The Shawshank Redemption: theatre review

Last night I went to the Grove Theatre Eastbourne to see their final performance of The Shawshank Redemption. It was a great evening. There was a necessarily all-male cast, supplied by many of the Grove regulars, the prison warden being the same actor who played O’Brien in 1984 - if he’s not careful he’ll be typecast for baddies. The highlight performances were of Red, the narrator, and Andy DuFresne but all the actors put in good performances. Special mention should also go to the lighting, which was perfect: I loved the effect when the warden and the prison officer gazed into Andy’s escape tunnel: peering off the stage towards the audience into what appeared to be a circle of redness.

The story followed the film closely, with obvious adjustments for the need to perform everything live on a stage. I did wonder whether those who hadn’t seen the film would fully understand the significance of the geological hammer and the poster of Rita Hayworth. The very end of the play was Red saying the words ‘I hope’ which I felt was a better ending than for the film (I must read the original Stephen King short story to see how that ends).

There were a lot of short scenes and, as a result, a lot of times when the curtain was closed while furniture was being carted on and off the stage. These sometimes longish pauses in the action were covered by playing music, mostly from popular songs of the period, which (at least for those of us who remembered the originals) evidenced the passing of the years.

I think the Grove is steadily improving both in the quantity and the quality of its productions. It combines some interesting new drama with some old favourites, and productions by outside companies with their own in-house productions. It is becoming one of the highlights of Eastbourne.