Cian Griffin joins a long list of playwrights tackling painters’ lives. Such fictions, mixing history, biography and theories about art, can be fruitful but not easy, as injecting drama often proves problematic. At the risk of damning with faint praise, this play about Lee Krasner holds its own in a crowded field. Red by John Logan and Stanley by Pam Gems spring to mind, while more recent efforts include Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s The Painter and this year’s Who is Claude Cahun? by DR Hill.
Griffin has picked a great artist to explore – abstract expressionist Krasner had a fascinating life and career. And he’s done his homework, aided by a Barbican exhibition six years ago that allowed a London audience to see many of the paintings discussed. There are times when Griffin seems burdened by this knowledge, briefing the audience in a clunky manner, but it is interesting stuff.
A little against the odds, this is an affectionate portrait. Krasner is shown as irascible, but her touchiness is made a virtue of by Helen Goldwyn, who injects humour. The writing shows Krasner’s intelligence and imperiousness, but Goldwyn aids nuance and skilfully suggests a vulnerable undertow. I’m not quite sure Krasner’s resignation about sexism and celebrity in the art is realistic (she appears sage-like a little too often), but Goldwyn makes it work.
Griffin adds a neat device in the form of Hank, a local boy who seeks advice about art. Director Jason Moore keeps the action swift, which covers up a few problems here. Yes, Hank is young but is he a bit too dim? He’s certainly very naïve –and a plot twist is predictable. Still, this is a great role for Will Bagnall – who deals well with his character’s grief for his dead father – and an important attempt to open up the play.
You probably still need to have an interest in the artist to bother with Lee. But that’s OK and connects to bigger praise. Krasner had a famous husband. And my favourite part of the piece is how little he appears! No offence to Tom Andrews, who plays the part of Jackson Pollock very well, but it is great to see him in just a few flashbacks, where he appears as a ghost. These are strong scenes made all the more effective by being by underplayed. Pollock did haunt Krasner, certainly her reputation, and you couldn’t ignore him in a play about her. But helping her to step out of her husband’s shadow, even just a little, is a big achievement.
Until 18 October 2025
Photo by Giacomo Giannelli