Review: CITY OF GLASS, Lyric Hammersmith

If City of Glass was a modern art installation, it would undoubtably be worth five stars. It is one of the most visually impressive productions I have ever seen on a London stage.

Based on Paul Auster's novella of the same name, the story follows Daniel Quinn, a lonely and reclusive writer, who picks up the phone late one night and is mistaken for private detective Paul Auster. He instantly becomes embroiled in the task of tracking Peter Stillman's abusive father, after he is released from prison. The real mystery, however, is one of confused identities, where Quinn finds it increasingly difficult to discern what is fact and what is fiction.

Drawing inspiration from the graphic novel version of the book, director Leo Walker takes the audience through a series of alternative realities in a dark and sinister film noir world. The graphic achievements of the play are simply stunning. Production Company 59 Productions is responsible for visual extravaganzas such as the London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony and the quality and innovation of the design is clearly in evidence.

Lysander Ashton's video projection over the set creates a multitude of scenes; the living room of an apartment morphs into a bustling station, complete with silhouettes of people rushing around. Backstreets of New York are brought vividly to life and slick devices such as animating pictures on the wall and snow falling outside windows create a discombobulating dynamic, where nothing is quite what it seems. Gareth Fry's uneasy audio design compliments this very well. It is a brilliant visual and aural reflection of the turmoil and chaos within Quinn's increasingly confused mind.

In contrast, the narrative of the story is totally empty. The audience can accept that Quinn perhaps takes up this strange request to stalk Stillman's father as a way of distracting him from his lonely life and personal grief at the loss of his family. Any grief seems distinctly hollow and so as Quinn descends into an obsessive madness in his quest, it is very hard to care, as there is a total lack of clear motivation for his obsession. Without motivation, the actions of Quinn are difficult to understand and even harder to engage with.

There is also an overreliance on using the device of a narrator to talk through the internal workings of Quinn's mind. At first it complements the film noir effect well, as Quinn looks set to turn into a private detective. However, in the second half of the play in particular, this leads to inaction on stage and little to occupy the wandering mind of the audience.

Director Leo Warner uses an effective technique in casting two different actors, Mark Edel-Hunt and Chris New, as Quinn. This means that the character can appear in completely different areas of the stage instantaneously. Both Edel-Hunt and New do what they can, but cannot escape the shallow depths of the difficult character. Jack Tarlton plays both the strange Stillman junior and senior, but fails to separate the two characters sufficiently. Perhaps this overlap is on purpose, but it's difficult to become engaged with either character as they lack any sympathy whatsoever.

In essence, the production is a visual treat and features strokes of technical mastery, but lacks a necessary depth of narrative. The credibility of the story fails at every turn and cannot be saved by the amazing visual effects.

City of Glass is at Lyric Hammersmith until 20 May

Photo Credit: JoNathan Keenan