Review: Betrayal at Seattle Repertory Theatre
Seattle Repertory Theatre’s production of Betrayal is one of playwright Harold Pinter’s most famous plays. This is a relatively short play of 75 minutes with no intermission. Many may be familiar with this story, which was made into a movie in 1983 with Jeremy Irons and Sir Ben Kinglsey and was nominated for an Academy Award for its writing. Harold Pinter, passed away December 24, 2008 and is considered one of theatre’s most original and significant influences.
This play has a cast of only four characters: Emma (Cheyenne Casebier), Robert (Alex Podulke) and Jerry (David Christopher Wells) and The Waiter (John Farrage). Emma is married to Robert but for several years she has an affair with her husband’s oldest and best friend. The play opens up two years since the affair ended as Emma and Jerry meet to catch up with each other. The play then unfolds backwards showing the history of the relationship between all three of the characters.
While the performance by the actors is good, very tight, and without a misstep, my overall feeling is that we do not really care about what happens to any of the characters. Emma, seems to have fallen in love with her husband’s friend and his best man at their wedding. Jerry, the best friend, cares more for his friend Robert even though he is sleeping with Robert’s wife. But Emma’s husband, Robert, has retaliated by also sleeping around for most of the marriage. The inspiration for this play comes from Pinter’s own interesting life.
One big highlight for this production is how the costume designer, Francis Kenny, does such a good job of dressing the actors in the clothing style of the 60’s and 70’s but the production itself seems to move along at a very slow pace. I do not know if it is because the story is so familiar or that for some reason we just do not seem to care about the characters, no matter what happens to them.
Betrayal, Directed by Braden Abraham, at Seattle Repertory Theatre runs February 19-March 22, 2009. Tickets to Betrayal range from $29-$55. Anyone 25 and under may purchase tickets for only $10 for any performance (with ID – call for details). For more info go online at www.seattlerep.org.
– Ethel W.
