‘Pig Farm’ is set in the kitchen of farmer, Tom and his
wife, Tina’s farm house where the farm in at the crux of being declared bankrupt
so they are busy getting ready for an inspection by the Environmental
Protection Agency. Even though they are struggling
to make ends meet they have employed recent release from juvenile detention
centre, Tim to be Tom’s apprentice as this is a part of the conditions Tim has
in not being sent back to the centre. Tom has problems with intoxication and is
particularly violent to Tim as he has just dumped some manure onto two
teenagers by the stream who are having a sexual experience. As such this is
causing troubles with his and Tina’s marriage and he is unaware that Tina has
been having an affair with Tim behind his back as Tom is not providing her with
the love she most desires. Tim becomes besotted by Tina and this is somewhat
reciprocated but ever so slightly. Tina is frantic to become a mother yet Tom
is not so keen to be a parent due to his insecurities. Over the course of the
performance, Tom and Tim are trembling about the outcome of the pig count and
when Tom learns that the neighbouring farm has been forced to close due to the
fact that the farmer has too many pigs that is allowed for a farm of that size,
this understandably set some alarm bells ringing in his ears. However, when
Teddy from the EPA arrives with his team to inspect the farm and the numbers of
the pigs, Tim is told that as Tom is comfortable with being a father, this
upsets Tim and he is ready to conjure up some revenge as he is in love with Tina.
This is completed when Tim drives a tractor into the pig shed and all of the
pigs try to escape and run all around the farm. Tim all battered and bruised is
brought into the kitchen by Tom and Tina, but Teddy informs Tom that the pig
count was under counted and it is Tim who has done this. Tom is furious about
this and requests that Tim leaves, but he doesn’t. Teddy states that the farm
will have to be closed as they have broken the rules and regulations. Tom then
turbulently unleashes some violent force on Tim as he has ruined his business
and in unfixable and he learns of Tina indiscretions. At the finale, Teddy
makes Tom an offer on the farm as he feels that he will do a much better job in
which he pressurises Tom and Tina to think about what is best for their future
and they do so as they are thinking of starting a family. Kotis’ narrative is
grand as we can see how the agricultural industries have always battled against
the technical advancements and with someone double-crossing the farm from
inside the unit, is the farming industry dead in the water?
One found the performances by the company of, ‘Pig Farm’ to
be illustriously depicted by pretty good accent Southern American accents
throughout and impeccable characterisations at all times in the show. Dan
Fredenburgh is delightful as farmer, Tom; especially when he is endeavouring to
fight for his career against a ferocious system and how he becomes morose as he
tries to explain why he dumped all the manure on the teenagers as that was the
spot where he and Tina made love as teenagers. Eric Odom is tasteful as
scallywag hired-hand, Tim; mainly how he is becomes emotionally broken as Tina
has lead him along a path that he will not be successful in finishing,
furthermore at the end of the play where he is beaten to near death by Tom he
presents some real comic flair as he comes back to life. Charlotte Parry is
wonderful as Tom’s wife, Tina; mainly where we see how keen she is to be pregnant
and to be a mother, moreover we see her despondence by the fact that she has to
perform all the household chores and this leads her to not doing Tom’s washing
where he only has a pair of old dungarees available to wear. Stephen Tompkinson
is superb as EPA inspector, Teddy; expressly where we see how he is in fact a
hands on person who becomes very dirty due to the fact that the pigs have
shattered all across the farm and this instigates him wanting to be the owner
of the farm.
Katharine Farmer’s direction is majestic here as she has
been able to engross us into how all forms of work have a duty and a purpose in
the world and how Kotis’ plotline conveys that dysfunctionality between Tom,
Tina and Tim suggests how the farm and their unit will only survive if they work
together properly and efficiently. Carla Goodman’s set and costume designs are
gob-smackingly good as we have been transported to the environment of an
American pig farm with such precision and ease to brilliant scenic construct
and effortless scenic art, you can imagine what it would be like in such
atmospheres. Overall, the experience of, ‘Pig Farm’ was an intriguing take on
how farming is like any other industry where anything is not stable in a
precarious world where anything can happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment