La Ronde Reimagined: A Carousel of Modern Anxieties
A new production of Arthur Schnitzler's 1897 drama La Ronde has arrived on the UK stage, reimagined by writer Gary Owen. This modern take on the classic musical chairs-style play brings a fresh perspective to the timeless themes of love, relationships, and existential dread.
Owen's vision is one of nervous couples struggling with the prospect of parenthood, individuals trapped in dead-end jobs yearning for connection, and people desperately seeking escape from their anxieties. The dialogue is witty and insightful, offering a beautiful candor that feels refreshingly blunt.
However, despite its individual strengths, the show struggles to coalesce into a cohesive whole. The scenes blur together, lacking a clear sense of accumulation or forward momentum. This is partly due to the production's roots as a student play, which still lingers in the performance.
The set design, courtesy of Alberto Aquilina, is an interesting concept – corrugated shelves meant to represent physical reminders of these encounters. However, it often feels like a makeshift prop tray for the cast rather than a cohesive part of the production.
On the other hand, certain actors shine through their performances. Tiger Tingley stands out as a harried worker who's been aggressively flirted with on the street and later as an exhausted parent desperate to reconnect with his partner. Leisa Gwenllian and Iwan Bond also excel in their respective roles, effortlessly switching between charm and anxiety.
Overall, La Ronde Reimagined feels like an exercise for the actors rather than a fully realized show. Despite its flashes of fine storytelling, it serves its audience mostly in glimpses and fragments, leaving viewers wanting more cohesion and depth to truly sink into the modern anxieties that drive its narrative.
A new production of Arthur Schnitzler's 1897 drama La Ronde has arrived on the UK stage, reimagined by writer Gary Owen. This modern take on the classic musical chairs-style play brings a fresh perspective to the timeless themes of love, relationships, and existential dread.
Owen's vision is one of nervous couples struggling with the prospect of parenthood, individuals trapped in dead-end jobs yearning for connection, and people desperately seeking escape from their anxieties. The dialogue is witty and insightful, offering a beautiful candor that feels refreshingly blunt.
However, despite its individual strengths, the show struggles to coalesce into a cohesive whole. The scenes blur together, lacking a clear sense of accumulation or forward momentum. This is partly due to the production's roots as a student play, which still lingers in the performance.
The set design, courtesy of Alberto Aquilina, is an interesting concept – corrugated shelves meant to represent physical reminders of these encounters. However, it often feels like a makeshift prop tray for the cast rather than a cohesive part of the production.
On the other hand, certain actors shine through their performances. Tiger Tingley stands out as a harried worker who's been aggressively flirted with on the street and later as an exhausted parent desperate to reconnect with his partner. Leisa Gwenllian and Iwan Bond also excel in their respective roles, effortlessly switching between charm and anxiety.
Overall, La Ronde Reimagined feels like an exercise for the actors rather than a fully realized show. Despite its flashes of fine storytelling, it serves its audience mostly in glimpses and fragments, leaving viewers wanting more cohesion and depth to truly sink into the modern anxieties that drive its narrative.
I gotta say, this La Ronde Reimagined thing is pretty meh... I mean, it's got some great moments where the dialogue is on point and the actors really bring the anxiety to life 
. But like, the set design feels kinda thrown together, you know? Like they just grabbed a bunch of corrugated shelves from IKEA and called it a day 
. And I don't blame them for feeling like it's more of a student play than a proper production... but that's exactly what holds it back, right? It's all about the execution rather than the story itself 
. What do you guys think, is this just a case of "almost there" or am I being too harsh on it? 
The set design is cool and all, but it's like they're playing dress-up for the actors instead of setting the tone for the whole show. I get that it was a student play and all, but that shouldn't be an excuse for lacking cohesion. 
Tiger Tingley though, bravo! He's got some serious range going on... 
the dialogue is cool and all, but when you boil it down, it's just a bunch of people talking about anxiety and relationships without any real resolution 
i mean, tiger tingley was on point tho as that frazzled worker, but even his scene-stealing vibes couldn't save this show from feeling like it's missing some kinda glue 
. Tiger Tingley was straight fire as a frazzled worker 
, but for me, it felt like the show was missing that one key thread to tie everything together. The set design was pretty cool though - I loved the corrugated shelves idea 
. Some actors really shone in their roles, especially Leisa Gwenllian and Iwan Bond 
. Still, it's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for something a little different to shake up your theatre routine 
corrugated shelves just don't do it for me 
But hey, the actors? Forget about it! Tiger Tingley was on point as that harried worker, and Leisa Gwenllian had some serious chemistry with her co-star. They're like the glue holding this thing together 
. It's just... I think they could've taken more time to get everything cooked up before hitting the stage, you know? Like, really flesh out the story instead of just giving us glimpses of it 
.
, I loved the use of corrugated shelves as physical reminders of past encounters. But yeah, some times it felt like they were just using them as a prop tray for the actors to run around with 
.
. Iwan Bond was good too, but I'm not sure if he got to really sink his teeth into the role 
.