Are we still insular Little Brits?
Tuesday, April 1st, 2008Just been musing over my interview with Soho Theatre’s Paul Sirett, and I’m still not satisfied that I really understand why British audiences really don’t seem to GET foreign theatre. It’s odd isn’t it? I mean, today’s Brits are a minor miracle of globalised taste. Typically, we are amazingly eclectic: we eat curry and sushi, read Scandinavian novels or South American magic realists, dress like Italians, drive German cars, listen to world music. Our favourite films are as likely to be made in Afghanistan as in Hollywood. So why are we so suspicious of foreign drama?
For example, in 2003, the Royal Court staged a play called Blood by Swedish playwright Lars Norén – and not in its tiny upstairs studio but on its main stage. Despite being a daring mix of symbolism and naturalism, Blood was savaged by the critics: “phoney baloney,” snarled one; “boring, silly, exploitative,” rasped another; and “quite preposterous,” said a third. It was as if they’d put up a huge sign in Sloane Square: “Foreign rubbish – don’t see this show!” Similar reactions attended Dorota Maslowska’s A Couple of Poor, Polish-Speaking Romanians at the Soho.
So, can anyone help? Why do we spend hours bitching about not seeing anything “new” or “different” and then, when something new and different does arrive, do we then dump on it from a great height? Any suggestions? Any clues?
