Horne’s Descent, Old Red Lion Theatre Review

Reviews

5 Apr

Written by Bronagh
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review.

It’s January 1920 and we’re in an upper class London property, gramophone playing, drinks waiting to be poured. The war isn’t a distant memory at all, not in the slightest. We’re at the beginning of the most decadent era yet, and prosperity is on the horizon. In Peter Horne’s case, he’s decided to turn to the priesthood in a true twist of fate.

The Old Red Lion has been transformed into a smoky upper class study, with low music playing, fancy furniture scattered around. Here we meet Peter Horne (Alexander Hackett), a newly ordained priest, who has been invited to the house by his childhood friend Albert (Magnus Gordon), a keen fan of debauchery and sin, to attend the soirée of Etta Florence (Cici Clarke). They greet each other as old friends do, we’re introduced to Etta and her niece Mary (Bethany Slater), and then the soirée gets underway.

An initial thought of mine that I will get out of the way first was whether using herbal cigarettes in a small space really was necessary. There are no doubts that this really did add to the atmosphere, creating a stunning setting, but at times I personally did find it overwhelming. Still, the show must go on!

Horne’s Descent does get off to a slow start, and it feels like it takes us a little while to get our teeth into the story. We start with just Peter and Albert, idly chit chatting. Has the butler stolen Albert’s dinner jacket? Realistically not, Albert is just assuming the worst. Another drink old boy?

We are then introduced to Etta and Mary whose costumes are brilliant and encapsulate the 1920s flapper style we all know and associate with the era. Miranda Cattermole did an excellent job here. Etta, Mary and Albert pick at Peter becoming a ‘man of the church, and religion, spirituality and occultism intertwine to create a decent plot. Why do we need to adhere to religious rules, when there are other forces out there…

While I was watching Horne’s Descent, I couldn’t help but think that things felt slightly disjointed. It is heavily hinted at throughout that Peter and Albert have got up to some murky business in the past, and I would have loved this to have been explored more. However, for a show that was only sixty minutes I do think it was fine and enough was packed in the place of in depth character histories. Albert’s stumble from the ‘high ranks’ and declaring his love for Peter was something that I did see coming, but regardless it was enjoyable to watch it happen in front of me. The ending was a great twist, which I for one did not see coming.

I thoroughly enjoyed the cast of Horne’s Descent, and thought they suited their characters well. Hackett and Gordon fitted their roles well, and I could actually imagine both as a priest and a toff respectively. Clarke’s Etta oozed money and charm, not out of place sashaying down Piccadilly. Overall it was Slater’s Mary who stole the show for me. She was not too unlike a saucier version of Daisy Buchanan; beautiful, dripping in charm and men wanting her.

Chloe Cattin’s direction is full of movement, the cast rarely standing still. I loved the dance sequences, short but certainly sweet. Suddenly we were no longer in a small theatre space, instead at a debutante ball watching on.

Overall Horne’s Descent was an enjoyable piece of theatre. From Chloe Cattin’s direction, Nina Atesh’s script to the cast’s great performances, this is a great show which could perhaps do with some tightening up but could also be left as it is. The beauty of theatre!