Dramatic
performance of strength and conviction by Marc Kay in poignant and dramatic
work. (Review by Keith Millar)
Durban actor and
playwright Marc Kay won an award at the Musho! Festival 10 years ago. This year
he returned to the Festival at the Catalina Theatre at Wilson’s Wharf with an innovative
new production entitled Vincent.
Written and
performed by Kay himself, and directed by Peter Court, this poignant and
dramatic work recounts the life, loves and decent into madness of the artist
Vincent Van Gogh.
The play is based
on the hundreds of letters Van Gogh wrote to his brother Theo. The scene is set
in modern times in an auction house where these letters are about to be
auctioned off. The pre-recorded voice of the auctioneer provides biographical
facts from the letters which cues Kay to perform dramatised versions of
incidents and events that are revealed about Van Gogh’s life.
We hear of his
loves – almost always inappropriate – as well as his financial problems, his
despair and feelings of inadequacy at not been able to sell his work, his
rejection of his religion and the severing of his own ear, along with many
other incidents which all mark a slow decent into madness and ultimately
suicide.
Many artists have
not been appreciated during their lifetimes but there can be no more extreme
example of this than the experiences of Van Gogh. He never attained any success
or recognition in his personal or artistic life. The despair and feelings of
hopelessness and rejection he suffered are quite palpable during the
production.
As an audience
member, one could not help but share in these emotions when hearing this tragic
story. The most heartrending moment is at the end of the play when the
auctioneer auctions off the painting The Starry
Night for 6.8 million pounds, while Don McLean’ evocative song Starry Starry Night plays in the
background.
Marc Kay puts in a
dramatic performance of strength and conviction during this production. The
subject matter is obviously close to heart as he treats it with appropriate
respect. He was heavily made-up to physically resemble Van Gogh and wore
suitably tatty and paint-spattered clothing. This also added to the sense of
despondency one felt during this production.
Vincent is an impressive dramatic work which could be expanded to delve deeper
into the psyche of this complex character.
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