Review
Published: Wednesday 14 July, 2010 by Melissa Blease, Venue Magazine
Secrets, lies, unspoken frustration, unrequited desire and domestic melodrama: such are the potent issues that Tennessee Williams' best-known play focuses on, a volatile recipe made all the more compelling by the real-time pace and 1950s American Deep South setting.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is the story of a family in emotional, physical and financial crisis, with the intense, challenging relationship between Maggie and Brick Pollitt (respectively, a vicious by vulnerable social climber and an alcoholic ex-footballer tormented by guilt and confusion after the death of his best friend) pulsing at the heart of the action. Esewhere, Brick's 'Big Daddy' - the beleaguered patriarch struggling with complex, multifaceted issues of his own - shoulders the ultimate responsibility of defining the family's fate.
In this ambitious production from Bath's Next Stage Theatre Company, Rosie Magee tackled the role of Maggie admirable, only occasionally allowing the depth behind the character to vacillate slightly as she focused on delivering lengthy, passionate monologues in impressive word-perfect format. Meanwhile, Richard Matthew' indolent, languid yet grippingly beguiling interpretation of Brich seamlessly united a supporting cast who neither failed nor faltered in their quest to successfully rekindle a powerfully dramatic epic on the Mission stage.
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