The Fall Of Man is a reinvention of Miltons Paradise Lost, set in a bedsit in 2006. It tells the story of an Eastern European woman who has come to England to work for a couple, primarily assisting the wife and looking after the children. She and the husband embark upon an affair which develops throughout the play. Initially, it appears to be a standard story of a man taking advantage of a naïve, vulnerable woman but as it unfolds we learn more about their motives and desires and it becomes less clear who is taking advantage of whom.Most of the action takes place in or on the bed in the bedsit, with strong language, nudity and sexual situations. The audience surrounds the stage on three sides and is very close, giving a strong sense of immediacy and reality to the performances. It feels like were eavesdropping on something very private and intense.Both actors are extremely good, giving strong, realistic performances. There is no sense of playing to the audience; they could almost be alone in a claustrophobic bedsit.Interspersed with the story are short readings from Paradise Lost. For me, this does not work so well, probably because Ive never read it, and Im not sure that it adds a great deal to the performances. Even so, the play is worth seeing for its strong storyline and excellent acting.
