THE HANGOVER REPORT – The hyper-physical London transfer of A CLOCKWORK ORANGE exudes, oddly, sex appeal

Jonno Davies leads the company of "A Clockwork Orange" at New World Stages

Jonno Davies leads the company of “A Clockwork Orange” at New World Stages

Last night, A Clockwork Orange officially opened Off-Broadway at New World Stages in a timely production directed by Alexandra Spencer-Jones. The ensemble-based show, which originated from London, is adapted from the novel by Anthony Burgess (which was famously turned into a film by Stanley Kubrick), and it’s a stripped-down, hyperactive, and stylish affair. It’s also a very sexy production – but seemingly for no apparent good reason than to show off some fit boy bodies.

Like George Orwell’s 1984 (which is currently enjoying a jarring Broadway mounting that closes next weekend), A Clockwork Orange is a cautionary tale about the dangers of a totalitarian government. It tells the story of a group of juvenile delinquents gone wild, resorting to random acts of violence to quell their boredom and frustrations. These hooligans are led by one one Alex DeLarge, who is eventually institutionalized by the authorities and “corrected”.

Jonno Davies reprises his ultra-physical performance as Alex, a role he created across the pond. He has true star presence and a knowing swagger that’s pretty magnetic. The rest of the cast is new to the production. Despite being an extremely attractive bunch, I found that their being sexually objectified (Ms. Spencer-Jones has them perform much of the show shirtless) adds very little to Burgess’s dire worldview. In fact, I found that it detracted from and diluted it. At least in my mind, sex appeal is the last thing that comes to mind when faced with acts of localized terrorism. But some may argue, what’s so wrong about that?

 

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A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
Off-Broadway, Play
New World Stages
1 hour, 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Through January 6

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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