Written by Nadia Jackson and directed by Spiky Saul, Maar, Dora is now playing in a larger fringe space, The Cockpit, as part of the Camden Fringe after a run at the Old Red Lion in the spring.
This is the second play on the subject of Dora Maar and how she has been defined (or not) by her relationship with Pablo Picasso I have seen on the London Fringe.
There are some parallels between this show and Dora Versus Picasso, but also some significant differences, mainly around what was going on outside of the artist studio.
As in the earlier play, Maar, Dora features both Dora Maar and Pablo Picasso, but Marie-Thérèse Walter appears as a voice only.
Faye Ziegler’s Dora is lively, fiery, and has a snarky side to her. She rarely stays still, and her thoughts hop around.
Jackson’s witty script mixes fact and fiction while giving her leading character a voice, some might say a voice dripping with cynicism.
Dora Maar was born in 1907 in Paris and became a successful and pioneering photographer before meeting Picasso in 1935.
She became his muse, mistress, and melancholic subject on the canvas (The Weeping Woman the best example).
Jackson’s play argues that Picasso bled dry the souls of his female companions, draining them of self-worth and confidence.
The Dora Maar who created her own studio in 1930 and who was a major force in Surrealism, gives way to the hysteric in the shadow of a famous lover.
Curiously, I wanted more Maar and less Picasso. Her life before him is fascinating, and she lived for more than five decades after their passing. That’s a long time to be hidden or to be bitter. I’d like to hear more.
Jeremiah O’Connor takes on the role of Picasso, bossy, overpowering, but with a sense of the charm that must have fascinated so many.
Physically, he doesn’t look that imposing, but there are little clues as to how he treats Dora and others, with a touch, action or word.
Such a man and such an artist could easily prove stifling and all-consuming. Maar tells us this is so; during their time together, he was ‘everything”.
Clever use of the space displays photographs and paintings, although audibility was sometimes an issue, although one that can be easily fixed.
Perhaps given the increased size of the floor area, an extra prop or two might help erase the feeling of the audience being too remote from the action.
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https://camdenfringe.com/events/maar-dora/