Old Times - Review

First performed in 1971, this revival of Harold Pinter's three-hander features Kristin Scott Thomas and Lia Williams alternating the roles of Kate and Anna. On the occasion I saw it, Ms Scott Thomas was playing Anna and Ms Williams was Kate. I assume both of these actors are thankful that the play is relatively short (at just 80 minutes, without an interval) since that keeps their task manageable, though still considerably demanding, I would think. There is a further dimension to this role-swapping, as the two female actors will be deciding (on certain performances) their characters by a toss of a coin at the stage door.

Just for completeness, and not to make him feel left-out, I should add that Rufus Sewell takes the role of Deeley, the only male in the play and, apparently, chief coin-tosser for the performances where luck will determine how the female roles are allocated.

There is a dream-like quality to this play. It is also enigmatic and more than a little puzzling as it is not clear just what is really going on. What, for example, is the significance of Anna being on-stage at the start of the play, when the other characters say they are waiting for her to arrive? Is she merely a figment of their imagination? Or, was there more to her relationship with Kate than simple flat sharing? Deeley claims he used to see her at a pub he frequented, and is clearly attracted to her. Is this about his feelings of guilt for an affair he had with Anna? One interpretation of the play considers Anna and Kate to be the same person, and yet another suggests that Kate killed Anna and Deeley because Anna was trying to steal Deeley from her. Though I don't have all of the answers by any means, the play is certainly about memories and how they affect our lives.

Though the play may be difficult to interpret and understand, there is no doubt about the exceptional quality of acting on display here. Three compelling, and well-directed performances make 80 minutes zip by. Kristin Scott Thomas is a refined but rather playful Anna, Rufus Sewell is prone to anger and outbursts, and Lia Williams is a rather haunted Kate. And there is much to admire on the technical side with affective music by Stephen Warbeck and atmospheric lighting by Peter Mumford. Overall, a well-crafted and enjoyable production.

"Haunting stage poetry of memory and desire. "
Charles Spencer for The Daily Telegraph

"This is a classy revival of a cryptic Harold Pinter play dating from the early Seventies. It's lit up by potent, detailed performances. But it is undeniably strange, and after two viewings of this production I still can't be sure of its meaning."
Henry Hitchings for The Evening Standard

"Brilliantly pellucid production...One reason Pinter's play is so resonant is that it exposes the way we shape the past according to the psychological needs of the present.
Michael Billington for The Guardian