Over 20 years ago Philip Ridley created a play called ‘The Pitchfork Disney’ that was regarded as so shocking that many people left the theatre while it was going on.
What is most astonishing is that today the production is just as hard-hitting and horrifying as it was when it first came out.
The play stars Chris New as Presley and Maria Gale as Hayley who are two siblings who live together in a house that was once owned by their parents. They live a reclusive and half adult existence and spend their time getting high on medication and eating snacks.
Their world continues like this for some time until their sheltered existence is shaken up by the entrance of Cosmo, played by Nathan Stuart-Jarret, into their home who begins asking what happened to their mother and father.
The plot of this play is very twisted and bizarre and there are many shocks that will leave the audience stunned. The script is very articulate and the audience will remain completely enthralled by the production. Many people regard this play is a masterpiece but it is not just the script that makes it so good.
This production which is held at the Arcola Theatre is something of a phenomenon. As well as the cast being spectacular, the set is immense. At the lower level it seems to come out directly over the audience and gives them a real sense of how decrepit the home is.
Cosmo is played exceptionally by Stuart-Jarret. He is a cruel joker who borders on the sociopathic and he preys on the other two characters in a very spiteful way. Chris New is really the actor who steals the show however and he manages to tread the line between adult and child spectacularly.
He seems to have an unstoppable boundless energy and his frantic monologues show him to be a much deeper character. His physical achievements in the production are amazing, he has mastered his character to such an extent that the flinching and sweating look incredibly natural, almost disconcertingly so.
It would be impossible to describe this play as something that is enjoyable. It’s an incredibly difficult production and the word disturbed would not be amiss. Leaving the theatre you will feel as if you have just seen something incredibly unique and fantastic.
If you have a weak disposition then this is not a production for you. For those who want to experience how powerful and intense theatre can be then this is a production you shouldn’t miss.
This is a play that demands a great deal of the audience but in exchange you get to experience theatre like you have never seen before. It is a most bizarre fairytale that is unlike any other production being put on in London. You will leave the theatre nervous and terrified which is a rather uncomfortable feeling.
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