You may be familiar with Venus in Furs from the novel, film, or even the song by The Velvet Underground. It’s a classic text of erotica that heavily influenced the BDSM movement. Now, the 2012 play Venus in Fur by David Ives, setting this story within a modern framework, is revived at Camden People’s Theatre.
Thomas is a writer and director, and he has adapted Masoch’s novel for the stage. All day, he has been auditioning for the role of Vanda, but now he’s disillusioned and exhausted. Actress Wanda has arrived late, dressed in leather, and ready to show what she can do.
Venus in Fur is a tricky play to pull off. There’s a lot to cover in a two-hander that explores ideas of power plays and gender roles while offering sections of the novel verbatim without making it seem ridiculous. Thomas/Severin and Wanda/Vanda have to convince us as they slip in and out of reality.
A couple of audience members were rather heavy on the laughter, appreciating the humorous elements behind the scenes of a play but occasionally causing a serious exchange to be lost. I also felt Jennifer Leong was at times hard to hear, and I was quite close to the front.
Director Mandi Riggi has created a stage full of books, artworks, and a hint of decadence and domination. The entrance of Wanda rushing down the steps, bumping her bags on the audience, didn’t quite work, but Leong’s ability to switch between identities allowed her to settle quickly into the story.
Flinn Andreae offers a Thomas who becomes quieter and more restrained as the play progresses. His role, especially as Severin, the character who seeks to be degraded and under the control of a woman, requires care and focus to come across without feeling ridiculous. I thought he did a good job here.
Venus in Fur explores art, gender, desire, and control. It relies on the chemistry of its performers, the ambiguity of its delivery, and a pace that allows us to explore the tension that builds on stage.
It isn’t a play for everyone, and it has a deeply problematic ending that is open to interpretation. However, this revival is clearly committed to the material, so I’m giving it …
3.5 stars
Venus in Fur continues at Camden People’s Theatre until 24 May: details here.