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Festival Review: The Glass Menagerie ****

Michael Cox reviews 'an exceptional production of an exceptional play'.

The Glass Menagerie is a modern classic, a play that is so well-regarded and frequently performed that it feels almost impossible to find anything new about it. And yet director John Tiffany and his production have managed to do just that.

Playwright Tennessee Williams tells us through narrator Tom Wingfield that this is a memory play. A look at the text tells you that this is a piece steeped in romanticism (Williams originally envisioned projections and a specific soundtrack throughout the whole play), though many past productions tended to side more on the realistic side. Tiffany takes the play back to its romantic roots, choosing soft lighting, stylised movement and an impressively dark stage floor (achieved through an oily water base—don’t touch the stage during the interval!) that occasionally lights up with little stars.

It all looks incredible. And better still—it is impeccably performed. Michael Esper is terrific as Tom, a dreamer stuck in a thankless job to support his family. His Tom is constantly on edge, looking like he’s about to explode but must keep himself in check. Equally heart-breaking is Kate O’Flynn as his sister Laura, the keeper of the titular menagerie and social shut-in. Also impressing is Seth Numrich’s John—the Gentleman Caller who brings actual realism into the house in the second half of the play. O’Flynn and Numrich are wonderful in their prolonged scene together near the end of the production, making anyone who knows the play all but forgetting where it’s all headed.

But any production of Glass hinges on mother Amanda, and it is here that the production triumphs. Cherry Jones is a revelation in the role of Amanda—a role many have treated as controlling, even at times as villain. Jones is a true Southern belle—soft-spoken and always hopeful for a nicer, softer future. She is also a pragmatist and understands all too well what the present entails. Rather than letting Amanda’s emotional moments serve as the lynchpin, she instead fills the role with dignity. It is an unforgettable performance that manages to impress in its quietness.

All of which makes this Glass an exceptional production of an exceptional play.

The Glass Menagerie performs at the Kings Theatre in Edinburgh as part of the Edinburgh International Festival. It performs until August 21, 2016.

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