The Maids

This was an intense hour and 45 minutes.  It's based on Genet’s play about two maids conspiring against their overbearing, self obsessed and unpleasant mistress, who in this iteration is some kind of online lifestyle influencer.  This turns into a fast and furious critique about celebrity culture, social media and online influencing whilst mostly keeping hold of the original plot.  Visually stunning, this makes one of the best and most innovative use of screens I have seen, with live streaming from iPhones into the massive mirror/screens that fill the back of the stage.  The use of filters and personas is inspired, and helps with the sense that reality and fantasy are getting more and more blurred.  The maids don't just try on her clothes, but also her online persona.  

The three person cast (Phia Saban, Lydia Wilson, and Yerin Ha), are all fabulously on point with this, although it is sometimes hard to focus on them, given the amount also going on on the screens.  For the first half an hour the two sisters play out the relationship between them and their mistress, and we learn of their scheme.  When we meet the mistress we find she is pretty much as monstrous as she is portrayed.  The final 30 minutes when the sisters spiral with each other as the plan falls apart was amazing.   

This was another play without an interval and I can understand why, but it would have been good to have a change of tone or pace, even if then it was revved up again later.  This is delivered at a breakneck speed which meant was there was little opportunity to feel much empathy for the characters as we were constantly rushing on to the next thing, and the sensory overload from it all was overwhelming.  Despite the fact that I would have liked a little breather somewhere in the middle, this is an original and exhilarating ride which dazzles right up to its inevitable conclusion and so the only sensible option is just to surrender to it and enjoy the journey.