A Theater Trip to London - In Downtown Reykjavík

Translation: Sæunn Valdís Kristinsdóttir

This fall, the downtown cinema bar Bíó Paradís started a collaboration with the National Theater Live, showing plays recorded at the National Theatre in London. The National Theater Live aims to send the London stage right into the movie theaters and living rooms across the world. A reporter at the student paper used the opportunity to see C.P. Taylor’s play Good, directed by Dominic Cooke. David Tennant had the leading role as the German professor John Halder. Elliot Levey and Sharon Small took on multiple roles alongside him. The play opens in Germany, in 1933, when John Halder is just an ordinary, good man. He tends to seek advice from his best friend who is Jewish. John goes through everyday problems – his mother is blind and unhappy about being placed in a home, his wife is mentally unstable, and he’s trying to progress in his job at the university. Eventually love comes knocking on his door with all the complications of adultery. Without going into too much detail, the play gives good insight into incomprehensible tragedy. 

This play presents the mental gymnastics of an absolutely ordinary man and how he ends up submitting to the Nazi ideology, and the way he convinces himself that the things he’s doing are ordinary and even good. The name of the play, Good, refers to how a good man can, in an environment like Nazi Germany, turn into a monster. David Tennant was absolutely fantastic in his role, alongside the other actors. The way that Sharon Small swapped between roles seamlessly within seconds was spectacular, and the way in which the lighting and camera action emphasized those character changes was brilliant.  

I highly recommend watching this play if the opportunity arises. It truly is still valid in today’s society. 

During the intermission they showed a short documentary about the life and times of  Cecil Philip Taylor, the playwright. Good was Taylor’s last play, and he passed away shortly after its premiere in 1981. In the documentary, many lamented the fact that he didn’t get to see the success of his last play. 

At the time this was written, there don’t seem to be further NTL shows scheduled at Bíó Paradís. I encourage them to add more, as this is certainly a great addition to the selection of cultural entertainment the city center has to offer.