Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – London’s immersive production of THE JUNGLE is transplanted to St. Ann’s, and it’s devastating, triumphant theater

• By drediman
• January 16, 2019
• No Comments

Ben Turner and Mohammad Amiri in Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson’s “The Jungle” at St. Ann’s Warehouse. Photo by Teddy Wolff.

Last night, I caught the Young Vic and the National Theatre’s co-production of Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson’s The Jungle at St. Ann’s Warehouse. The production completes this fall/winter season’s high profile trifecta of sensational transfers from London, which also includes the current Broadway hits Network (from the National Theatre; written by Lee Hall and directed by red hot cross-over auteur theater director Ivo van Hove) and The Ferryman (from the Royal Court; written by Jen Butterworth and directed by Sam Mendes). The Jungle tells the story of a densely-populated refugee camp in Calais, France (giving the play its namesake) – which is just across the English Channel from Britain, the ultimate destination for many of the refugees (hailing from countries such as Afghanistan, Syria, etc.) in the camp. The play is by far the strongest entry in a number of shows in New York that have explored the refugee experience in the last year or so, which most notably include out-of-the-box, similarly immersive productions as Tania Khoury and Basel Zaraa’s As Far as My Fingertips Take Me (featured in this year’s Under the Radar Festival) and Vox Motus’s Flight (which played last year at the McKittrick Hotel).

In short, The Jungle is a triumphant, if devastating, theatrical experience, representing theater at its most human. Indeed, throughout its nearly three hour running time, I was on the edge of my wooden bench – and tears – as the production emphatically placed a human face on the refugee situation that Europe has been struggling with in recent years. The playwriting here is empathic, highly charged, and seethes with an authentic sense of urgency, typical traits of many a theatrical work but only very rarely fully earned and realized as they are here. If I had seen the play last year (the production opened in Brooklyn in December), there would have been an extremely high probability that it would have ended up on my “best of 2018” list of top theatrical experiences.

British director Stephen Daldry (perhaps best known to New York audiences for directing the Tony-winning musical Billy Elliot), along with Justin Martin, have outdone themselves here. Their teeming, immersive production pulsates with life, giving the viewer a sense of history unfolding before their very eyes. That’s how truthful and real Mr. Daldry and Mr. Martin’s staging is. Pretty much all of the actors in the large cast are holdovers from the original London production – either the Young Vic or West End runs – and they’re simply magnificent. Each performer, whether in large or miscellaneous parts, inject their characters a raw vitality that fully cimpelled me to their respective stories. Although the remainder of its extended run is sold out (I’ve heard of success stories regarding the cancellation line just prior to curtain), I would highly encourage you to try to get in if you can. The Jungle is essential viewing.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

THE JUNGLE
Off-Broadway, Play
St. Ann’s Warehouse
2 hours, 45 minutes (with one intermission)
Through January 27