Review: Bizarre And Bold, BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGDAD ZOO Contemplates The Meaning Of Life In A Society Riddled With Conflict And Contradictions.

Saturday 15th April 2017, 8:15pm, Old Fitz Theatre, Woolloomooloo

Rajiv Joseph's acclaimed play BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGDAD ZOO is presented by Mad March Hare Theatre with compact creativity at the Old Fitz Theatre as part of Red Line Theatre's season of Unspoken stories. Under Claudia Barrie's direction, the spirit filled story of the questions which haunt those that have ever pondered their purpose plays out with recognisable elements from the truth that underpins Joseph's imaginative story.

Set in 2003, in the ruins of Bagdad zoo, represented by Isabel Hudson's simple concrete and cyclone wire set, the story of the Bengal Tiger (Maggie Dence) and Kevin (Josh Anderson) and Tom (Stephen Multari), the two American Marines tasked with protecting the zoo's residents unfolds. The old, cranky tiger is given a loud opinionated voice as she shares her thoughts on the lions that recently escaped only to be shot in the street. At the same time, Tom is boasting to Kevin of his previous success in Bagdad whilst the younger, rather dim-witted, trigger happy and horny Kevin expresses his frustration at not having seen action, of any form. With a degree of sympathy and stupidity, Tom takes pity on the hungry tiger which starts the cycle of death and crisis of conscious that plagues the central characters which expands to include the Arabic interpreter Musa (Andrew Lindqvist) which Kevin meets whilst seeking a quiet place to kit up.

Maggie Dence is a force as the Bengal Tiger and it is wonderful to see Barrie cast a female in this originally masculine role. Costume designer Stephanie Howe has retained the stylings of the original stagings, presenting the tiger in rags and not attempting to make her feline or striped apart from hair teased to mimic the thick ruff of fur that surrounds the Bengal's face. Dence presents the Tiger's voice with both the strong, no nonsense authority that conveys both her age and status as the biggest of the cats, outweighing the lions who she finds a bore, and the sensitivity and tenderness as she contemplates her existence in an existential crisis which brings out moments of quieter remembrance and reflection. Dence employs a subtle slinking physicality to convey the feline without turning her into a caricature and has an intensity in her gaze as she keeps a close eye on the Marines.

As the dopey marine Kevin, Josh Anderson plays up the ignorance and arrogance of the American's who failed to differentiate between a nationality and a language and employed the strategy of fear rather than communication. As Kevin spirals out of control, tormented by the ghost of the Tiger he shot, Anderson conveys the unbridled anger and irrational behaviour that simmers beneath soldiers that just want to fight but don't really understand what they are fighting for or how to deal with people different to themselves.

As Kevin's 'friend', fellow Jarhead Tom, Stephen Multari also presents the insensitivity and greed associated with the American soldiers that occupied Iraq. Tom is smarter and tries to appear more principled than Kevin but Multari conveys that Tom is no better than Kevin when it comes to the superiority complex and selfishness which eventually catches up with him. He captures the contradiction where Tom believes that he's doing the right thing by being polite and excusing his bad behaviour whilst still doing things that he'd look down at others for doing.

As the translator engaged by the US Army, Andrew Lindqvist presents Musa with a general calmness and peacefulness which counters the volatility of the marines. He conveys that Musa is educated and interested in advancing his skills with measured attempts to build communications with the soldiers. He also expresses that he is visited by his own demons, in the form of the ghost of the Uday Hussein who he used to tend gardens for, creating an impressive topiary garden whilst Uday had violated and murdered his sister Hadia (Megan Smart).

Minor roles are filled by Tyler De Nawi as the ghost of Uday Hussein and the Iraqi man who's house Kevin raids. In addition to presenting the ghost of Hadia, Megan Smart also presents the Iraqi girl that Tom pays for services and Musa mistakes for his sister. Aanisa Vylet presents the Iraqi woman who's house is raided with a heightened anger that did come across as unlikely for someone fearing for life. Vylet also presents the Leper that Tom and Musa visit in the desert. These roles aren't as textured as the major characters, due to their time on stage and the need to convey the plot points.

Whilst a thought provoking work, there are some points that could still benefit from refinement. As each character dies and becomes a ghost it appears that they are supposed to be marked with white chalk but for the most part, this isn't clear as the smears vanish quickly and do not stand out with Benjamin Brockman's lighting. Brockman's lighting is also oddly coloured for a story based on ghosts and set in war torn city. Washes of colour, highlighting the life of the characters would be understandable but the continuation of bold pink and yellow lights after their death makes the transition from life to ghost even harder to follow. The green neon highlighting the animal masks (designed by Wintercroft Masks in collaboration with Set designer Isabel Hudson and director Claudia Barrie) does not make it clear that they are Topiary trees when paired with the green fluorescent that lights up Kevin and the Tiger's positions behind the fence, particularly when the Tiger has just shared that ghosts of other animals are roaming the streets.

BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGDAD ZOO is a thought provoking, interesting work with some wonderful entertainment from Dence as the Gutsy, no nonsense Tiger. Humorous and shocking in the exposure of human behaviour towards each other and the innocent this is work seeing, even with the little quibbles with lighting and expression.

BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGDAD ZOO

Old Fitz Theatre

12th April - 6 May 2017

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