I’m not sure I’ve seen anything by German playwright Franz Xaver Kroetz before. This one, translated by acclaimed Irish writer Conor McPherson, hails from 1975, though it’s a pretty timeless tale, and a rather good play.
Kurt & Martha are about to have their first child. They tally the expenses they are about to incur, insisting as they do that there’ll be no hand-me-downs. Martha works from home making market research calls, earning a pittance, so lorry driver Kurt takes all the overtime he can get, until a secret assignment brings consequences he could not possibly have predicted. It threatens his marriage, he’s wracked with guilt and remorse and he has to make a big choice about whether to keep the secret or not, with potentially dire consequences whatever action he takes. The pressures to do the best for your family are all too real, and the lengths people will go to very believable.
It’s beautifully performed by Laurence Kinlan, who navigates his character’s emotional roller-coaster really well, and Caoilfhionn Dunne, who’s character’s challenge is how to respond to her husband’s dilemma. There’s an atmospheric soundtrack by P J Harvey no less, which I thought added much to the tension, and both Ian Rickson’s direction and Alyson Cummins’ design serve the play well, bringing you into their home and out into the countryside.
A very thought-provoking piece which is definitely worth catching.
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