Golden Boy at the Almeida

 Josh O'Connor on the London stage at the Almeida theatre was never going to disappoint, so I bought our tickets on the first morning that membership booking opened, and I’m glad I did as it has been resolutely sold out for ages. 

With the addition of Hayley Squires and Daniel Mays in the central cast it looked as though we were in for a treat.  Clifford Odett's play, written in 1937,  is a bit of a period piece, set during the depression as Joe Bonaparte decides to leave behind his impoverished life as a violinist in New York, and instead become a prize fighter.  Nowadays the short cut would presumably be as a social media influencer.  Daniel Mays is Tom, playing to type as Joe's initially unwilling but increasingly more enthusiastic promoter, and Hayley Squires plays Lorna Moon, Tom's mistress, wielded as a weapon to get Joe onside, but eventually, and fairly obviously, becoming part of a love triangle.  The production has more furniture and traditional set than usually seen on stage at the Almeida, but the addition of a camera in the punchbag brings a touch of modernity but also takes us right into the heart of the action when projected on the back of the stage.  

I can see why O'Connor was attracted to the role - the mix of head over heart and internal and external emotion to work through alongside the sheer physicality - full of bluster and cockiness externally, holding himself tight whilst hiding a softer and more artistic centre, and he does a fantastic job with it. He obviously worked out for the role too; at first I thought his sharply defined abs might have been makeup, but no, they are impressively real so he was convincing (to me at least) that he could be a bantam weight fighter.   The play itself is fairly heavy handed in pointing out that in order to be successful you might have to leave a lot of good things behind, and questions whether it is worth it.  The symbolism of the violin was overdone in my opinion,  but I did enjoy the performances of the string quartet and hiding them away in a secluded area  on stage was a nice touch.  Despite how obvious it was, I enjoyed the metaphor of Joe sometimes basking in the beauty of the music but other times shutting them way so he could chase success.  I wasn’t sure how the musicians felt about regularly being shut in what was essentially a cupboard though. 

What I really don't understand is why it is relevant for today.  I can perhaps make a case for the view of masculinity it gives us - softness, empathy and kindness is not rewarded in this world. Despite the relevance or not of the revival, the benefit of O’Connor on stage is definitely worthwhile, and I'm glad I had the chance to see him performing up close;  the Almeida is such a small theatre you can hear and see every breath.  But overall the play itself never felt more than just a well produced period piece.  The ending was incredibly sentimental and a bit too much so for this old cynical heart.  It also went on a bit too long when I was clock-watching to see if I was going to get my train!  

This is an old play which is showing its age, but it's well produced and performed with a fabulous cast and really worth a visit for these things alone, although the only way you will get a ticket now is to queue up in person for returns.