Tag Archives: Kip Williams

2025

“The Maids” at the Donmar Warehouse

As any of the characters in his new production might say, director Kip Williams is having a moment… and I’m here for it. Following a thrilling go at Oscar Wilde (and aren’t we all excited about Dracula next year?), this is his new version of Jean Genet’s 1947 play. There are problems – maybe concessions would be a fairer description – but The Maids is stylish, intense and intelligent.

That moment Williams is having is very now. Achingly so. The play is frequently changed (Jamie Lloyd’s version also “updated” the action), but here the Madame from Genet’s play could have walked in off the streets outside the venue. She is transformed into a social media fashionista influencer. Her titular staff are still poor sisters and they still want her life, but it’s a life online that they crave. So, a lot of Genet’s interest in power, particularly class, takes a different direction and is, perhaps, even lost. The religious overtones in the “rituals” the maids perform struggle for potency.

Yerin Ha as Madame in The Maids at the Donmar Warehouse
Yerin Ha as Madame

Instead, Williams goes for satire. And, of course, he has plenty to aim at with his new Madame and her followers. This is a strong performance from Yerin Ha as a spoilt rich kid who is breathtakingly solipsistic and easy to hate. It is to Ha’s credit that we sense the pressure her character is under (even if we think it is silly). There’s a similar doubt about the sisters. How serious or dangerous are they? Their bond to Madame is hard to explain and a plot to murder her (Genet’s initial inspiration) almost disappears. 

Williams focuses his efforts on the language that Phia Saban and Lydia Wilson, who take the titular roles, handle marvellously. Mixing Genet’s flowery, morbid, somewhat suffocating vocabulary with a lot of swearing and contemporary slang is a bravura achievement. The script creates a vivid alternate reality that’s far more intoxicating than anything online. It is here where we see how crazed the sisters are, trapped in their imaginations as much as their employment.

This is a script I really wanted to read. And it is frequently funny. The humour throughout is great (Saban is particularly strong) and, if tension is lacking, despite excellent music from DJ Walde, it is still compulsive viewing. Williams’ direction is sure. Despite the one-room setting, the play is never static. There’s a lot of looking at phones and filters, but projecting these on to the mirrored doors of Madame’s wardrobe is a brilliant move from set designer Rosanna Vize. Darker moments are lost, and it seems fair to question this decision. But it is surely a knowing sacrifice in a play that is executed superbly.

Until 29 November 2025

www.donmarwarehouse.com

Photos by Marc Brenner

Uncategorised

“The Picture of Dorian Gray” at the Theatre Royal Haymarket

Kip Williams’ adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s novel is unquestionably accomplished. Its sole performer Sarah Snook – yes, she takes all the roles – deserves ovations. And technically the production itself is just as impressive. Best of all, the actor and the tech work together. It’s easy to get excited about it all.

Snook is not alone… in two senses. First, she is acting with herself. She starts off slow, adopting different personas for the aesthete Lord Wotton, the painter Basil Hallward and his subject, Dorian. It’s clear Snook has each character well developed. All the while, she is filmed live and projected on to big screens. It’s well done, but we’ve seen it before.

Then Snook starts to perform with recordings of herself. The different characters appear on the screens. And the screens start to move. There’s a huge team behind this – 14 take a bow – not only filming but dressing and moving scenery around (Marg Horwell’s design is great). There’s a danger of distraction as the crew is so fascinating. And, at the risk of sounding old and grumpy, you do end up spending a lot of time looking at screens.

Yet nothing can detract from Snook’s achievement. Solo shows of this kind (such as Andrew Scott’s amazing Vanya from last year) often astound. There’s a sense of wonder that the actor can keep up with it all. And it’s worth noting that, while Williams’ adaptation helps to make the action clear, the show is… louder than Scott’s efforts. There are some odd musical choices and lots of overemphasis. But there’s no doubt it’s a brave performance. Having her face close-up on massive screens shows that Snook, unlike Dorian, has no vanity, and she finds the raw emotion behind Wilde’s elegance.

Is it churlish to want any more from a night at the theatre? Williams has brought the page to the stage with novelty and made it modern. The use of filters and selfies is brilliant (although, surely, not as low-fi as it pretends – video designer David Bergman deserves much acclaim). It’s easy to see current narcissism in Dorian. That point is well made, and it’s a shame it isn’t explored in greater depth.

Going easy on the philosophy and embracing the exaggerations of the novel, the production is often funny. And it’s dynamic – there’s even a chase scene added with the kind of drone footage Netflix likes. But it is no surprise that there’s melodrama in a morality tale from 1890. In the end, despite plenty to admire, it is hard to find much in the way of interpretation. The show feels like an exercise: entertaining, but a lot of effort for relatively little insight.

Until 11 May 2024

www.doriangrayplay.com

Photo by Marc Brenner