Kaddish for Pinter

While John Malkovich and Julian Sands unpick the poetry of Harold Pinter in the Pleasance Courtyard, the ornate, thick-carpeted Merchants' Hall provides the setting for this homage to Pinter, which draws heavily on the great playwright’s early work, political leanings and concern for human rights. The whole thing also smacks somewhat of Beckett-esque black humour and avant-gardism.

The three-handed set-up involves a young officer (Sam) questioning an old man (Barker) over the whereabouts of the mysterious Steinberg, wanted for reasons unknown. Barker is being held captive and has been for some time, though the details, like much of this play, are unclear.

A second, more senior officer (Gloria) enters the fray and spouts procedural guff about doing work “for the greater good” before psychologically and physically tormenting both men in turn. The cycle of inquisition and unpleasantness—whilst often written within comic parameters—continues until the lights go down with the captors knowing about as little of what they’re doing as the captured. Or the audience for that matter.

The acting is at times somewhat ripe and amped up, with frustratingly little time allowed for the text to breathe. But there is some fine, scenery-chewing monologueing from Crawford Logan (Barker) in particular, and Gavin Wright (Sam) makes for a suitably confused underling.

Twice audience members are consulted to assist onstage for no apparent reason or consequence, leaving them, and the rest of us, feeling ultimately isolated from this bewildering and steadfastly private love letter to the great British writer.