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The greatest love story never told
GONE WITH THE WIND
New London
GONE With the Wind, an epic account of the American Civil War, was the only novel written by Margaret Mitchell.
It was published in 1936 and has become the best selling novel of the 20th century. The blockbusting film in 1939 was the template for romantic aspirations, notwithstanding studio squabbles and furious famous actresses screaming about being rejected.
Clark Gable as Rhett Butler and Vivien Leigh as a legendary Scarlett O’Hara made hearts throb with desire. I’m afraid to report that Darius Danesh (Pop Idol) and Jill Paice have not pushed the originals from their perches.
This version is “a play with music” adapted by Trevor Nunn from the book and lyrics by Margaret Martin, an American doctor.
That momentous decade of 1860-1870 saw the conflict between Abe Lincoln exercising central authority from Washington and the independence of 11 southern states. The Union eventually beat the Confederacy. By 1865, 620,000 had died either through armed conflict or from disease.
Tara, the benevolently run estate of kindly Mr O’Hara (a bit-too-much “gosh an’ begorrah” from Julian Forsythe) has rich cotton crops and contented black workers, not brutalised ones; and the beautiful, husband-hungry Scarlett. Her target is Ashley Wilkes, more wet than wanton.
Enter Rhett Butler: an alpha man, fine suits and a cheroot in his mouth, out to tame this red-haired shrew and waiting eagerly for the burning of Atlanta. I saw no fire down below between these two.
That memorable line “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn” was my conclusion after nearly four hours.
A rich society is blown apart in order to achieve national hegemony and incidentally to free the slaves. Scarlett survives and surveys the wreck of this privileged society which was once hers, now swept away.
Nunn’s outstanding ability to put on a cycloramic pageant falters under traces of desperation and I sensed some of the delights of his Oklahoma creeping in.
John Napier, one of our more interesting designers, has not used the arena of the New London to any memorable effect.
One last word: Natasha Yvette Williams as Mammy, the chief retainer of Tara, delivers the great ballad with humanity and touching realism. That superb actress Hattie McDaniel played her in the film and rightly got the Oscar, the first black actor to do so.
Afterwards in Drury Lane I detected no sign of a rustle of spring, a wind of change, nor even a refreshing breeze.
Until September 27
CNJ Booking Line
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