Review: 100 PAINTINGS, Bread & Roses Theatre

In a room at the Savoy, an Artist is desperately trying to deliver 100 artworks to the new manager to pay the bills. But his overbearing Mother and her ongoing legal battle make things difficult and the dystopian society the derelict hotel is set against doesn't help either.

While we meet the pretentious despair of the drama queen and her drama son, the portrait of a very feasible future is painted on the background alongside a broader discourse about what it takes to be creative.

Jack Stacey's new play is nothing short of magnetic and, as directed by Zachary Hart, the cast is equally hypnotic. 100 Paintings is ready for a bigger stage. The script is a watertight collection of subtle hints at the state of the world and creatively backhanded insults tied together by a profound examination of the value and meaning of being an artist. Conrad Williamson is the enticingly petulant Artist whose constant strife with his identity and craft keeps being stoked by Catherine McDonough as his Mother.

Her dismissiveness comes in a funny shape; she continuously and dismissively refers to him as a painter, which sets off The Artist on the inherent distinctions between the two terms. While these become a series of hilarious (but compelling still) tirades, they hide a deeper exploration of artistry and the ideal conditions for art to be made.

Williamson and McDonough are joined by Jane Christie as the adorable librarian Beatriz and Jill Penfold as Eva, the surprisingly philosophical prostitute sourced by The Mother to stimulate his artistic process and expedite the task. The initial symbolism of the pair and the intrinsic misogyny of their differences - a Madonna-Whore image of sorts - is swiftly destroyed by the latter in the second act when Eva does exactly what she'd been hired for, but in a totally unexpected way.

Their comedic timing is precise and the rhythm of Stacey's storytelling is terrific. 100 Paintings is definitely a comedy at its core, but the societal commentary is slipped in so naturally and easily that it becomes one with its absurd side. While the characters spar with their wits, we find out that Venice has been submerged, the seas have risen irreparably, and some sort of revolution against the machines is happening while Teslas are now horse-drawn.

The remarkable text is matched by an outstanding direction. Hart moves his actors with a steady hand throughout, while a sharp lighting design projects some brilliant shadow-work on the white back wall (there's an especially striking moment when The Artist starts Beatriz's portrait).

By the end, Stacey touches upon so many themes it's almost a disservice to pigeonhole his show as a dark comedy. In a universe where cigarettes are sold without a health warning because deaths imply fewer mouths to feed, it's great to see that the search for art and beauty is still alive and well and that parents still have very critical opinions on their children's life choices.

100 Paintings runs at the Bread & Roses Theatre until 28 August.

Photo credit: Jack Whitney

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