Review: Theatre

The Kitchen, Arnold Wesker, dir Bijan Sheibani, design Giles Cadle, National Theatre

Pressure-cooker. In just under three hours we sweat, rail, shed calories, sweat; cook fish, sweat, meat and two veg, sweat, prepare pastries in an inventive revival of Wesker’s play. It’s a tour de force, not to be used lightly, in movement and choreography covering a single day at the Tivoli Restaurant. The kitchen has its hierarchies amongst the chefs and waitresses, and in this respect, resembles a mini state. It has its nationalities, a global village, made more poignant when you consider its original setting, 1959, where things are still unstable after WW2, and principles are embryonic; all anyone can do is cling on…….This is the by-word for the play as the action, becoming more frenetic and surreal, reaches a glorious crescendo at the end of the first half…….All the characters have their moments but Peter, with his dream arch, is perhaps the most developed; the rest present points of view, character detail, like vignettes that serve the wild action of the morning, the lull of the afternoon, and the climactic evening shift….Everything about this production is outstanding from its concept through to its design...........……