Review of ‘The House Party’: “Not much to rave about this rave-up”

Kingston’s Rose Theatre welcomes this modern-day adaptation of August Strindberg’s classic, currently touring across the UK upon its original run at the Chichester Festival. Guillermo Nazara shares his views on the show, to let us know if its blowout narrative is bound to get blown up.

We’ve all done crazy things when we were young. You probably wouldn’t even remember. Not because of how crazy they were, but because of how far away they are now… Yet, regardless of how sordid our past may be (don’t check my browser history – for God’s same, just don’t), nothing could prepare us for an evening of betrayal, self-destruction, and another reason for PETA to whine about fiction like what’s depicted in The House Party.

Penned by Laura Lomas after August Strindberg’s original text, Miss Julie, the piece deals us with two teenage girls from opposite backgrounds who have grown to be best friends. One, rich, beautiful, and popular. The other, blessed with less green, but wickedly smart.

It’s a premise that we’ve been introduced to thousands and thousands of times before (I’ve been counting), but whose resonance is unlikely to burn out. The clash between the privileged and the disadvantaged is a subject of exceptional appeal – especially, when we delve into it to discover that not all benefits come from money.

Lomas does an adequate job at concocting a contemporary view on the source material’s archetypes – they all feel real and, more importantly, relatable. However, it’s not the characters’ foundation that affects and, subsequently, compromises the effectiveness of the plot – but instead, the way their traits are exploited within the narrative. While their essence is truthful, their actions seem remarkably phony. It’s not that what they do couldn’t happen, but it looks as if their sole reason to do it is to concatenate as much drama as it can, with very little justification.

Consequently, the story lacks grip as a whole. It doesn’t matter how tragic or extreme it gets – we just can’t be enticed, let alone absorbed by it. The message lying underneath its subtext is powerful. Yet, the script’s best ability is to keep it hidden and completely underused. There are some cunning observation on societal norms weaved within the raw fabric of teenage hierarchy. Unfortunately, too many of them are turned to rags by its overly soap operatic turn of events.

Production-wise, we can take solace in the robustness of the performances. Starring Synnove Karlsen, Tom Lewis, and Sesley Hope, the cast flaunts chemistry and confidence in their execution. Except from a few occasional flaws, their portrayals exude enough honesty and naturalness to give some solidity to the recount – making it appear more genuine than it actually is on paper. Wistfully, though, none of those efforts are able to blur the fact that the writing is absent of subtlety and elaborateness.

Some stories just never get old. The same goes for the mistakes any artist can incur when they force their art into something it’s not. Parting from the excellent idea of revisiting a classic through the eyes of today, The House Party hosts an inviting gathering of themes and motifs, but shows very little thought and reception to the needs and possibilities of its own journey. Struggling to get it together, and proving a small capability to function, the play is far from kicking in as a memorable knees-up – and closer to falling down due to its many undesirable bashes.

All pictures credit to Ikin Yum.

The House Party plays at the Rose Theatre Kingston until 22 March. Tickets are available on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara