Despite amassing millions of fans, Sebastian Faulks’ novel, Birdsong, is one that has passed me by. So if you're reading this review expecting me to draw comparisons with the book, you'll be left disappointed I'm afraid.
What I can tell you is that as a piece of theatre, this adaptation of Birdsong by Rachel Wagstaff stands on its own two feet as an enthralling and intense, if slightly unbalanced, story of love and survival.
For the great unwashed like myself, the story is set around and during WWI and focuses largely on Englishman Stephen Wraysford (James Esler) who is sent to Amiens on behalf of his guardian to investigate an investment opportunity at a factory run by René Azaire (Sargon Yelda). Here, he starts an affair with Isabelle (Charlie Russell), the factory owner’s wife. The war starts, and Wraysford, by now a Lieutenant in the British Army, is with his troops in the trenches, and what starts as a love story then becomes one of survival for both himself and many other characters.
The play is split into three Acts, with the first devoted to Stephen and Isabelle's love story, although in truth, it seems to arrive from nowhere. No sooner has Stephen been introduced to his hosts, then he's suddenly declaring his love for Isabelle, with little in the way of hint or build-up along the way. This means the rather explicit sex scene between the two characters comes as a bit of a bolt from the blue.
While I'm sure there's more to the characters of town councillor Bérard and René's daughter Lisette in the novel, their inclusion in Act One offers little impact and only serves to restrict the time devoted to the apparently burgeoning love between Stephen and Isabelle.
Act Two and Act Three are a lot more brutal in their content, but also more enthralling too. The focus shifts from Wraysford to tunnel builder Jack Firebrace (Max Bowden), whose friendship with fellow soldier Arthur (Tama Prethean) adds a touch of heartwarming relief from the fairly unrelenting bleakness of the play's representation of life in the trenches.
The scenes in the tunnels and then preparing to 'go over the top' are the most dramatic by far, with the effects from the production team working in tandem with the actors to create a really tense and at times harrowing atmosphere. The highlight for me was the haunting folk song delivered by actor-musician James Findlay, as the soldiers write letters to their families back home.
The play is beautifully performed by the very versatile company, and while the running time almost hits three hours (with two intervals) the pace, particularly in Acts Two and Three mean that the time flies by.
While I enjoyed the production a lot, I couldn't help but come away from it feeling like some of the characters' stories were left a little shortchanged by this adaptation. The novel is structured in such a way that there's effectively multiple episodes to the story, and such is its epic nature, that I feel it might be better suited to a six or eight part TV drama.
Birdsong continues at Norwich Theatre Royal until 16 November.
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