Review: Red Speedo (Orange Tree Theatre)

Review by Rosie Holmes

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A a gripping exploration of ambition, ethics, and the human psyche, Lucas Hnath's compelling play Red Speedo receives its UK premiere at the Orange Tree Theatre. The production, directed by Matthew Dunster, dives deep into the murky waters of competitive sports and the lengths individuals will go to secure their dreams.

Ray spends his life in the pool, he lives to swim, but on the eve of the Olympic qualifiers and within touching distance of a massive sponsorship deal (the name of the play may give you a hint as to who with), performance enhancing drugs are found in the club’s fridge, putting Ray’s career and dreams at jeopardy. The show opens with Ray’s brother, Peter, also his lawyer and de facto manager, arguing with Ray’s coach. Peter wants the drugs destroyed for fear of suspicion around the club, Coach wants to call the authorities, and Ray just wants the drugs back.

In this opening scene, Ray is displayed innocently, merely a puppet that sits between the two men as they argue about the right thing to do. However, as the play progresses, Lucas Hnath’s script weaves a messy web of betrayal and ambition, with transactional relationships between its characters, centred around the question of what is and is not fair. It’s a very wordy play, but never slow in pace. Even as the tension builds, there is plenty of humour, particularly in the brotherly relationship between Peter and Ray.

Finn Cole is protagonist Ray, with literally nowhere to hide, he appears throughout the play in just a pair of red speedos. In fact, I wonder if his appearance in small speedos perpetuates the idea of objectification that runs throughout the play. Ray is often at the mercy of those around him, a machine that makes his brother money and a cog in a capitalist system. He is also often objectified, unavoidably, by the audience. Cole’s portrayal of Ray is excellent, often staring into the distance, vacant, and eating baby carrots – he is the uneducated brother, naive perhaps, until it comes to winning.

Ciaran Owens is all-American lawyer Peter, he wants to win, and he wants to win big, perhaps at the cost of his familial relationships and morality. At first, he appears to be the bad guy, but what unfolds makes things wholly more complicated than simply good guys and bad guys. Fraser James is, at first, the honourable coach, fatherly and strong, until once again it comes to the cost of victory. Parker Lapaine plays disgraced sports therapist and ex-girlfriend of Ray, at first perhaps it seems her role isn’t needed, but eventually she creates an even bigger question surrounding morality, and plays the character with a refreshing bolshiness that makes way for just a glimpse of her naivety.

It seems odd to have gotten this far, and not have mentioned the set design, because in fact the action does take place around a pool. Ray dips in and out of the water and the pool makes for an even more dramatic closing fight scene. The small space at The Orange Tree is transformed into the tiled walls and floor of a pool, echoey and vast, adding more vulnerability to the characters. Dunster’s direction deals with the pool and the in-the-round space remarkably well, for such wordy dialogue his direction is fast-paced, and we never miss a word or expression. Claire Llewelyn's choreography of the aforementioned fight scene was particularly impressive.

Just a week away from the opening of the Olympics, and with recent reports of doping in swimming, this piece is just as timely as its first outing ten years ago. It delves deep into the slipperiness of professional sport, morality, and the cost of winning. Cole leads a wonderful cast in a piece that will leave you pondering questions of morality and fairness long after you leave the theatre, or indeed, the pool.

Red Speedo plays at Orange Tree Theatre until 10th August, tickets are available here - https://orangetreetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/red-speedo/

Photos by Johan Persson