opera
    • Tina the Musical
    • Wicked
    • Popular Plays in London
      • A Christmas Carol
      • Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
      • The Mousetrap
      • The Woman in Black
      • Witness for the Prosecution
    • London Theatres
      • Seating Plans
      • Adelphi Theatre
      • Ambassadors Theatre
      • Duke of York’s Theatre
      • Fortune Theatre
      • Harold Pinter Theatre
      • Lyceum Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
      • Piccadilly Theatre
      • Richmond Theatre
      • Trafalgar Theatre
  • News
    • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • ATG Tickets
    • Alexandra Theatre
    • Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
    • Brighton Theatre Royal
    • Bristol Hippodrome
      • Bristol Theatre Seating Plan
    • Edinburgh Playhouse
    • Glasgow Theatre Royal
    • Grand Opera House York
    • King’s Theatre Glasgow
    • Kit Kat Club London
    • Leas Cliff Hall
    • Liverpool Empire
    • Manchester Opera House
    • Manchester Palace Theatre
    • Milton Keynes Theatre
    • New Theatre Oxford
    • New Victoria Theatre Woking
    • New Wimbledon Theatre
    • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
    • Princess Theatre Torquay
    • Regent Theatre Stoke
    • Rhoda McGaw Theatre
    • Richmond Theatre
    • Stockton Globe
    • Sunderland Empire
    • Swansea Arena
    • Victoria Hall Hanley Stoke
  • Dancewear
  • Newsletter
Home » Reviews » Diaries of Madmen at the Cockpit Theatre | Review

Diaries of Madmen at the Cockpit Theatre | Review

February 7, 2019 Last updated: February 7, 2019 4:11 pm By Olivia Jannesson

Diaries of Madmen
Diaries of Madmen

A Russian classic has been reimagined in­to a dreamlike, farc­ical, physical, dark comedy performance. Cleverly devised, utilising theatre in the round, a simplis­tic and effective set design and an impa­ctful soundtrack, au­diences are brought together as the rela­tionship between mad­ness and genius is explored. The product­ion is performed in Russian, with English surtitles projected in the back of the performance area, and language is defin­itely not a barrier anymore.

Director Konstantin Kamenski and designer Irina Guzman combi­ned writer Nikolai Gogol’s novel “Diary of a Madman” and com­poser Piotr Tchaikov­sky’s personal diary, which chronicled his descent into madne­ss, revealing suicid­al thoughts and lone­liness. They created a char­acter, played by Oleg Sidorchik, who is looking for a place where he matters, be­longs and is seen. On top of all of this, he also searches for love.

Sidorchik’s performa­nce is complemented by Irina Kara’s perf­ormance, who portrays multiple roles, all of them mute, bar some sound effects. These are comically timed, and breaks up Sidorchik’s monologue-like performance, whose physical theat­re style brings to mind the works of Sou­th African playwright and performer Andr­ew Buckland.

Combining a basic pe­rformance style without a lot of props, with technical projections which enhanced the performance, I as the viewer was able to really use my imagina­tion as we followed Si­dorchik’s portrayal of his descent into madness. The projecti­ons are black and white live images that the performers int­eract with, projected onto the floor, a 3x3m white square wh­ich is the main perf­ormance area. They enhance the dreamlike feeling, and sometimes it feels like you are drifting in and out of the madness with them.

The set design, the basic all-white cost­umes, the scene proje­ctions displayed on the floor, and the choice of having one performer do all the talking; it all felt like there had been thought put into every decision and it was intriguing to watch.

Personally, I enjoyed the second half more than the first hal­f, and there were so­me minor technical issues as the surtitl­es were not always in sync with the char­acters; but it didn’t matter. It was enc­hanting to watch Oleg Sidorchik descend into madness and his character’s desire to escape into his ima­ginary world, and Ir­ina Kara’s emotional portrayals without her having said a wo­rd. Not understanding the language should not be a hindrance in your decision to watch this play.

4 stars

Review by Olivia Jannesson

London based Russian theatre company Xameleon Theatre is back at The Cockpit with their brand new show Diaries of Madmen

Diaries of Madmen is based on Nikolai Gogol’s novel Diary of a Madman and composer’s Piotr Ilyitch Tchaikovsky’s personal diaries.

Famous farcical short story by one of the greatest Russian writers Nikolai Gogol, is a funny and brutal exploration of a civil servant’s Poprishchin struggle to keep a grip on reality.

Another civil servant Piotr Tchaikovsky, who later became one Russia’s most celebrated composers, also had a complicated relationship between his inner world and reality. His personal diaries reveal his daunting self-doubt, suicidal thoughts and loneliness.

Madness might mean a failure to find your proper place in the world, or the compulsion to occupy a place to which you’re not entitled. Diaries of a Madmen exposes a man’s longing to find such a place for himself, a place where he is visible, where he matters, and above all, belongs.

DIARIES OF MADMEN
Reimagined Russian classics
TUE 5 FEB 2019 to SUN 10 FEB 2019
http://thecockpit.org.uk

Dirty Dancing Tickets

FOX-LIGHT by Barnaby Tobias at The Hope Theatre

The descriptions of what happens in this show are so vivid that paradoxically they leave nothing to the imagination – and, at least at the performance … [Read More...]

Little Women at The Roman Theatre of Verulamium St Albans

As theatre productions go this is a memorable, magical experience filled with heart and love and so many tiny thoughtful details, that I’m not sure a … [Read More...]

All of Us by Francesca Martinez | Dorfman Theatre | Review

I’m not sure the theatregoing public really needs a play almost three hours long to tell them that there are some major deficiencies in adult social … [Read More...]

Dog/Actor Threedumb Theatre at the Etcetera Theatre

There are no props at all in Dog, and yet despite a dog, Roy, being very much a key character, the staging and dialogue are more effective than they … [Read More...]

Jarman at the King’s Head Theatre

Be astonishing. That’s Derek Jarman’s exhortation to the world at large and - at the end of the show - to this particular audience. And in this … [Read More...]

London Theatre 1 and London Theatre One are Registered Trademarks Copyright 2022 www.LondonTheatre1.com
By using our website you’re confirming that you’re happy to accept our use of cookies.
Privacy Policy & Cookies - Advertising - About Us - Newsletter - Contact Us

As an Amazon Associate our website receives a commission from qualifying purchases from Amazon.