London
LIVING WITH THE LIGHTS ON
by Mark Lockyer.
The Young Vic (The Clare to 19 March
66 The Cut, London SE1 8L7 to 19 March 2016.
Sat 7.30pm.
Runs 1hr 10 mins No interval.

TICKETS: 020 7922 22922.
www.youngvic.org
Review: William Russell 17 March.

Back from falling over the edge. Short run, but very good
This funny, sad, illuminating monologue tells what happened to Lockyer, an actor with the Royal Shakespeare company at the time, when one day in 1995 on a day off from work he was out in the country and met the devil. He suffered a mental breakdown – he was playing Mercutio at the time, behaved badly, fled abroad, set a girl friend’s flat on fire, went to prison, was confined in a mental home, received treatment and is now back pursuing his profession.

He is not cured – there is no cure – he is bi-polar, living with the lights on and coping with his illness.

The story he has to tell starts off hilariously and then, as he ends up in prison, turns black and desperately sad. But clearly the man on stage is, whatever his problems, someone with charm and talent and a gifted teller of tales.

One is about how, escaping from his problems, he ends in Greece, meets a Greek guy who persuades him to play his guitar and Lockyer gives him Dylan’s Blowing in the Wind – it is not just the wind that gets blown.

Presented by the Actors Touring Company Lockyer’s monologue has toured and there are plans for a tour this autumn so look out for it.

Mark Lockyer.

Director: Ramin Gray.
Associate Director: Rosemary McKenna.
Lighting: Amy Mae Smith.

2016-03-19 10:58:30