Girl with a Pearl Earring *** - TNT
Though occasionally lovely to look at, this undistinguished adaptation of novelist Tracy Chevalier’s fictional account of the inspiration behind Vermeer’s enigmatic painting is a slow-moving affair which never really justifies its transition from page to stage. Told in flashback – and with each character briefly given the opportunity to address the audience directly - it follows the arrival of new servant girl, Griet, in a household full of children but short of money. She immediately captivates the men and alienates the women, and ends up sitting, secretly, for the Delft artist.
Niall Buggy overplays Vermeer’s crudely lascivious patron, whilst Sara Kestelman gives a subtly commanding performance as his shrewdly practical mother-in-law. Kimberley Nixon invests Griet with a sweet innocence (in contrast to Scarlett Johansson’s latent sensuality in the screen version).
But ultimately it’s hard to summon much enthusiasm when the piercing of a young girl’s ear (no matter how symbolic) is the climax of an otherwise prosaic evening.
Theatre Royal Haymarket, Haymarket, SW1 (0845-481 1870 (with booking fee). Until October 18. £17.50 -£45.00 (some day seats at £20))
Though occasionally lovely to look at, this undistinguished adaptation of novelist Tracy Chevalier’s fictional account of the inspiration behind Vermeer’s enigmatic painting is a slow-moving affair which never really justifies its transition from page to stage. Told in flashback – and with each character briefly given the opportunity to address the audience directly - it follows the arrival of new servant girl, Griet, in a household full of children but short of money. She immediately captivates the men and alienates the women, and ends up sitting, secretly, for the Delft artist.
Niall Buggy overplays Vermeer’s crudely lascivious patron, whilst Sara Kestelman gives a subtly commanding performance as his shrewdly practical mother-in-law. Kimberley Nixon invests Griet with a sweet innocence (in contrast to Scarlett Johansson’s latent sensuality in the screen version).
But ultimately it’s hard to summon much enthusiasm when the piercing of a young girl’s ear (no matter how symbolic) is the climax of an otherwise prosaic evening.
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