SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE CURSE OF THE QUEEN’S DIAMOND. An Unrecorded Case, By Royal Request. Written by Robert Fridjhon and Bronwyn Gottwald. Directed by Alan Swerdlow. With Robert Fridjhon, Craig Jackson and Bronywn Gottwald. Set design by Alan Swerdlow and Robert Fridjhon. Costumes by Malcolm Terrey. Queen Victoria conceived and constructed by Robert Fridjhon and Alan Swerdlow.
Tracey Saunders
The London-based sleuth Sherlock Holmes has been revisited in countless films, television series and stage productions and in his bid to leave no stone unturned or diamond undiscovered, he has arrived in Cape Town after a brief sojourn at The Montecasino Theatre in Johannesburg. This is not Sherlock for the serious pundit however, and those expecting a Guy Ritchie neo-noir mystery- styled Robert Downey Jr or the BBC’s Benedict Cumberbatch version of this renowned detective will be disappointed. Cumberbatch alongside Martin Freeman has been largely responsible for the renewed interest and following that the Victorian era investigator has enjoyed in the modern era of Dexter and Law and Order. With a casual toss of the hallmark deerstalker cap in the opening sequence we are made keenly aware that here frivolity rules the day and aside from that one dictate there are very few conventional dictums that are followed. Cumberbatch continued the tradition of stage actors who transferred the character to the screen which was embarked upon by South African actor Basil Rathbone. Rathbone, born in Johannesburg went on to become an actor in London and New York. It was his screen role as Sherlock in The Hound of Baskervilles in 1939 which secured his fame however, and Fridjhon’s reference to the Jameson raid pays an oblique homage to Rathbone’s father who was accused of being a spy following the botched raid in 1896 against the Transvaal, as it was then known.
A cast of how many you say?
This is not the only local reference which Fridjhon has cleverly woven into the quick-witted dialogue and his not-so-subtle digs at the “game of empire without an umpire” are very topical. He has scripted a curious tale of the stolen Koh-i-Noor diamond which is as baffling as some of the outlandish costumes that the hapless trio are subjected to. With only three cast members we are presented with Sherlock (primarily but not exclusively played by Fridjhon), Watson (mostly the domain of Craig Jackson) and the long-suffering Mrs Hudson (again mostly Bronywn Gottwald) but gender specific roles are not de rigueur in this production so she is equally tasked with Watson, Sherlock, Detective Inspector Lestrade and a few minor royal roles. Queen Victoria herself makes a brief appearance in a structure which could indeed launch a ship or two. Needless to say, she is also cast in the role of a cunning yet charming femme fatale who herself takes on the guise of a beggar and a waitress. You can see how easily confusion can reign. Added to that are an Irish villain, the British Prime Minister, an Indian maharajah and a handful of other characters which make use of a multiplicity of accents and equally varied costumes.
Farcical sensibility
If your longing for a pantomime wasn’t fulfilled over the festive season, this is bound to do the trick. Its farcical sensibility and complete irreverence are the antidote for those dreading the beginning of this year or still reeling from last year. It has a Goon-like quality to it and nobody takes themselves very seriously. Fridjhon is serious about audiences getting their money’s worth, though, and they are treated to a few replays of garbled scenes to ensure that the gist of the story isn’t totally obfuscated. Comprehension is however not guaranteed with murder victims that attend their own funerals and stolen gemstones which don’t actually disappear. Swerdlow’s hand is evident and his appreciation of the exaggerated and improbable are brought to bear on the set design and the myriad extravagant sound cues. Disembodied voices include those of Queen Victoria, at whose behest the entire debauched affair of international proportions has been covered up. The spectacle of the trio treading water in the English Channel is possibly the most bizarre sight and borrows heavily from the am-dram tradition of haphazard set design. Much of the set is makeshift and designed with an irreverence to traditional theatrical aesthetics, epitomised in the static tea cups which cling stubbornly to an overturned tray.
Healthy stock of silliness
This is an absurdist and nonsensical whodunnit and the somewhat clumsy dual roles are undertaken with a deliberateness that enhances the sheer ludicrousness of the situation rather than a dictate of budgetary constraints. Whether Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would have approved remains to be seen. Fans of John Cleese, Monty Python and the P.G. Wodehouse roles which Fridjhon has made his own will find much to laugh about, and if the shrieks of laughter on opening night are any indication, there are quite a few of them about. Fridjhon’s experience as a stand-up comedian holds him in good stead as he adapts the text on the fly and moderates the pitch depending on the audience’s reaction. Jackson is ridiculously charming and Gottwald has to pull several acting parlour tricks out of her sleeves as she juggles her multiple roles. With the depressing state of global politics, the dire water crisis and the general feeling of malaise one needs a healthy stock of silliness to guard against the sense of impending doom. Let this trio replenish your stock, you will be in need of them soon enough.
Where: Theatre on the Bay
When: 19 to 28 January. Monday to Saturday at 8pm.
Book: Computicket
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