Faith Healer @ The Lyceum

'The truth' in Faith Healer, the programme notes suggest, 'lies somewhere in the gaps of what is left unspoken.' Directed as cleverly as it is written, each audience member would have a chance to discover some kind of individual 'truth.' Not once is this production given enough space to allow such reflection.

John Dove’s direction lacks the bravery to allow the characters to develop in front of the audience. There are moments of poetry in the text, when Sean O’Callaghan is at his best as eponymous healer Frank; but instead of these moments providing ecstatic contrast with the majority of the script, the spontaneity it demands is replaced by elaborate gestures which conflict with the text’s ambiguity.

O’Callaghan and Niamh McCann as Grace are clearly hindered by the space. The wide-open set emphasises the loneliness of the characters but a subtle, contained performance would be lost in row two of the stalls, leaving misplaced lofty deliveries to the dress circle. Patrick Driver’s showbiz veteran Teddy allows for more showmanship and anecdotal certainty, yet he plays to the audience on a more personal level and his moments of vulnerability and tragedy are far more moving as a result. His wonderful, witty performance lifts the production.

It's a watchable, engaging performance. Each monologue gives body to those before it to create a genuine sense of intrigue by the close of the play. Credit for this is due to the writer, the director and cast. But Faith Healer surely has more to offer with potential for harsher character portraits that really get under the skin of the audience. [Charlie Hanks]