In Joe Penhall ’s new play, swaggering Bernard is a record producer corrupted by success. Hollowed out by cynicism, he’s a chillingly articulate figure, and it’s a peach of a role. Originally intended as a vehicle for Rhys Ifans, who withdrew citing ‘family reasons’ , it now feels as though it was written specifically for his compelling replacement, Ben Chaplin .
Bernard is a sneering, magnetic bully who insists that good songwriting demands detachment. Wickedly droll lines drip from his cruel mouth, and Chaplin savours his ruthless insouciance. In Roger Michell’s production he dominates a massive thrust stage that serves as an ominous image of his cocksure forcefulness.
For Penhall, who created the Netflix series Mindhunter, the character’s sociopathic tendencies are an opportunity to probe the nature of creativity and the psychology of authorship. Bernard has spent time in the recording studio with young Irish musician Cat (a fiery Séana Kerslake), whose talents he seems barely to notice. Their sessions together have led to commercial and critical rewards, but now they’re in dispute over who did what — with Bernard insisting that all the credit should be his.
Their relationship is like an elusive dance. Most of their rancour is expressed through conversations with therapists (Pip Carter and Jemma Redgrave) or lawyers (Kurt Egyiawan and Neil Stuke). There’s a keen awareness here of the toxic compromises that pervade the music business, which Penhall covered in his days as a journalist and has revisited during collaborations with Nick Cave, Ray Davies of The Kinks and The Who’s Pete Townshend.
He writes economically — about power, solitude, rage and responsibility. But the supporting roles don’t have much flesh on their bones, and too often the tensions are narrated rather than dramatised. While the play is strong on mood, there’s no great sense of the music that defines the characters’ lives. At its heart it needs more darkness and visceral conflict, though it’s still worth seeing for Chaplin’s charismatic performance.
Until June 16
