Review: THE LIVES OF OTHERS at Adelphi Theatre

With one Stasi agent per every 166 citizens in East Germany, the DDR’s secret police were universally feared for its network of informants, surveillance resources and interrogation methods. One misplaced comment could result in detention, disappearance or the end of a career. Of particular interest to the communist authorities were the subversive voices of writers, poets and indeed, playwrights!

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s brilliant concept takes us into the world of the silent eavesdroppers, chief among them, Gerd Wiesler (here played by Stephen Dillane) adorned with headphones and tapping at a typewriter for much of the story. In the production which has just opened at the Adelphi Theatre, he secretes himself into every scene, perched on a sofa or hovering in a doorway as the unseen listener. Other characters move around him, oblivious to his insidious presence in an apartment bristling with hidden listening devices. Gradually, the pressured interactions between a celebrated young playwright Georg Dreyman (Luke Thompson) and his girlfriend Christa-Maria Sieland (Keira Knightley playing a celebrated stage actress) cause their relationship to implode and unravel. As Georg plots and conspires with others to destabilise the regime with their subversive articles and messaging, they are largely unaware that the actress is already compromised through an enforced sexual arrangement with the sadistic culture minister Hempf (Andrew Woodall).

With half a dozen costume changes as befits a glamorous star of the stage, Knightley looks every bit the commanding presence but also taps the inherent vulnerabilities of being forced to submit to Hempf’s regular sexual demands, or lose her career.

As the apartment set revolves, the large supporting cast are excellently choreographed at parties and the initial bugging installation scene, imbuing a claustrophobic essence to the expansive Adelphi stage. These moments are often accompanied by an incongruous piece of western popular music — a burst of Bowie, and at one point the instrumental version of Noel Harrison’s The Windmills of Your Mind. The musical interludes serve to gel the scenes beautifully. Bechtler also deploys neat black-out letterboxing to cover behind the scenes changes adding a slick and ominous ‘spooks’ feel to proceedings.

Other notable contributions in the acting stakes come from Nick Holder as blacklisted director Jerska, and Calum Finlay as Georg’s friend and television journalist, Hauser. However, Paul Higgins’ rendering of Grubitz, Wiesler’s demanding Stasi boss, was far too petulant and jittery to convince.

Ultimately, this was Icke and Bechtler’s night. The director/designer pairing is infused with an innate mutual understanding and their execution here is a finely orchestrated gem.

THE LIVES OF OTHERS plays 2 hours 10 minutes without interval and continues at the Adelphi until 9th January.

The Lives of Others Tickets