Oscar Winner Susan Sarandon, among others, grace the London stage playing the titular character of ‘Mary Page Marlowe’.
Now playing at the Old Vic Theatre until November 1st, ‘Mary Page Marlowe’, written by Tracie Letts, who has has brought us quirky shows such as ‘August: Osage County’ and ‘Killer Joe’ takes a very deep dive into the the study of a woman throughout her life. Sarandon plays Marlowe in her later years (after the death of her husband), Andrea Riseborough is fantastic as the middle aged Marlowe struggling with raising children and a husband who is a deadbeat who she wants to divorce, while three other actresses play her in her much younger years (12, 19 and 27/36). She is also played by a doll as a baby Mary Page.
The show interweaves the lifetime arch of her life (70 years) in a time-jumping piece – in its 100 minutes running time (no interval), to middling success. The early Marlowe (including terrific scenes of Marlowe as a baby where her parents would constantly fight) and her middle aged years are riveting and taught, where Riseborough gets to out act Sarandon with a more emotional storyline, however Sarandon is stuck playing an older Marlowe where not a whole lot of dramatic action takes place, and the whole thing sort of ends with a thud in this production that is performed in the round.
I was getting so engrossed in the storyline but the ending came unexpectedly – too soon, even without an interval, and like there was much more to tell. Nonetheless getting to see Sarandon on stage is once in a lifetime experience, and Riseburough is simply superb, so go see it for these reasons. Just don’t expect a whole lot from the ending.