Hmmm, how to make a religious morality play relevant to a contemporary audience? Via Tarantino perhaps?
The National don't always get it wrong, but it seems, from the reaction of the dwindling audiences, that they might have damned themselves with their current production of Tirso de Molina's 1625 theological drama. In a new translation by Frank McGuinness, it focuses on Paulo, a religious hermit who seeks forgiveness from God for his past sins, but who is tricked by the devil, disguised as an Angel, into believing that he will suffer the same fate as the 'worst man on earth', violent sociopath and criminal Enrico.
As events unfold, roles are reversed and Paulo adopts Enrico's criminality, whilst Enrico finds redemption and ascends to heaven, so it isn't the most light hearted of material. The action is transferred from its origins in Spain to Naples, and set predominantly in a Neopolitan Pizzeria, where flowing Prosecco and gun fights are the main appetizers on the menu. But while McGuinness' sparkling yet simple interpretation tries to renew a religious morality play for a contemporary audience with his sharp wit, the text is let down by the erratic direction.
Director Bijan Sheibani is clearly influenced by film, and much of Damned by Despair is an obvious homage to cinematic luminaries like Quentin Tarantino and Baz Luhrman, with scenes from Reservoir Dogs and Romeo + Juliet mimicked in the action (yes, you get to see a man's ear severed too!). But the scenes appear to be thrown in simply for comic effect, and detract from Molina's exploration of the human fear of god and quest for divine forgiveness. Along with the mishmash of costumes from different eras which serve no purpose, the production can't quite decide whether it is a comedy, drama or kitsch parody.
That said, the cast are impressive, and overall they handle the challenging material with gusto. Amanda Lawrence is disturbingly eerie and ethereal as the devil, who engages the eye even when sitting silently behind the action drinking an espresso. Rory Keenan shines as Paulo's wise-cracking Irish sidekick, and provides the dry one liners which at times are needed to steer the action away from banality. Bertie Carvel, though an obvious talent, is miscast as thug Enrico during the first half; his demeanour and delivery are more camp than terrifying, which means that a slow motion sequence where Enrico's massacres his hostages evokes bathos rather than horror. However, as Enrico finds religious atonement and accepts death in place of freedom, Carvel comes into his own, and the moment of ascension is genuinely moving.
Still, Damned By Despair only produces the basis of a solid production and there are a good few empty seats after the interval. But there is room for manoeuvre and work to be done, and, if only from the source material and the actors, there is something worth staying for. 
Damned By Despair runs at National Theatre until 17th December
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