An illicit seven-year affair. Three best friends.
All you Literature majors may have watched the 1983 movie adaptation of it, seen from the husband's point of view; starring Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley and Patricia Hodge. I still think Pinter's play is best performed on a stage.
I watched this play twice at West End in early 1999 and at Broadway in early 2001. Different productions, same theme, different feel. Eagerly watched the Singapore Repertory Theatre's production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal. This production stars, pictured below: Shabana Azmi (Fire, City of Joy), Peter Friedman (Paycheck) and Simon Jones (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy).
This is a brilliant production. On par with all the other 2 I had watched. Betrayal's reverse chronological order of scenes meant that it is a play that requires strong actors who can intimately utilize the languages of nuance and of the body. The actors in this production brought the subtleties of Pinter's words to palpable poignancy.
This production stays true to Pinter. It never reveals any point of view. It simply lay bare, the facts, allowing audiences to draw their own conclusions. Betrayal is in the eye of the beholder? We can all chew on it. As the years pass, methink this situation feels more real for everyone.
All you Literature majors may have watched the 1983 movie adaptation of it, seen from the husband's point of view; starring Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley and Patricia Hodge. I still think Pinter's play is best performed on a stage.
I watched this play twice at West End in early 1999 and at Broadway in early 2001. Different productions, same theme, different feel. Eagerly watched the Singapore Repertory Theatre's production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal. This production stars, pictured below: Shabana Azmi (Fire, City of Joy), Peter Friedman (Paycheck) and Simon Jones (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy).
This is a brilliant production. On par with all the other 2 I had watched. Betrayal's reverse chronological order of scenes meant that it is a play that requires strong actors who can intimately utilize the languages of nuance and of the body. The actors in this production brought the subtleties of Pinter's words to palpable poignancy.
This production stays true to Pinter. It never reveals any point of view. It simply lay bare, the facts, allowing audiences to draw their own conclusions. Betrayal is in the eye of the beholder? We can all chew on it. As the years pass, methink this situation feels more real for everyone.
19 comments:
you don't say. i criticized the women and men like hell when i watched it years ago. now,perhaps it's because i've mellowed,or perhaps i know more about men and women, i kind of reserve judgment already.
i had tickets to the preview. i agree that the actors are really good. i don't think any of our local actors can pull it off. there is so much in the unspoken,the body language.
i agree. reel life becomes real life nowadays. and the real life could even be more dramatic.
don't you know cheating IS a way of life now? it's not just a fad. it's becoming accepted.
marriages & betrayal. quid pro quo. vows notwithstanding.
my favorite play of all time. no shakespeare for me,thank you very much.Pinter knows so much about the human psyche.it's brilliant how he brings real life to paper,then paper to reel again.
well,very many people stay in marriages for the sake of appearances. and then carry on a parallel double life. honestly,nothing very wrong if feelings/emotions are conditioned this way.
sad is a loveless marriage.
Pinter does a woman with 2 men. what a visionary!this is only happening more now. otherwise,it's usually 2 women and 1 man.
is it really so wrong? don't all of us have 2 great loves in our lives? it is only when the 2 loves collide and run parallel,then it is tragic.
if 1 man or 1 woman isn't enough,then it would be wise to seek another. isn't it also remaining true to 2 and be faithful to these said 2?
i don't think it's illicit when there is tacit approval from the spouse. illicit perhaps to the eye of the society.
the theme really made me chew on it for years. the point was,should i follow or should i not?!
this is one very very 'real' play that will make audiences relate to the pain and almost angst.i like the undercurrents.
it's really thought-provoking.humans do the weirdest things when it concerns emotions.it's an odd 3way relationship.but it will end sooner or later.i think humans still like monogamy somehow.
cynicism definitely is the way it is nowadays.
to what extent of betrayal then, are we able to tolerate or accept?
Pinter's play are always evocative. when you watch his play and walk out of the theatre full of thoughts or feeling disturbed,then you've got the message.
to embrace betrayal as a way of life. periodic betrayal perhaps?
suffer the children.
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