I really enjoyed my almost two hours with the Miller family. It is apparently Eugene O'Neill's only comedy and reading the programme describing his attempted suicide and the successful suicide of his son, it is something of a miracle that he got to this number.
It is not really a 'makes you think' sort of play but with the acting, set and play itself, it made for an entertaining evening. The focus is the teenager, Richard, going through the tribulations of his first love with Muriel, the daughter of a business associate of his father. Contrasting their young love is the never-progressed affair between the drunken 'uncle' Sid and Lily, and the regular marriage of his father and devoted mother.
The parts were taken to extreme with Sid's stupours of drink and Richard's of love. The set - a sandy incline - was striking and used to great effect, particularly towards the end when a small beech was created with Richard projecting himself face-down into the water in his desperation.
Overall, the direction by Natalie Abrahami gave a great lease of life to what is probably not the greatest of plays.
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