Literary history and fiction are brought to life in this sparkling re-imagining of a familiar tale:

By Megan Prosser

As with so many plays where the majority of the action takes place in a claustrophobic space – a courtroom, an office, even the home – power was the order of the day in “The Trials Of Oscar Wilde”, the latest European Arts Company Tour currently winding its way around the country.

This power rested initially, as you might expect, with flamboyant showman Oscar Wilde, in a masterful central performance by John Gorick. Strongly characterised in mannerism – the constant adjusting and smoothing of a waistcoat pocket, the carefully judged hand gestures accompanying the impossibly quick wit – Gorick’s Wilde is instantly recognisable and credible, whilst never slipping into caricature. From the off, the audience trusted this character for his familiarity, and we were ready to be led by him through his musings, and his pleas.

As the first act unravelled, we witnessed Wilde gradually, one bluster at a time, lose his footing.

Initially confident that he could win his libel trial, and be home, unscathed, in time for dinner, he increasingly and horrifyingly let his flippancy get the better of him, until finally, in slipping fully into his persona as the “raconteur”, he gave the prosecutor just the “proof” they’d been waiting for, in full view of a rapt and wincing audience.

The pattern of these peaks and troughs of power against a base level of fundamental unease (knowing, as we do from the start, that Wilde will indeed be imprisoned) is superbly judged and metered out by the cast under the skilful direction of Peter Craze.

The particular performance which I saw, at the Greenwich Theatre, was in fact a special charity performance held to raise funds for LGB organisation “Stonewall”. With a thoughtful introductory message by their Head of Education, Luke Tryll, you would have be hard pressed to find a more universally sympathetic and receptive audience on what, I’m sure, will have been one of the highlights of a very successful tour.

Despite being a three-hander, there are plenty of characters in this production to be getting on with. Rupert Mason and William Kempsell deliver 13 highly distinctive creatures between them, and bring laughter and spontaneity to the performance.

It was only as I left the theatre that I fully realised the importance of the 14th character – the spectre of the never seen (yet oft referred to) “Bosie” – absent, yet arguably the catalyst for the action of the entire play. Although we never witness the “red, rose-leaf lips”, nor the “slim gilt soul” of Lord Alfred Douglas, some of my favourite moments of this truly excellent production included Oscar’s heartfelt and bittersweet proclamations to his “own sweet boy”, full of longing and regret, and played by Gorick with an unmistakeable realness and, indeed, adoration (despite his character’s protests that “Love” and “Adoration” are not synonymous.)

By the end, our Oscar is faced with a dilemma. He can make the declaration that the love he bears deserves to be played out in full view, and is neither dirty nor shameful, but in doing so, risk the imprisonment and isolation which he so dreads. Or, he can stay silent and deny his true nature, probably for the first time in his life.

In this production, by treading the line between these two paths, Wilde never falls fully on either side, ultimately paying the price of his indecision with his freedom.

This Wilde was both deeply intelligent, arch, and ultimately, guilty. Had he committed the acts of which he was accused? Undoubtedly. Yet, curiously, in this cleanly designed and effectively lit courtroom, Wilde emerged as innocent even while he was condemned as depraved. And in that, lay a good part of the catharsis and enjoyment for the audience.

For me, the effect of the show was remarkably well-balanced. In one moment, we were complicit with Wilde in a shared look of sorrow and pain, in the next, we were subject to a nudge and a wink as we were pulled into a sharply funny moment from Kempsell’s Italian masseuse or Mason’s short-sighted, gurning Chambermaid.

As a new piece of writing, John O’Connor and Merlin Holland’s script cannot pass without comment as the star of this production. Incredibly well-researched and based on the original trial scripts, it has an unrivalled authenticity, strengthened by having a living Wilde descendent as one of the writers. I have no doubt that this is just the very beginning of its life.

The idea that the audience act as the jury in the “trial” was effective and realistic. At the same time, the expressionistic structure, haunting music and dreamy flashbacks reminded us of the artifice and allowed us to continue to think about the real Wilde himself, even while we were losing ourselves in the story.

A must-see for Wilde fans, as well as theatregoers looking for something original and thought-provoking. A beautiful and poignant piece.

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To find out more about the work of the European Arts Company, click here: http://www.europeanarts.co.uk

“The Trials of Oscar Wilde” continues nationally until 12th July 2014, finishing its run at the St. James’ Theatre (10th – 12th July)

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