THE HANGOVER REPORT – Tom Hiddleston leads a stylish, utterly enthralling revival of BETRAYAL by Harold Pinter

Zawe Ashton, Charlie Cox, and Tom Hiddleston in Harold Pinter's "Betrayal" at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Photo by Marc Brenner.

Zawe Ashton, Charlie Cox, and Tom Hiddleston in Harold Pinter’s “Betrayal” at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Photo by Marc Brenner.

This week at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, I caught Jamie Lloyd’s utterly enthralling revival of Harold Pinter’s oft-performed 1978 play Betrayal, which comes to the Great White Way after an acclaimed, sold out run in London’s West End. The play – which chronicles the congruent demise of a marriage and an extra-marital affair, in reverse chronological order – was last seen on Broadway not that long ago (five years ago, to be precise), in a chilly, serviceable staging starring Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz.

I’m happy to report that the current, just-as-starry revival is superb, I would even go as far as to say definitive. Although Mr. Lloyd has given the play a spare, sculpted aesthetic (the sleek, elegant set is by designer Soutra Gilmour), he’s also been able to ruthlessly shed light on the emotional lives of the work’s central love triangle. In this director’s hands, Mr. Pinter’s classic play stylishly unfolds with maximum intensity and scalpel-like precision. Indeed, this Betrayal is masterful, perfectly-calibrated and exquisitely-paced.

Although the production arrives to New York with strong word-of-mouth from across the pond, I was not prepared for the power of the trio of performances at the play’s heart. Tom Hiddleston, Zawe Ashton, and Charlie Cox all give breathtaking performances of the highest order. Their depictions of characters in various modes deception, indifference, and love (in that order) are deeply affecting, often times unbearably so. That they’re able to navigate this thorny emotional terrain with both piercing transparency and delicacy – particularly Mr. Hiddleston and Ms. Ashton – is an astonishing achievement. I don’t think a better case for the play will be made in our lifetimes.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

 

BETRAYAL
Broadway, Play
Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
1 hour, 35 minutes (without an intermission)
Through December 8

Categories: Broadway, Theater

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