ANOTHER
COUNTRY
at
the Minerva, Chichester
09.10.13
“And
there's another country I've heard of long ago ...”
Ever
since I saw the original West End production of Julian Mitchell's
public school spy piece, the old patriotic hymn has had a potent
subtext.
Now
Jeremy Herrin [who brought the old school hothouse world here
recently with South Downs and The Browning Version] has come up with
a very stylish revival in the Minerva, with some outstanding
performances.
Chief
amongst them, Rob Callender as Guy [Burgess in all but name],
“stupidly romantic”, dissolute, dimpled, tarty and impish in his
Oxford bags, rumpled hair and wayward collar. An
actor who holds the stage seemingly without effort; framed in the
golden light of a Gothic window, he is dangerously alluring.
Well
matched by Will Attenborough as the Stakhanovite Judd.
On
a versatile set – wood panelled, with institutional lights and
a cane behind the door
– which smoothly morphs into dorm and cricket square, some superb
set pieces: the “court martial”, the game of cricket, the Wildean
tea party [cucumber sandwiches, muffins] for the visiting speaker
[Julian Wadham, a
member of the original 1982 cast].
