Jumpy

Edgy teen Bel Powley gives her mother, Tamsin Greig, a difficult time as she struggles together with her 50th birthday in Jumpy. A Royal Court Theater presentation of the play in 2 functions by April p Angelis. Directed by Nina Raine. Hilary - Tamsin Greig Tilly - Bel Powley Frances - Doon Mackichan Roland - Richard Lintern Mark - Ewan Stewart Lyndsey - Seline Hizli Bea - Sarah Woodward Cam - Michael Marcus Josh - James Musgrave"I do not look 50. I do not act 50. I possibly could pull off 43?" There is no pause within the script but Tamsin Greig as 50-year-old Hilary card inserts someone to grow it having a hilariously legible number of desperate ideas by what age she will claim/pull off, before nervously alighting on 43. The uproarious laughter that greets April p Angelis' zesty "Jumpy" may be the laughter of acute and often appalled recognition. This is the hallmark of the scrumptious juggling act of uproarious humor and real discomfort. Considering the fact that "Jumpy" lives within the immediately identifiable combat zone that's parents versus. teen children, the fundamental situation is unremarkable. Hilary's 15-year-old, typically dismissive only child Tilly (nicely abrupt Bel Powley) is, at best, heedless of her and, at worst, completely insulting. Hilary is caught between encouragement and exasperation, her anxiety ratcheted up by Tilly's schoolfriend who's eight several weeks pregnant. Sex is incorporated in the air but, happily, rather than seriously ploughing through, say, a level-handed debate on teen pregnancy versus. parental/individual responsibility, p Angelis typically turns the problem right into a comic scene by which Hilary and her husband rocket into denial in the sounds of teenage squeals of enjoyment coming with the bed room wall. Initially, Tilly's loitering around the doorstep of their adult years can there be to intensify Hilary's more pressing crisis: being 50. She knows it is a nightmare but a minimum of she utilizing it together with her earliest friend, actress Frances (riotous Doon Mackichan) who's single and very devoted to self-fulfilment. whether it's a job, a guy, or even both. as with her eye-widening dummy run -- while watching family -- of her leather-clad, whiplashing, "ironic" burlesque act. The hysteria caused by Frances is within stark opposition towards the tension and distress engendered by Hilary's existence which, through the second act, is unravelling. She's battling having a dying marriage and also the siren song of sex, whether it is from linen-putting on, smooth-speaking Richard Lintern because the recently single father of 1 of Tilly's men or, much more riskily, Cam (sensitive Michael Marcus), who's really among Tilly's men. Even if occasions spiral for the absurd and the worries of the play become slightly extended by over-plotting, p Angelis and helmer Nina Raine keep your dramatic stakes satisfyingly high. Tensions between Hilary and everybody in her own orbit achieve breaking point, with deep-sitting feelings rising towards the surface. And also the less well Hilary copes, the greater brittle Greig becomes, revealing a nearly frightening amount of vulnerability without ever tipping into actorly display. Equipped with an initial-rate supporting cast, Raine opens out apparently irrelevant moments underneath the sheen of p Angelis's snappy, sardonic dialogue. Although less than all of the figures are fully-rounded, Raine causes it to be entertainingly obvious that it does not matter how caustic the sometimes near-the-knuckle comedy, the writing shimmers with warmth and empathy. In writing, using its cast of nine, "Jumpy" did not seem like an industrial dead cert. But propects for any transfer look as winningly hopeful because the unforced, touching final scene.Sets and costumes, Lizzie Clachan lighting, Peter Mumford seem, Paul Arditti production stage manager, Kirsten Turner. Opened up, examined March. 19, 2011. Running time: 2 Hrs, 20 MIN. Contact David Benedict at benedictdavid@mac.com