An admirably economic and unsentimental script directed with effortless precision and starring the excellent Stephen Mangan, what's not to like? Only a few wee things...
42 years after Saatchi & Saatchi’s seminal ‘pregnant man’ advert, Joe Penhall finally gives the fellow in question his 90 minutes of fame.
Ed, the father-to-be, has volunteered for this relatively new procedure following the traumatic experiences of wife Lisa, both in starting a family and finally bearing their son. The subsequent several hours covered by Roger Michell’s production will be familiar to viewers of One Born Every Minute – the difference is the unfussy forensic nature of the microscope Penhall deploys to encapsulate the best and worst of the systems, psyches and social conventions on show.
As Ed, Stephen Mangan excels - hirsute and hangdog, he’s not just physically reminiscent of the original ‘Pregnant Man’, but also captures the inner turmoil of a genuinely well-intentioned partner hurling himself into an unfathomable deep end and despising himself for his weaknesses. Penhall draws on the difficult births of his own children for Birthday, and, while it’s easy to titter at the sheer oddness of a man heaving with bump and moobs, it’s almost intolerably poignant to see the physical and mental effects of love’s burden taken to its absolute limit.
It’s a shame that Lisa Dillon doesn’t quite reach the same heights – the comic value of her bickering with Mangan is first-rate, and they’re a convincing couple, but we never get to the heart of her in quite the same way. The story of how Ed and Lisa arrived where they are feels slightly glossed over, as does their perception in society at large.
This is a pity because Penhall’s script is for the most part admirably economic and unsentimental, totally transcending the superficially ‘genre’, sci-fi elements of his idea. It’s also impressively even-handed – Llewella Gideon and Louise Brealey are terrific as midwife and registrar respectively, embodying the strain inherent in providing a personal service for everyone. Penhall’s anger at the breezy bureaucracy of the NHS is evident. particularly in a powerful passage where Ed harrowingly describes to Lisa how their son was born, but never allows us to forget that it’s ultimately an organisation powered, above all else, by the soul.
In Michell, Penhall has a director with a similar flair for extracting extremely good performances with effortless precision, not least during the highly-charged changes of tone in the final scenes. Mark Thompson’s set is also a marvel – subverting the ‘black box’ with a harsh, white tube, which opens womb-like when Ed and Lisa’s daughter is ready to join the world.
Brithday runs at Royal Court until 4th August
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