In an original play that investigates Oscar Wilde’s legacy, playwright Lily Zhang turns the spotlight on Robert Ross, the literary executor (and former lover) of Wilde. Set after Wilde’s death, the play is told through the 1918 trial of Maud Allan for her performance of Wilde’s Salomé, the memories of Wilde’s son Vyvyan Holland, and other vignettes sprinkled across time. Wilde’s legacy is scrutinized in his absence.
Even with a runtime of just under an hour, 1918: The Final Salomé achieves an almost flawless narrative arc, staging a production where not a single word is wasted. Like in 1918, it puts Wilde’s legacy back on trial, but does so with an urgent interpersonal lens. The pacing is gripping and makes the play impossible to look away from.
The Final Salomé credits an overlooked aspect of Wilde’s legacy with the gravity it warrants, investigating his relationships with young men (in this case, Robert Ross). It adapts an abundance of archival material and yet, possesses a dense and compelling narrative that effectively toes the line between historic and dramatic. While the play repeatedly alludes to Ross’s role in rehabilitating Wilde’s legacy, it doesn’t spend much time depicting those efforts, which could be a result of the play’s short runtime. Instead, it focuses on Ross’s personal relationship with Wilde, which itself is a fascinating premise.
Still, it is a satisfying production in every way: the acting is phenomenal, with Peregrine Neger’s Robert Ross and George Loynes’s Vyvyan Holland as particularly memorable performances. The lighting design is intentionally moving, and the staging takes full advantage of a small but intimate venue.
Zhang’s play questions the enduring nature of Wilde’s legacy and the conditions of his canonisation through a narrative of complex emotional depth. It doesn’t shy away from difficult conversations about one of our most beloved literary icons, but above all, it leaves me reluctantly—yet undeniably—awestruck by Robert Ross’s morbid devotion to his former lover.
It may be a historical play about Wilde, but The Final Salomé is also a play about love, despair, and obsession. You don’t have to be a fan of Wilde to enjoy the play, and if you are—even better.
1918: The Final Salomé is running until 29 August at Olive Studio at Greenside at George Street. Buy tickets here.
Image by Bella Wan, provided for press use.
