The play’s title is derived from the German for ‘intrinsic gray’, or the dark grey background colour apparently witnessed by some people in the absence of light. Frankly, I’m not sure this production does very much to portray an ‘absence of light’ – there always seems to be something going on in this plot-heavy coming-of-age play. The closest the show gets to greyness is a repeated inter-scene recording of a Jubilee line (coloured grey on the London Underground map) train arriving and departing Bermondsey.
Mark (Niall O’Mara) is needy – perhaps what someone like Cassie (Sophia Pettit) might describe as ‘typically’ needy, and it’s entirely possible to interpret his actions as tantamount to doing and saying anything necessary to get what he wants. O’Mara does well to portray the confident and assertive blokey bloke with a public school background, taming, so to speak, ardent feminist Cassie, who has reason to believe every man is a threat to her existence by way of their own existence.
The play premiered in 2010 – not that long ago, of course, but at the same time, the world has changed substantially since then. It is even more difficult to cover living expenses now than it was then, manifested here in Cassie’s frustration with flatmate Rose (Phoebe Jones), who at one point splashes out on a nice outfit before even sparing a thought about her share of the rent. This version seems to rattle on a bit longer than it should, however – I note at least one previous production (by a different company) did it in ninety minutes or so without interval. Here, it pushes two hours fifteen minutes, with an interval, and when, in a late scene, Mark is clockwatching on account of a presentation he needs to make at work by a certain time, it’s easy to sympathise.
That said, credit is due to the cast and crew, who make the necessary set changes as quickly as could be reasonably expected, and there is the added bonus of a drummer, Dylan Sweet, whose musical interludes gave the production some captivating sounds and driving beats. The use of recorded videos provides extra context to each of the characters. Completing the set is Mark’s flatmate Tim (Finn Elliot), overcome with grief because of a bereavement to the point where he hasn’t held down a job for some months – it is arguably too much of an obvious contrast to Mark’s high salary, working in financial services.
The trusting Rose, meanwhile, or “crazy Rose” as Mark once refers to her, believes in a relatively commonly held misguided view of ‘manifesting’, which largely involves saying and believing something to be true over and over again. But what might have been a one-dimensional Disney princess-type character who can’t do a thing without some proverbial knight in shining armour coming to her aid is instead convincingly complex. Her strongly held set of beliefs come to a head, as it were, in more ways than one.
Setting aside that none of the characters are particularly likeable, there’s plenty of nuance in the details of the storyline, brought to life by a committed and talented cast.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Rose believes in love and leprechauns. Her flatmate Cassie is engaged in a fervent struggle against patriarchal oppression. Across London, Mark lives his life like a marketing campaign, and his flatmate Tim Muffin is engaged in a fervent struggle to get out of bed in the morning. When circumstances throw them together, all four have their beliefs tested, while trying to connect in a city where Gumtree can sometimes feel like your closest friend.
Cassie: Sophia Pettit
Tim: Finn Elliot
Mark: Niall O’Mara
Rose: Phoebe Jones
Written by Penelope Skinner
Co-Directors: Tate Jackson and Rex Elliott
Drummer: Dylan Sweet
EIGENGRAU
Putney Arts Theatre
3 and 4 January 2025
