• Good (National Theatre Live)

10/22/23 (Sun)

I was jet lagged when I saw this superb production of C.P. Taylor’s 1981 classic in London almost precisely one year earlier, so I wasn’t going to miss the chance to catch the NT Live recording. As Holocaust dramas are not necessarily a big thing in Japan, I figured tickets would be easy to come by and booked that morning, only to discover that the theater was nearly sold out; I was lucky to get two adjoining seats. I presume that’s due to the presence of David Tennant  in the lead role, though I’m not sure how they know him here.

The show opens in 1933. John Halder is a literature professor and “good” husband, father and son (and lover to his mistress) whose only real friend is a Jewish psychiatrist. He dislikes the Nazis and dismisses the idea that the Jews are under threat, assuring his friend that the wave of anti-Semitism with Hitler’s rise is merely a passing storm. He has written a novel dealing with euthanasia for incapacitated people, inspired presumably by his experience with his blind and senile mother.

His political views begin to change when the regime takes an interest in his novel and asks him to write a paper justifying mercy killings of incurable patients. He accepts, but just for the sake of his career. He then joins the Nazi Party that he once reviled in order to provide security for his wife and children (“I’m doing it because I love you… If it was just myself, I’d take a chance [of refusing]”). He rationalizes to his mistress that joining the party will help push it towards humanity. She responds presciently, “And what if they push us the other way?”, to which he says he’ll leave the country in such case. He accepts an order to lead a book-burning session, reasoning that it will encourage students to learn from life experience rather than just reading about it. He feels that Kristallnacht is positive as it will spur Jews to leave the nation quickly. In this way, he slowly but surely slips into full-on Nazism.

At the same time, on a more personal level, he refuses to secure exit visas for his friend or even just buy train tickets for him to Switzerland, afraid of the potential effect on his own life, family and career. He insists to his friend that everything will be fine – easy for him to say. He finds it easier to go along with the crowd, his humanity vanishing as the social and material gains grow. He eventually tells him that it is the Jews that are responsible for their situation for failing to leave and thus forcing the Germans to act. (“It’s my fault,” answers the shocked friend, “that your f**king machine guns mowed me down?”) The certainty in the professor’s words is chilling.

Halder is plagued from the beginning by voices in his head in the form of music whenever he faces a dilemma. This comes in various forms – classical, jazz, drinking songs. In the end, he is sent by no less than Eichmann to report on Auschwitz, where his ideas on “mercy killing” are being put to full use. There he encounters an orchestra of prisoners from the camp – the music has become real in the most horrific way. We are left to wonder whether this awakens his conscience, though of course it is far too late in any case.

The play is a tremendous examination of the banality of evil. Tennant’s character is all too plausible; reaction among much of the public in the current Israeli tragedy makes it clear that people can convince themselves of anything. An incredible show.

The production uses only three actors for the most part, two of whom have to cover multiple roles. That’s possible in theory since the only interactions are two-way dialogues between Tennant and a variety of characters, but in practice it’s confusing, especially at the beginning. Sharon Small plays the gentle wife, senile mother, mistress, a male Nazi official (didn’t realize right away that the character was male) and others, while Elliot Levey’s characters include the Jewish friend, Eichmann and other Nazis, and a female character. The director handles this ably with lighting and sound effects, and the actors do a great job differentiating between the roles. But honestly simple signals like hats or wigs would have helped immeasurably. I was surprised to see one actor appear two minutes from the end as an Auschwitz official as well as five orchestra members about 30 seconds later. Couldn’t they have taken a part or two?

Still, the play flowed smoothly, and the undefined setting with blank walls kept our focus on the action. All three of the main players were fabulous. Tennant’s amiable presence makes his character’s transition, with its justifications and self-deceit, creepily believable. Small switched impressively among strikingly different character types, and Levey was especially impressive as the Jewish friend. I’m interested in seeing other more generously cast productions of the show, but this lineup is hard to beat. Whether this production is definitive is a matter of judgment, but the play is essential.