National Theatre plays on simply brilliantly

Thank God the theatres are reopening to more audiences, and The National Theatre will play on for a while, for instance with the infectious Every Brilliant Thing with Tamar van den Dop or Bram Suijker.

At the Theater aan het Spui on Wednesday 1 July, Tamar van den Dop in the afternoon and Bram Suijker in the evening played their first Every Brilliant Thing. It is, I believe, not quite meant to be reviewed, and as a journalist you can - thankfully - just pay for your ticket. A few words are never wasted, especially as tickets are still on sale for the performances this week. Whereas you'd think the hordes would report to the theatres after being dry for months.

That seems to have to do with fear of contagion; fear of death? Watching plays about death, destruction and fear in a theatre seat is okay, but it shouldn't get too close.

Sparks over 1.5 metres

Fortunately, actor Bram Suijker was not so stuffy, and the distancing even worked contagiously when he picked out audience members to play supporting roles, such as his psychologist, father and especially beloved Sam. With the latter, a beautiful woman, the click was immediately apparent, and sparks bridged the neatly observed 1.5 metres.

The couple does not make it, she leaves him after four years because he becomes increasingly gloomy; inherited, he fears, from his mother who was suicidal. And for whom, to cheer her up, as a boy he starts making a list of the good things in life, starting with 'scoop ice cream'. It doesn't help her, but maybe himself. As long as he discovers new delights to add to the list, from a hundred to a thousand to a hundred thousand to finally a million. But in the meantime, the replenishing stalls, when Sam calls it a day. But the list he thought he had thrown away, by now boxes full, she has kept for him.

What is nice in Every Brilliant Thing is the interaction with the audience who, apart from providing supporting roles, also get to fill the list with suggestions. Not by making up their own - unfortunately - but by reading from - sanitised - cards provided. Ingeniously, the actors also memorise the high numbers of the cards they list throughout the performance.

Jazzy

Music, mainly by American jazz singers, is passing in review, and forms the backdrop with a record player and a box of LPs on stage, inherited from his father who used to retire to his study to listen while his son could guess his mood from the music. And later retreated to his room to listen in exactly the same way.

I think Bram Suijker is a great actor, and Every Brilliant Thing is a smooth monologue; that life is so worth living. I am also very curious to see how Tamar van den Dop plays this play directed by Erik Whien and Casper Vandeputte, under dramaturgy by Willemijn Barelds.

Exactly yesterday, July 1, the limit of a maximum of 30 visitors was broken, and there were an estimated 60 spectators. Audiences sat in a square around the stage, though at a distance from each other. But I experienced the intimacy much more intensely than in an ordinary hall with rows of seats. Then, barring a chance flirtation, you rarely have contact with other visitors. And yesterday, you saw them all evening, all the more so because of the allocation of roles to the audience.

After the performance yesterday, the audience was allowed to sit for a while to answer questions. These were not about the performance or what we would still like to see, but about safety; neat of the HNT. Are the actors allowed to walk among the audience? Are they allowed to pass a book? Is keeping their distance good enough? I couldn't resist answering 'You're going to die once, learn to live with it.' (And then make sure you have lived, with or without a frame...)

Oh yes, some trailers of Every Brilliant Thing: of Edinburgh with writer Duncan McMillan;

from The Citadel Theatre

and from Belfry Theatre

and from Olny Theatre

and the HBO docu.