Review: Slaughterhouse-Five (Southwark Playhouse Borough)

Review by Ruth Sealey

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was intrigued to see how the intimate space of The Little at Southwark Playhouse Borough would bring something on the scale of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five to the stage. With its constant jumps through time and space, and based on a novel whose premise I knew but had never actually read, I suspected it might be a challenge to keep up with. Still, it was a challenge I was very much looking forward to. Would this production prove to be out of this world, or bring me crashing straight back down to Earth?

Written by Kurt Vonnegut in 1969, at a time of growing opposition to the Vietnam War, Slaughterhouse-Five was heavily influenced by his own experiences as a prisoner of war during World War II. During his captivity, Vonnegut survived the bombing of Dresden by sheltering in an underground slaughterhouse, from which the novel takes its name. Rather than presenting war as heroic, it portrays it as senseless and futile. With its dark humour and powerful anti-war message, the book proved controversial, even being banned in some schools and libraries across the United States.

Adapted for the stage by Eric Simonson, the story follows Billy Pilgrim, who becomes “unstuck in time” and experiences his life out of sequence, repeatedly jumping between different moments of his past, present and future. Billy moves between his wartime experiences, his life after the war and his abduction by the alien race known as the Tralfamadorians. As he struggles to make sense of the trauma he has endured, the play explores the lasting psychological impact of war, as well as themes of free will and mortality.

This is potentially one of the most complex productions, in terms of storytelling, that I have ever seen. I have watched shows with non-linear narratives and productions that make extensive use of multi-roling before, but this takes both to another level. While that ambition is admirable, it is also where some of the production's challenges arise.

Under Douglas Baker's direction, the production attempts to capture seemingly all of the novel's complexity. To a large extent, it succeeds, and I am still trying to fathom how a universe of this scale could fit into the space at Southwark Playhouse Borough. Despite a useful reminder of when and where we are in time, through an excellent visual display, the production races along at a sometimes frenetic speed. I generally believe that audiences should be able to enjoy a piece of theatre and follow its narrative without having read the source material beforehand. Unfortunately, that was not always the case here, and there were moments when prior knowledge of the novel felt almost essential to fully understand what was unfolding on stage.

There are elements of this production, however, that are truly astonishing, and Baker's video design has to rank among the most visually stunning effects I have seen on stage. The use of a multimedia screen dividing the stage was a stroke of genius, enabling the production to create a remarkable variety of settings within a relatively small space. The imagery used to depict the aftermath of the fire-bombing of Dresden was particularly heartbreaking, and as the POWs looked out from the window of a damaged building and surveyed the devastation before them, the scale of the destruction became painfully clear.

Laurel Marks’ lighting design paired with Calum Perrin’s sound also play a vital role in bringing the production's many worlds to life. From the subtle flickering of the lights as time itself is distorted by the Tralfamadorians to the more striking choices that define the stark clinical setting of the hospital and the darkness of the forest and slaughterhouse, Marks's work is consistently impressive. Perrin's soundscape is equally effective, with the harmonies of the barber-shop quartet, the atmospheric sounds of space and the birdsong all helping to immerse the audience in Billy's journey. Together, the lighting and sound provide the finishing touches to an already visually inventive production.

The cast works incredibly hard to bring this production to life, taking on a remarkable number of roles between them. The production almost seems to acknowledge the limitations of such a small company through its use of slightly surreal video projections, with headless figures appearing on screen to represent additional characters. While inventive, I found this device somewhat disjointed and it occasionally drew me out of the action. At times, the sheer number of characters made it difficult to distinguish among them, and an expanded cast might have provided greater clarity and differentiation.

Patrick McAndrew plays Billy Pilgrim and captures both the initial confusion of his predicament and the acceptance that comes with seeing the inevitability of his own death. His quiet resignation to mortality, as the Tralfamadorians tell him, "Don't be frightened of death", is portrayed beautifully and with great sensitivity.

Alex Crook and Ethan Reid take on a multitude of roles between them. Crook is particularly strong as the British POW, commanding the stage whenever he appears, while also demonstrating impressive range in his portrayal of the eccentric Kilgore Trout, the obscure science-fiction author. Amidst the chaos and tragedy, he injects some much-needed humour into the production. Sofia Engstrand is equally impressive in her variety of roles, switching between accents, genders and characters with what appears to be effortless ease, showcasing remarkable versatility throughout.

This production will stay with me long after leaving the theatre. While I was aware of the firebombing of Dresden before seeing the show, I am now compelled to learn more about it, and that speaks to theatre's power to tell important stories and encourage audiences to reflect on our shared humanity. The tragic loss of life and senseless destruction depicted here remain all too relevant today, just as they were during the periods that shaped Vonnegut's writing.

This is not a straightforward watch, and audiences will need to keep pace with its complex narrative and multiple storylines. However, it is also an ambitious and visually striking piece of theatre, using innovative technology to create imagery that feels genuinely groundbreaking, supported by a strong cast who carry us between different worlds and time periods. While I would recommend familiarising yourself with the story beforehand, those willing to engage with its challenges will find a production that is both entertaining and thought-provoking.

Slaughterhouse-Five plays at Southwark Playhouse Borough until 4^th July. Tickets from https://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/productions/slaughterhouse-five/K

Photos by Henry Hu