Mr. Van Hove is the man of the moment now for the way he deconstructs some old plays and rebuilds them lean and empty.
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| Mark Strong and Russel Tovey in a View From The Bridge |
Maybe it only works with famous plays, or maybe he has found a new voice and expression - I have seen others do this same sort of thing, and it can work wonderfully. In View From a Bridge he strips the stage down to nothing, just a step and door to small arena bounded by the slightest of walls. But this vessel holds the action and emotion of the moment. It was fantastic. It helped that the actors were amazing, but it was perfect.
He also directed The Crucible, where the stage is a bit more busy, but it is the same set for the entire show, standing in for a school house, a home, a hospital, a jail and more. By removing the extraneous, the fairly busy Arthur Miller shows were able to focus your attention on the vital. It is a great method when you pull the performances out of the characters.
The various looks from The Crucible:
