Russia is beautiful and vast. But with its beauty comes a troubled past and present – some of it wonderful, but a lot of it very painful. A bit like Marilyn Monroe. So what the hell is going on in Russia? What on earth do the people want? Most Russians don’t know, many don’t care. The issue is much much more far-reaching than politics and Putin. This is the territory of morals, ethics and ideologies.
Jonathan Holmes and his company Jericho House are adept at tackling uncomfortable and sensitive subjects through performance. In 2004, his piece Fallujah – describing what was the criminal US siege of the city – became known worldwide for its verbatim eyewitness accounts of what happened at the scene. His current project at the Bush Theatre explores what the Russian people are experiencing at present in their country as it goes through more political tribulations.
Revolution Square is a work-in-progress but still a striking piece of theatre. Holmes is grappling with issues that have plagued Russia for centuries, but have barely been considered by us in the West until extremely recently.
The Cold War ended decades ago, but it has taken much longer for the media to catch up and begin giving this fascinating and gargantuan nation requisite attention. Holmes is a pioneer. He has decided to lead the discussion about Russian’s situation in human terms through three characters: two Russian, one English – all female.
The setting is low key and unexpected. A tiny, derelict chapel tucked above Revolution Square, where the sounds of the protesters can be heard. The dialogue is sharp, funny and doesn’t flag for a second. The three characters have depth and are brought to life by Dolya Gavanski, Helen Masters and Sian Rees stupendously. Holmes’ script, which has been compiled from the many and varied perspectives of the people he has interviewed during his research, gives a vista onto what the people living in the thick of all this are thinking.
He raises so many pertinent questions and packages these into some wonderful lines that send you off down countless trains of thought: much more than can be said for any news coverage. What is so powerful about this piece is that it remains a story about people. Included are some horrifying accounts of real life situations, making it incredibly moving, made all the more so by our proximity to the actors. Holmes makes us participants in their conversation, not an audience.
Equally enjoyable was the post-performance discussion with the director and actors, where we were invited to question and comment on what we had just seen. Holmes has started something brilliant. Although there is enough here to make many plays out of, I think Revolution Square as it stands is an important and enjoyable work of theatre, even in its state of incompletion.
