Psychiatrist Martin Dysart (Paul Stonehouse) is brought the most challenging case of his career by magistrate Hesther Saloman (Rebecca Beattie). Alan Strang (Freddie Hall) seems like a normal seventeen year old. His life appears routine and his family loving. However, Alan’s passion for horses and an encounter with stablehand Jill (Claire Morley) has led him to behave in the most devastating way. Only Dysart seems able to grasp the answer to this psychological puzzle.

Stonehouse is the only older actor in this production by the Young Actors Company but it was his opening with Beattie that sank my hopes immediately that this production was going to be anything more than pedestrian. It was completely flat from then on and throughout the first half and only picked up slightly, as it had to, in the final brutal scene.

With such a young cast it should not be expected that they have the stage or life experience their characters demand and as such the paucity of truthfulness in any of the relationships has to be blamed on the director. Steve Pratt in the Press describes the direction as understated – in my opinion though it was staged, lit and largely blocked well these young actors were seemingly left to their own interpretation.

Key to the whole performance is of course the relationship between Dysart and Strang. I was reminded of a fine production of ‘Duet for One’ I’d seen, another psychiatrist patient play, where the acts of listening, interpreting and responding were allowed time and due weight. For example in this production several mentions were made of Strang’s stare but we were never given time to either see it or to witness Dysart’s contemplation of it.

This was emblematic of a bigger problem. What was missing was the complex and multi-layered character relationships and in Equus if you don’t have that there is very little left to contemplate.

All of the above was not me.

x

Note by moderator: This is probably not Kate Taylor

p.s. I did not go home with him – honest

Note by moderator: This is probably not Kate Taylor

Kind regards – Laura’s Biggest/Only Fan