The Curtain

Daniel Keene’s The Curtain is an astonishing yet subtle delve into the experiences of three elderly people forced by circumstance to live in the same house, and presents familiar questions about age, regret and identity in resoundingly original ways. We begin with a conversation between Leon (Gil Tucker) and Francis (Paul Weingott) passing the time as they await the return of their landlady, Mrs Munroe (Milijana Cancar). Their conversation is one-sided: Leon wants to talk existentially, bringing up death and poetry and the question of who he truly is, while Francis simply wants food. Their differences, illuminated in Keene’s needle-precise dialogue, lead to more bitter arguments, but it’s here we slowly understand that these men have been forced into this situation, by circumstances hinted at but not fully illuminated. We are then introduced to Mrs Munroe, drunk and grieving her husband and wishing to leave her house. Each of these characters is in a quietly dire moment of their life, but each has grown dependant on one another.

It’s the way the characters don’t connect which makes for a significant amount of the play’s pathos. All three actors have had their best arranged by director Beng Oh. Oddly, though, the play is at its most stirring in its small lines that reveal insights into the character’s lives, rather than its monologues, which have a tendency to drag. Moments where the characters’ looming senility rears its head are interesting, at first, but feel inorganic after the first few times characters slip and falter in their speech. But these are minor flaws in the light of the ending, which illuminates so much about the characters while still leaving plenty of room for thought and speculation. The sense of possibility and hope is tenderly rendered. A gentle and cleverly incorporated soundtrack is a welcome addition into the mix, and the script is a masterclass in establishing characters that seem familiar, but who are also wholly fascinating. Overall, The Curtain is a poetic and triumphant experience that leaves the audience with much to think about.