Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Cillian Murphy pulls out a stunning hat trick of a performance in GRIEF IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS, adapted by Enda Walsh

• By drediman
• May 1, 2019
• No Comments

Cillian Murphy in Enda Walsh’s stage adaptation of “Grief Is the Thing with Feathers” at St. Ann’s Warehouse. Photo by Teddy Wolff.

Last night, I caught Enda Walsh’s stage adaptation of Grief is the Thing with Feathers, which is based on Max Porter’s book of the same name. The production – a striking vehicle for stage and screen star Cillian Murphy – is courtesy of Wayward Productions and Complicité and is currently enjoying a sold out limited run at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn. The play tells the story of Dad, a man who tragically loses his wife to a freak accident, leaving him behind with their two young boys. Dad’s grief is embodied by Crow, a wild and rambunctious creation who heeds neither rhyme nor reason. Crow is pure chaos, and his contradictory aim is to both disrupt, as well as heal on his own disquieting terms.

Although the play contains many striking passages, it’s also a messy but highly affecting affair. Mr. Walsh – a playwright of eloquent poetry and boundless imagination (and a frequent guest artist at St. Ann’s Warehouse) – has adapted Mr. Porter’s novel into more of a feverish staged tone poem rather than a proper play. As such, it actually resembles another high profile production in town (Norma Jeane Baker of Troy) featuring another arresting turn by a British film star (Ben Whishaw). But unlike that other show at the Shed, the riff-like abstractions of Grief Is the Thing with Feathers actually enrich the piece, suggesting the incoherence of emotions such as grief. Some may be frustrated with the play’s blurred, nonlinear construction (it also melds poetry and prose in a way that feels intentionally haphazard), but if you surrender to the work’s dark, knotted vision, you’ll likely find yourself captivated.

There are few actors as seductive as Mr. Murphy. Whether onstage or onscreen, he seems to hypnotize audiences with his cool intensity. He’s an inspired choice to embody both sensitive widower and unfiltered, compartmentalized emotion (as personified by Crow). The totality of his frequent transformations back and forth between hesitant Dad to the reckless, darkly glimmering antagonist/protagonist is stunning to behold. It’s a real hat trick of a performance that demands to be seen. The play, however, is almost overpowered by Mr. Enda’s flashy, technically accomplished staging (the playwright also directed the production). Indeed, the design elements are plentiful and ravishing, notably Will Duke’s projection design, Adam Silverman’s lighting design, and Helen Atkinson’s soundscapes.

GRIEF IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS
Off-Broadway, Play
St. Ann’s Warehouse, co-produced by Wayward Productions and Complicité
1 hour, 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Through May 12