Theatre Royal Haymarket
The critics were agreed that Lindsay Posner’s production of Arthur Miller’s classic, originally presented in Bath, was traditional, old fashioned even, but disagreed on whether this was a good or bad thing. Few could resist comparing it with Ivo Van Hove’s legendary minimalist production. Dominic West was generally praised for his portrayal of Eddie Carbone.
Tim Bano in The Independent (4★) called it ‘resolutely un-radical and sometimes threatens to be uninteresting…But it really works.’ ‘The skill of (Posner’s) directing isn’t in the staging – far from it – but in putting all the focus on the emotional journey of Eddie Carbone as a nice guy discovering complicated feelings…he gives us something simple, and surprisingly rare: a really decent production of a really great play.’
Dominic Cavendish at The Telegraph (4★) said Posner ‘understands that taking a more old-fashioned approach and duly indicating the milieu in which Carbone moves isn’t a matter of being decorative. Peter McKintosh’s set, with its towering walls of horizontal slatted wood, creates a sense of claustrophobic, watchful communality’ and ‘(West) excels himself’. The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar (4★) was persuaded by the acting: ‘Directed by Lindsay Posner with a spare, untampered purity, the production leans into its past world. It wavers for a while but comes out winning, mostly due to the terrific ensemble of actors, led by Dominic West, who breathe new life into these characters.’
Sarah Hemming at the Financial Times (4★) also liked ‘Lindsay Posner’s beautifully judged, crystal-clear new production’, saying ‘Posner wisely trusts Miller and the cast to scope out the psychological depths of the characters.’ Olivia Rook for LondonTheatre (4★) observed, ‘West’s performance is multilayered: while his Eddie is a true patriarch, he is also amiable and capable of gentleness’.
For Anya Ryan at The Stage (3★), what was traditional for some was ‘a bog-standard domestic treatment’. She liked the way ‘West pours strain and contradiction into the part.’ Andrzej Lukowski in Time Out (3★) was unimpressed: ‘(West is) ‘fairly small, fairly trivial, not particularly special man’ which resulted in ‘(Posner) turning Miller’s great work into something decidedly humdrum.’
While describing the production as ‘stolid’, Susannah Clapp in The Observer (3★) thought, ‘Dominic West is a terrific Eddie, not least because…he makes you believe he has put a day in on the docks.’
Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage (3★) compared Posner’s production with Ivo Van Hove’s and found it ‘less insightful, but still packs a punch’. ‘It is a gripping story, well-told,’ she said. Dominic Maxwell in The Sunday Times (3★) was disappointed with the production, ‘If Lindsay Posner’s production were a Christmas dinner, it would be one with tasty trimmings but an overcooked bird‘ and with West ‘this Eddie tussles with others but not himself. There’s no internal battle.’
Average critics’ rating 3.5★
Value Rating 21 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)
A View From The Bridge runs at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until 3 August 2024. Buy tickets direct from Theatre Royal
If you’ve seen A View From The Bridge, please add your review and rating below