Theatre

Director and playwright Bertolt Brecht combined the beliefs of a communist with the attributes of an autocrat –  not such an unusual mix. It’s difficult to imagine him embracing the working methods of Filter Theatre Company, which believes that sound and design should grow out of the action in collaboration with the entire company. But he might have been pleased with this small-scale version of his epic play, directed by Sean Holmes, in which actors, musicians and visible stage management create all the sound and visual effects with a plethora of high-tech equipment. You watch a baby crying while also being aware that the noise comes from a small speaker as an actor wails into a microphone. Very Brechtian – also rather similar to Katie Mitchell’s recent production of ‘The Waves’.

The result is sometimes over-cooked, but mostly a provocative account of the tale of Grusha (Cath Whitefield), a palace servant, and Azdak (Nicolas Tennant), the drunken, corrupt judge whose rough justice is often unexpectedly fair.

Curiously, the opening scene, retained in Frank McGuinness’ version, seems like the fairy tale – in which a group of communist farmers tolerantly debate after World War II who owns a valley and whether or not it should be flooded –  rather than the fable that follows. To illustrate that argument, we are plunged into a Georgian revolution in which Grusha saves the Governor’s son and brings a whole heap of trouble onto her head. The cast of nine creates a brutal, unpredictable world in which the price of food has rocketed, the governor loses his head, and refugees pour out of the city spreading their troubles into the countryside. The atmosphere is dark and intense and Paule Constable’s lighting can subdue the action. But there’s also an obvious commitment that comes from the company’s ownership of the show.