Chicken at Jermyn Street Theatre Review
Written by Cathie for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
There is a new one-woman show at Jerymn Street Theatre, but it offers a unique bird’s eye perspective. Director Hildegard Ryan and Eva O’Connor have brought to life a tale as rare as hens’ teeth, where we meet Don Murphy. He is a strong, proud Irishman from Kerry, a hopeless ketamine addict, and one of this generation’s most magnificent actors. He is also a chicken.
This Sundays Child theatre production is a marvel of intricate comedy. Bryony Rumble’s costuming is fabulous and really grounds this play into relative reality in comparison to its high flying discussions. It starts off in an Oscar Wilde-esque twisting of words and extravagant phrases. From humble adopted beginnings, a breakout moment with naked Michael Fassbender, we see the sheer determination in his climb to the top of the Hollywood pyramid. Then the play takes a stranger turn with drug addiction, newfound love and a slowly growing sense of conviction for standing up for chickens’ rights and an eventual call to action over them. The use of lights flickering and moments of darkness (Marianne Nightingale) adds to the gravitas and passing of time, and O’Connor’s constant flickering of her feathers (Sarah Blanc) to highlight points is an excellent detail.
The themes of this play are sharply nuanced and well-drawn. The parallels between fame and illness were finely drawn with a slow degradation and burnout of the character as he sees behind the curtain. He is also the “other” in Hollywood and society as a literal chicken and struggles with his privileges of being a “chosen one” in comparison to the other, less fortunate chickens. The concept of the fragility of men’s mental health is also explored here, and although the character finds peace at the end, the audience is left with the strong impression that this is the only time the character actually felt peace in their life.
This fringe show is peak absurdist comedy that will tickle your funny bone as much as it reveals the seedy truths hidden beneath Hollywood’s twinkling lights. If you enjoy light-hearted comedy, plenty of poultry-based puns and scathing social commentary, then this is the show for you.
★★★★
