The Red Room is an energetic contemporary interpretation of Edgar Allan Poe’s 19th century gothic tale, The Masque of the Red Death.
First published in 1842, the story told of a Prince who hides himself and fellow wealthy aristocrats in his abbey, where they indulge in decadent debauchery in a series of coloured rooms, to avoid the horrors of a devastating plague that is sweeping the country.
In this radical version of the tale, the audience sees the solitary imposing figure of what appears to be a woman in a giant, white crinoline dress, like a wedding cake reflected in the shiny floor of the stage.
When the performance begins, this ‘queen’ turns out to be a man, the Prince, who glides gracefully with skill reminiscent of the Georgian State dancers across the stage. He slowly, elegantly moves his hands like swans necks with the sound of ticking in the background, representing the clock that clangs in Poe’s story in the mysterious and forbidding red room.
Against a backdrop like a pink pearly sunset, each of the coloured rooms is subtly represented by a light on the dancers throughout the piece. The dynamics within this select group, all dressed in white, are shown through the charged diverse dance ranging from ballet, Bharatanatyam and break dancing, but the orgies are more overtly, sometimes shockingly, portrayed.
Once, the couple looking like a giant octoped, prizing itself apart and slinking away from itself like two newly formed lizards. Throughout, the sad figure of the clown, who may represent the suffering masses, tries to join in, but is excluded, rebuffed and humiliated by the profligates except when they need more cruel amusement.
The vain group is disabused of believing they can completely remove themselves from life when it eventually catches up with them in this highly skilled, visually exciting and sinister performance.
Times: 9 August, 10.30am £16,(£11)(£5); 11 August, 4.45pm £16,(£11) (£5U); 12, 16 August, 8.00pm £16,(£11) (£5U); 13 August, 10.15am £16,(£11) (£5U); 14 August, 1.15pm £18, (£12); 15 August, 4.45pm £18, (£12)
The production tours in the Autumn till 10 October.