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Based on the Oscar-nominated 1987 classic movie thriller, Fatal Attraction, this revamped and updated rendition, adapted for the stage by original screenwriter James Dearden, is sure to grab both newcomers and fans of the original alike.
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When happily married attorney Dan Gallagher (Oliver Farnworth) meets a friend in a New York bar, one person he does not expect to connect with is Alex Forrester (Susie Amy). A charming editor whose initially innocent flirtations quickly develop into an ill-advised night of passion.
However, one person’s one-night stand is another’s only lifeline and as Alex’s interests in Dan become rapidly more fixated, we as an audience are forced to confront the issues of infidelity, responsibility and dangerous obsession head-on.
Oliver Farnworth delivers an energetic performance as Dan, allowing us to connect with his inner turmoil and mounting panic as the consequences of his drunken decisions take a strangling hold over his life. Although audiences may feel that Dan deserves what’s coming to him, his increasingly desperate attempts to take control of a dire situation can’t help but make you feel somewhat sorry for him.
However, it is Susie Amy’s nuanced portrayal of the notorious Alex Forrester that steals the show here. She is captivating both as the seductive temptress we meet in act one and the terrifyingly chaotic ‘bunny boiler’ we come to know over the next two hours.
Susie plays Alex’s emotional distress with poise, never overstepping into the melodramatic, and delivering her progressively distressing actions with sympathetic vulnerability. This version of Alex is fragile and unwell, displaying a very human need for love that everyone can connect with.
Set dressing is imaginatively done here as well. A minimalistic skyscraper-esque backdrop frequently transforms into a living canvas as projectors paint pulsing graphics and cinematic close-ups across the stage. With varying levels, appearing and disappearing entrances, and background characters flitting between scenes all effectively used to create a sense of place.
Lighting too is atmospheric, elevating scenes with splashes of deep crimsons and moody shadows. While the choreography of both passionate love scenes and visceral fights is realistically organic. Background music is understated but plays well into establishing a scene and slowly, surely ratcheting up the tension.
Overall, the stage adaption of Fatal Attraction provides a fresh take on a classic tale that is delivered with style. Tension is palpable throughout, and while half of you may just want to run away from the issues like Dan himself, the other half will not be able to tear their eyes away.
Fatal Attraction is taking place at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham until this Saturday, 19th March, with two performances Thursday and Saturday. Tickets are available via the Everyman Theatre box office.
For more events and live shows in Cheltenham check out our helpful guides – Live Performances in Cheltenham and The Festivals and Major Events Guide.
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The Everyman is Gloucestershire's theatre - and has been serving the county (and beyond) since 1891.
Comments
Theatre goer Err, were we watching the same show? In my view, the acting was wooden from both female leads, no rapport was established between the married couple which made the affair look inevitable and one of many, rather than a one off stupid decision he'd regret for life. The show should have been delivered from Alex's perspective now we are more aware on the matter of mental health. The way she cut herself and waddled off stage was comical and she sounded like she was writing out a shopping list from the bathroom, whilst talking to Dan, when in fact, she was slitting her wrists! I would give it a generous 2 stars and that was for the staging and the supporting actors. The male lead was ok, but it was hard to feel bad for him that he'd made such a terrible decision which could ruin his and his family's lives, when he'd been established as someone not yet ready to leave the hustle and bustle of the life he had and just sounded like he'd been forced into a marriage he wasn't ready for. The fake accents and the yelling of the lines was distracting, and Ellen's involvement, as a taped voice, coming out from the wings didn't work. I think they'd have been better off just talking about her, as though she were in the next room, or had just been put to bed, or was at school, etc. The ending, was so insipid that I can hardly remember exactly what happened or how it did end!
