Watching Martin Crimp's 1995 play Attempts on Her Life at the National in London, is not unlike zapping the remote. 16 seemingly disconnected scenes attempt to show various part of the life of Anne, or various types of Annes, or, in a broader sense, how we all are constructed by what we like, where we go, who we know and how we do what we do. Consequently, Anne is shown to be a terrorist, the girl next door, a type of car even, and is characterised mainly by her absense - there is no definitive Anne. The one weakness within the production is not the liberal use of references as such but how precise the references are. Creating a scenario that is pitch-perfect Newsnight Review is funny but when Tom Paulin and Germaine Greer are so clearly being impersonated, one feels as if watching Bremner, Bird and Fortune. If I should ever want to watch Bremner, Bird and Fortune (which is unlikely)I should hope to find them at a market fair for free. Similarly the musical scenarios are tiresome, especially the ABBA segment - haven't we seen that time and again?

In the 21st century theatre, not many people are offended by swearing or the occasional nudity (unless this is undertaken by Harry Potter) but what does offend is when people cannot decipher what is going on. If they cannot root the action somewhere recognisable (in time, in space), they cannot comprehend how they are supposed to feel. Attempts on Her Life does not tell you how to feel or how to act but notices society the way it is right here and now. The flaw in an otherwise interesting 2007 production is that it seems as if we were still in 1995. This is mainly due to the direction of the play and however much I admire Katie Mitchell I wish she would have acknowledged how interesting this play still is by keeping it all fresh and new.
posted by charlotte at 15:42 - comment