BWW Reviews: SUNSET SONG, King's Theatre, Glasgow, October 21 2014
Recently voted Scotland's favourite novel, the Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic Sunset Song centres on the life of a rural farming community in the North of Scotland. Chris Guthrie desperately wants to be a teacher and has the intelligence to go to university but she feels a duty to the farming life she has been raised in.
Sunset Song is somewhat of a grim tale. After feeling unable to go through yet another pregnancy, Chris's mother commits suicide, while also poisoning her young twins. Chris has to step into the role of the mother of the house and her father expects her to resume all of her mother'sduties. Chris then marries a farmer and lives happily until the beginning of World War One when her husband is called for service, he returns from war a changed man and becomes abusive towards Chris.
Men seem to be represented unfairly as the only examples we see are sexual deviants who seem to have no self control. While this may have been the case, it makes for uncomfortable viewing when a soldier returns from war with no other intent than repeatedly assaulting his wife. There are several elements of Sunset Song that have to be put down to the time it was written and when it is based and these are not issues that I have with this production which I thought was well executed.
I have to admit that I inititally struggled with the dialect of the performers. Sunset Song is set in the North East of Scotland and the accents stay true to the region. I'm not sure whether this became less intense after the first fifteen minutes or so of the play- or if I just got used to it! The dialogue is beautifully written and the music used was perfect for the piece. Old Scottish style folk music runs throughout the play and it was a lovely touch.
Sunset Song is on tour around Scotland.
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