One-person shows: the good, the bad, and Cynthia Erivo
In the 21st century, the one-person show has become a staple of the theatre industry, transcending genre — an innovative way in which to present a show technologically. From Fleabag to The Picture of Dorian Gray, the one-person show could be anything. But, with the arrival of new kid on the block — Dracula starring Cynthia Erivo — questions have begun to be raised about the quality of the show. So the question needs to be asked: while a one-person show could be anything, can everything be a one person show?
The one-person show rose to popularity in the West from the mid-19th century, with the growth of live reading from authors such as Dickens, but I would say it fully reached its prime at a singular point: Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag. Premiering in 2013 at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Waller-Bridge’s narrative of womanhood and the complex emotions of her unnamed character’s experience with others created a phenomenon, and fully redefined the one-woman show, later spinning off into its own TV show. From here, the movement only developed further, with Kip Williams taking up the mantle, and choosing to adapt pre-existing gothic stories such as Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and The Picture of Dorian Gray.
In February, Kip Williams’ adaptation of Dracula, —spearheaded by the acclaimed Cynthia Erivo, in which she portrays the entire cast of 23 characters — premiered on the West End for a limited run. However, for a director as sharp as Williams, the recent reviews since its opening have been no less than cut-throat. Perhaps we could attribute the mediocre reception to a sense of Erivo fatigue. Her involvement in the project has been heavily featured in the advertising — much more than that of Sarah Snook in Williams’ previous work — and some people are becoming ready to move on from the actress at the forefront of projects such as these. However, I would say the casualties of the show run much deeper. Despite the grandeur of the show — with available technologies being used to its fullest and Erivo throwing herself into her roles, beginning with her writhing on the floor in an almost demonic manner — critics have said that the show drops certain themes, and even cannot replicate the goriness and brutality which play a crucial part in the text’s identity. Focusing on a much more grand story than one of simply vanity or self-loathing in the human psyche, perhaps Dracula was slightly biting off more than Williams could chew.
This slight setback for one-person shows critically could suggest that what comes up must come down, and that the format is beginning to fall out of trend. However, the scope of diversity which it allows for means that it will age well and continue to innovate itself in numerous ways. Even if it’s not quite Fleabag, life itself is nothing but a one-person show in which you play out your story.
Image Credit: BuonalaPrima via Flickr