OBSERVER: The Homecoming
Harold Pinter who died on Christmas Eve in 2008, aged 78, was not just the writer of some 29 plays and 15 dramatic sketches, but also an actor, a director, a screenwriter of 27 scripts for cinema and television and a composer of poetry.
Award-winning Best Play, The Homecoming in 1967 stands as one of his most provocative productions, where the work explores power struggles, contriving dominance in a dysfunctional family.
The House is shared by the father, his two sons and the father’s brother. A third son, a philosophy professor in America, visits the house in London with his wife after a nine year absence.
While there is no welcome with father Max (Richard Piper) wanting Teddy (Peter Houghton) and wife Ruth (Kate Kendall) out of the house immediately, “throw them out”. Here the household is cast into social upheaval and disturbing male dominance. Son Lenny (Ben Geurens) appears to be charming. but becomes sordid, creating an air of discomfort.
The men talk incessantly of their own affairs and life events, many times being cut short by others with just as great an ego. During all of this Ruth, looks to be docile and a lady of decorum but as she settles, becomes a controlling influence as son Joey (Eddie Orton) becomes her toy while husband Teddy pays little attention as he embraces his philosophy and attempts at coercive conversation with his wife.
Although Max is in control most of the time it is his brother Sam (David Field) that shows more moral fibre than the rest. With an unpredictable ending, Teddy returns to America, Ruth stays put and someone dies.
Impressive performances by Piper and Field well supported by a team of seasoned actors that easily met the diversity of their demanding characters.
It is Pinter at his best, complexity, innuendos aplenty, and a touch of infidelity.
What more could you ask for?
A fine production presented by the Australian Shakespeare Company, well-directed and designed by Greg Carroll and his team of operatives.
Graeme McCoubrie
Pictured: Cast of The Homecoming: Kate Kendall, Richard Piper, Ben Geurens, Peter Houghton, David Field, and Eddie Orton.