image: Nottingham Actors' Studio
Egomaniac Louise tells us she needs fresh blood following her failed marriage and best friend walking out her life. Claiming to be suffering from depression, she sets out to develop her spirituality and discover her “level of being” which she explains is when one reaches life’s true fulfilment, following the instructions of Dr Doreen McDonald. The psychiatrist’s book, which very quickly becomes Louise’s bible, inspires her to make a fresh start, quitting her office job and enrolling in a drama course at the local college.
Her unhealthy obsession with herself and the book, matched with a complete lack of understanding of its advice is where the humour lies in this monologue, and Ottilie Mackintosh brings the writer, Martin Arrowsmith’s comedic gems to life.
“I don't rewrite history like everyone else” she insists. But this is exactly what the play is -- history rewritten by a compulsive liar who believes her misfortune to be everyone’s fault but her own.
The one woman play does in fact feature two other characters: X and Y, male and female mime artists who play the series of people with whom Louise experiences fragile, short-term relationships, skilfully executed by Caitlin Drabble and Aiden McCullough. Their silence is clever symbolism by Arrowsmith, illustrating Louise’s ignorance to listen and inability to see from a perspective other than her own. Their black and white attire co-ordinates with Alice Halifax’s minimalist set which features wood effect flooring obscurely curving around the main feature: a kitchen island, intentionally too large for the space. This is clearly symbolic of the main character’s warped view of reality.
We don't like Louise, but we laugh anyway. That is, until she locks out her fiancé and warns him she’s going to kill herself. Bottle and pills in hand, lights transport us into Louise’ psyche where she reveals how truly unhappy and self-loathing she is. It is in this moment that we realise Arrowsmith hasn't just written a comedy about the uncomfortably familiar, narcissistic personality, but an insightful exposure of mental health. If Louise hadn't have repelled her audience so much by this point, we might have been moved.
Thankfully, Louise doesn't commit suicide and the show goes on. When she tells the audience that she thinks she’ll find her level of being in motherhood, we share a collective “Uh oh”.
The Level Of Being by Marin Arrowsmith, performed at the Nottingham Actors’ Studio space, The Basement from Wednesday 4 – Saturday 14 May, 2016.
Nottingham Actors’ Studio website
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