REVIEW: The Picture Of Dorian Gray, Trafalgar Studios 2 ✭✭
The Picture Of Dorian Gray Trafalgar Studios 2 20 January 2016 2 Stars Buy Tickets This adaptation restores passages from Wilde’s original manuscript, which were censored from the novel as a result of scandal amongst his contemporaries. Rather than a daring display of unbarred moral putrefaction, however, this production offers a tame and uninspiring taste of Wilde. Peter Craze has directed this breezy four-hander with an emphasis on florid Victorian diction, which is entertaining for comedic value but prevents the dialogue from growing teeth. Guy Warren-Thomas as Dorian suffers the most from this approach; he remains too buoyant to convey the depths of immorality at the heart of this tale. As a result, the stage becomes a cross-dressing up box of multi-rolling actors who too often play for the laughs. The most fully realised character is Rupert Mason as Basil Hallward, who delicately confesses his romantic love for Dorian. It … Read more
