Culture

London's Gecko brings Gogol's play to Beijing

By Shannon Aitken (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-03 08:21

The stage set of The Overcoat is as dark as the famous short story, by Russian author Nikolai Gogol. [Photo/China Daily]

The Overcoat, written by Nikolai Gogol in 1842, is a metaphor for desire and greed.

It tells the story of the poor Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin's mundane, monotonous office life, and his obsession with becoming more than he is.

As relevant today as they were 168 years ago, these themes will be brought to life this weekend at the Capital Theatre in a surreal production by London's Gecko Theater Company.

Described by The Sunday Times as "hauntingly and recklessly brilliant", Gecko's production of The Overcoat is brave interpretation of this classic story.

Floating chairs, a labyrinth of corridors, evocative music and comedy disengage the audience from reality to evoke fantastical emotions of love, greed and desire.

Amit Lahav, Gecko's artistic director, was originally approached by Lyric Hammersmith to create his own adaptation of Gogol's classic short story.

After just one reading, and only one reading, he was captivated and began a two-year process of turning his characters and ideas into a visually and acoustically exotic theater production.

"We are using our style of storytelling, which is completely visual and visceral," said Lahav.

"We have externalized our inner emotions to create a rich, physical style of storytelling. The Overcoat is full of very big emotions, which are beautifully played with. You have lust, shame, anger, desire."

These emotions emerge through the story of Akaky Akakievich Bashmachkin, played by Lahav, a lowly draftsman.

Akaky becomes fixated on a new overcoat and his fantasies of what it will bring him - love, prestige and success - spill out into everyday life.

At times, it is hard for the audience to tell what is reality and what is fiction. The starkly monochrome set is smoky and steely, changing only during Akaky's fantasies, with his overcoat offering the richest of colors.

There is no doubt, however, that the play is a sharp critique of modern consumption and our ever-present desire to have more than what we do.

"I believe there are key themes that everyone around the world can relate to," said Lahav.

"At the heart of The Overcoat is a desire and lust to feel fulfilled as a person and the need to better oneself. In Akaky's case, he believes obtaining the coat will help him succeed in capturing the heart of Natalia, and therefore his life will be fulfilled, but the audience soon realizes that the coat becomes a metaphor for all our hopes and desires, no matter what they may be."

Gecko is known for its avant-garde style and its brave methods of communicating its ideas. In The Overcoat, Lahav doesn't rely so much on the actual words that are said but on the emotions that are evoked. In all, there are seven actors speaking eight different languages.

"As with all Gecko shows, the main language for the audience isn't words. It is visual language that interests me more," Lahav said.

This is not the first time The Overcoat has been to Beijing, having made a brief test performance last June.

Director of Arts at the British Council, David Elliott, however, believes there are good reasons to bring it back in a bigger production.

"It's a great show, one of Gecko's best," said Elliott.