★★★✰✰
Everyone tells stories to themselves and of themselves. The question of who you are or what you do is a well-practised routine where the narrative often smooths over faults and mistakes or makes actions more heroic than they actually are. The familiar allure and power of storytelling forms the core of Cordelia Lynn’s new play at the Hampstead Theatre, where the acclaimed playwright, librettist and dramaturg explores the complex theme through layers of fiction, ranging from the realistic to the fantastic.
Sea Creatures follows a family of four women spending the summer at their beach cottage: swimming, painting, playing games and indulging in innocent squabbles over hogging cafetières or dinner plans—so far, so idyllic. However, the pregnant, yet frequently smoking and drinking daughter is only the first crack in the immaculate surface of a happy family. From mental health issues like depression and early-onset dementia to loneliness, grief and childhood traumata, each new scene reveals new dilemmas and secrets that affect even the seemingly calmest family members.
At its centre looms the absence of Robin, the middle-child and frequent runaway, whose long-awaited return is yet again denied and brings with it the arrival of her heartbroken boyfriend Mark. Tom Mothersdale delivers a poignant performance of the restless newcomer, brilliantly alternating between defensive arrogance and vulnerability in the face of loss of both love and purpose. Often employing what appears to be a voice of reason, he fails to adapt to the holiday-routine and to find solace until he gives himself over to the family’s compulsion at the heart of the play—storytelling itself.
Be it the sport of inventing a future for the eldest sister’s unborn child spanning acrobat and lobster, ghost-stories of deceased ancestors, memories and fantastic tales of the sea, the family of four is drawn to storytelling, continuously (re-)shaping and almost mythologising their past and future. Walking the line between denial and coping mechanism, Lynn’s play highlights the powers of storytelling to make sense of the world and oneself in the event of extreme inner turmoil, but fails to explore the dangers of reverting to escapism.
The sea as the beloved object and origin of various legends, three of which are relayed through ‘traditional’ storytellers, Fred the fisherman (Tony Turner) and the old woman (June Watson), permeates the entire production. Ever-present through audio recordings of crashing tides, its wavelike motions are mirrored in Jack Knowles’s lighting design and indicate the passing of time between scenes. While the sound design by Max Pappenheim is effective in achieving a sense of calm befitting the effects of storytelling on the protagonists, the choice of echo to illustrate the transition to a wide-open space during scenes set on the terrace is distracting and ultimately unnecessary.
Much like the nature of storytelling relies on the writing as well as on the talents of its narrator, a stellar performance of the entire ensemble, directed by James Macdonald, carries the audience through almost two hours of emotional highs and lows without losing momentum. The family dynamic between the women feels authentic and contributes to the impression of unconditional love driving the different efforts of storytelling. Grace Saif’s charming and finely nuanced performance of Toni, in particular the precisely executed physicality she brings to the role, stands out and serves for lighter moments among the heavy subject matter. Especially her lively interactions with Tom Mothersdale are captivating and prevent the play from being dragged under by the darkness of inner struggles and family tragedies.
Words by Melanie Haller
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