How does one adapt Franz Kafka’s bizarre novel onto the stage? With distinctive style and relative simplicity, answers Frantic Assembly. The play unfolds with Gregor glued to workplace exhaustion by his family’s debt and the toxic pressures of manhood. As his pretence of joyfulness frays under the pressure, his ensuing breakdown takes physical form as he is transformed into a grotesque insect.
More enamoured with the spectacle than moved by the narrative
The set design by Jon Bausor steals the spotlight from the start. With the ceiling hung lower from the back and curtains billowing as walls, it is a Picasso painting come to life. The room moves to reflect the collapse of normality as Gregor’s condition worsens. The accompanying music complements each rapid change of tone, navigating the characters' shifts between private despair and public pretence.
While the initial excitement of commercial poster flashes is promising, the use of video projection disappointingly dwindles in frequency. The potential to visualise a surreal, grotesque landscape or induce fright and gore remains largely untapped.
On this minimalist theme, the production is largely devoid of special effects, costumes, or props to emphasise Gregor's insect transformation, with Felipe Pacheco relying on his body language. In this case, it works. Pacheco moves around the stage with feverish agility, incorporating gymnastic-like holds, swinging from lights, and hanging from the ceilings. While the other characters can only hear him speak gibberish and appear grotesquely transformed, we witness his continuing humanity through an unchanged language and appearance. This interesting choice by director Scott Graham allows us to immerse ourselves in Gregor's experience. We see a man in pain, behaving oddly, while his family see a monster of an entirely new species. In this way, the so-called ‘sane’ characters are the ones going mad.
Repetitive physical theatre sequences add depth to this dynamic, infusing much-needed comedy while underlining each character's role in a farcical societal machine. The women in particular shine, keeping the men happy as the men go back and forth from work and the house afloat for however long is possible in this dreary, capitalist setting.
Regrettably, Grete's characterisation lacks the nuance seen in other aspects of the production. Her initial portrayal as a girl is unconvincing, and the transition to young womanhood is marked by a clumsily drastic change of costume. The final transformation of her feelings towards Gregory seems far too abrupt for characters meant to share a strong bond. In trying to understand this change of attitude, the emotional resonance is lost.
The story concludes with an emotional disconnect despite its dramatic events. Nevertheless, the visual and theatrical prowess remain remarkably impressive, leaving us more enamoured with the spectacle than moved by the narrative.
