Amanda Gegg explores 'The Extraordinary Cabaret of Dorian Gray' in the Basement @ Leicester Square Theatre, which has a few surprises up it's sleeve...
Tonight is no ordinary night at Leicester Square Theatre: 'The Extraordinary Cabaret of Dorian Gray' is taking place in the basement, and the build-up is a little electric. As you walk in to the building, there are actors dressed in burlesque attire mingling with musicians playing atmospheric French music. This includes an accordion player who's the first character we are introduced to and the most classically representative of a cabaret-style performance. He's dressed rather like the ghost of Charlie Chaplin and proceeds to lead the narrative of the play.
The basement is decorated like a scene from Moulin Rouge with each member of the audience invited to sit down at a table. This creates the effect of a very convincing underground Parisian café, which is underlined further by burlesque ladies handing out drinks: always a successful element!
The play takes a cyclical form, with the morbid final outcome presented to us from the outset. Given the popularity of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, this works in the play's favour by distinguishing this particular theatre company's approach. Also, for those who aren't so familiar with Wilde's work, the characters are more quickly established.
The play opens on Gray (Nathan Lubbock-Smith) being tormented by the painting of himself that causes him to commit unspeakable sins. From here, the play goes on to show how the painting came in to existence and describes the relationships built since its creation through word and song.
One of the main relationships Gray forms is with Lord Henry (Henry Maynard). It can be argued that Lord Henry is the most striking character in this production because he is clearly set as a representation of Wilde himself. Maynard executes this perfectly by embodying a mix of knowledge, wit and, of course, a considerable amount of homo-eroticism, which is the beginning of Gray's downfall.
For a seemingly small and relatively unknown theatre group, the performance skills of those involved in 'Ruby in the Dust' are outstanding. Being a company of 8 performers, they each have to play at least two characters and even though it seems they have taken on an ambitious project with 'Dorian Gray', the outcome is effective and memorable. Altogether this production displays a control over different narrative levels and a noticeable scene distinction which is undeniably impressive in such a small venue.
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