Review – The Trial
Local “Am-dram” Black Cat Theatre has adapted Franz Kafka’s “The Trial” for this year’s Adelaide Fringe.
A thirty year old man is arrested by two seemingly corrupt police officers. They eat his breakfast and tell him he’s in a serious but not so serious situation. He is not told what crime he is accused of committing. He continues to calmly prod and question, to find out why he has been placed under arrest and details of how the trial will be conducted. He is palmed off between so-called authorities and people that might be able to help but without any clarity as to why this is all happening.
Written in 1915 and exploring themes of abuse of power, lack of control, overarching bureaucracy, arbitrary force and desperation, Kafka’s work is scarily prophetic given the events that followed in Europe. This adaptation definitely draws these links and provides a solid entry level understanding of this work.
The set design was perfect and the use of space skillfully executed, the performers placed themselves amongst the audience for certain scenes which worked well in that space.
Despite this, I don’t feel that any of the performers commanded the stage. The confidence picked up as the show continued however the pace was slightly slow and the delivery was mostly monotone and flatline. At times it felt more like a read through than a performance. There were slight heart beats through though and some further fine-tuning would make this a far more captivating experience.
The night was saved by the material. Timeless and thought provoking I was still pleased I saw it, but I would have liked an enactment, not a literary lesson.
