
Wall
Royal Court
Alphabetical Order
Hampstead
David Hare, that marvellously sophisticated, dazzlingly eloquent and faintly ridiculous left-wing brahmin, has written a sequel to Via Dolorosa, his absorbing meditation on the woes of Israel. After the blithering drivel of Seven Jewish Children, Caryl Churchill’s impenetrably tedious response to Israel’s incursion into Gaza, the Royal Court has restored some sanity and intelligence to the debate. Hare’s specific subject is the 486-mile wall (or ‘Fence for Life’ as the Israelis call it) currently being built to keep out suicide bombers. Wall, according to the programme, was ‘directed by Stephen Daldry’. It’s hard to say exactly what ‘directing’ a one-man, one-hour recital might involve, but then we don’t know how much guidance Hare needed after the first run-through. ‘Dave, darling, lovely stuff, but the Shrek costume and the bunch of carnations between the teeth? Not really working.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in