Dogfight

Neil Gooding has stumped me. Dogfight sent me through myriad ideas for this review and not one of them stuck as a consistent reading of tonight’s show. “Why? Why? Why?” was what I thought for the first half – “Why is this being performed here and now?” Then Gooding gave me reason; he revolted me. Dogfight is that typical journey of a man being a dick to a woman, asking her forgiveness and then victimising himself until he’s redeemed in the story, in her eyes, and in ours. It’s grotesque. Until we realise the dirt that he’s actually made out to be by others and by himself is not the dirt that he is. He doesn’t realise he needs redeeming and we don’t redeem him.

Dogfight’s journey is undertaken in the US Marine Corps and their last night out on the town. There’s cash and a whole lot of masculinity at stake, and an unexpected love interest as the typical story goes. Luigi Lucente plays the male protagonist, the male ego, with a cutting truth. He has bravado and feelings (who woulda thunk it?) and the two aren’t quite separate. He negotiates them with vigour and nuance despite their garish demands. Hilary Cole – Rose, the love interest – and all the performers are stellar and give the script the unexpected edge it took time to appreciate. The musical side of the performance is without flaw and facilitates a lot of the necessarily emotional engagement to subvert the stage’s superficial action. It’s consistently upbeat and moving, though at times could have afforded to take on a more sinister edge.