{"id":9740,"date":"2016-03-04T16:03:33","date_gmt":"2016-03-04T16:03:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/?p=9740"},"modified":"2016-03-04T16:03:33","modified_gmt":"2016-03-04T16:03:33","slug":"betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/","title":{"rendered":"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-9742\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9742\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Betrayal copy\" width=\"740\" height=\"529\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9742\" src=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Betrayal copy\" width=\"740\" height=\"529\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><br \/>\n<strong>Review: Betrayal at St David&#8217;s Hall<\/strong><br \/>\nA COMPETENT\u00a0staging of Harold Pinter\u2019s classic 1978 play about adulterers, Betrayal, opened its three-performance run at St David\u2019s Hall last night.<br \/>\nJames Robert Auheb\u2019s low-budget production depicts the traitorous romances of a married couple, Emma and Robert (Gemma Leader and Matthew Curran), and their friend Jerry (Paul Tonkin). Making use of reverse chronology, Betrayal begins with a scene that occurs after the demise of Emma and Jerry\u2019s affair, and ends seven years earlier at its inception. In between, the characters relentlessly hurt, deceive and betray each other.<br \/>\nThe play itself is a stone-cold classic. It exhibits all of Pinter\u2019s genius for veiling menace and rage in a thin layer of civility. A master of controlling a conversation\u2019s subtext, Pinter creates characters who rarely say anything without a hidden meaning, and yet the dialogue never seems obtuse. Sinister connotations hang over each scene like a guillotine.<br \/>\nPinter makes an inspired decision in placing the events of Betrayal in reverse chronological order. There is something perversely captivating about watching characters declare their adoration in the knowledge that their relationships will become cold and distant. The final scene is fatalistic but powerful in its portrayal of Jerry and Emma\u2019s young passion.<br \/>\nThis small-scale production is nothing special, but it does an honest job of honouring the material. The 50 or so viewers last night (about half of capacity) were seated right up against the action, which played out on a spartan set amounting to nothing more than a few wooden chairs and boxes. The intimacy and simplicity of the staging were effective, allowing focus to be directed on the complexity of Betrayal\u2019s emotional dynamics.<br \/>\nThe actors were reasonably accomplished, although at times they struggled to bring out the material\u2019s buried meanings. On more than a few occasions, the emphasis put on lines was a little off, Paul Tonkin being the main offender. His portrayal of Jerry was watchable, but not quite likeable enough. The character works best when interpreted as a na\u00efve romantic, rather than the sleazeball on show last night.<br \/>\nThere was an appealing vulnerability to Gemma Leader\u2019s Emma. Her performance was not perfect, but she grew into the role as the play went on. One scene in particular revealed her to be an actor of real talent: she teetered on the edge of tears while Matthew Curran\u2019s Robert toyed with her, making for uncomfortable and affecting viewing. Curran, who carried a formidable, looming presence, delivered the night\u2019s standout performance.<br \/>\nIf you are already familiar with Betrayal this production is unlikely to make a huge impression. Newcomers are more likely to be blown away by this adequate rendition of an exceptional work.<br \/>\n<strong>Rating: 7\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Review: Betrayal at St David&#8217;s Hall A COMPETENT\u00a0staging of Harold Pinter\u2019s classic 1978 play about adulterers, Betrayal, opened its three-performance run at St David\u2019s Hall last night. James Robert Auheb\u2019s low-budget production depicts the traitorous romances of a married couple, Emma and Robert (Gemma Leader and Matthew Curran), and their friend Jerry (Paul Tonkin). Making use of reverse chronology, Betrayal begins with a scene that occurs after the demise of Emma and Jerry\u2019s affair, and ends seven years earlier at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":248,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[292],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-9740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Review: Betrayal at St David&#8217;s Hall A COMPETENT\u00a0staging of Harold Pinter\u2019s classic 1978 play about adulterers, Betrayal, opened its three-performance run at St David\u2019s Hall last night. James Robert Auheb\u2019s low-budget production depicts the traitorous romances of a married couple, Emma and Robert (Gemma Leader and Matthew Curran), and their friend Jerry (Paul Tonkin). Making use of reverse chronology, Betrayal begins with a scene that occurs after the demise of Emma and Jerry\u2019s affair, and ends seven years earlier at [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Cardiffian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-03-04T16:03:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cathyduncan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@cathyduncan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cathyduncan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/\",\"name\":\"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-03-04T16:03:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/41c76b1e66d8cf6e57cba8550c3772b1\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/\",\"name\":\"The Cardiffian\",\"description\":\"Just another JOMEC Sites Network site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/41c76b1e66d8cf6e57cba8550c3772b1\",\"name\":\"cathyduncan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/d4d0895f6e1f7ccb86d04236a870a18b\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7cd1b1b63598c25c15d3e0d390366ec2ba1c99865b1a23c34339be8c5c396a81?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7cd1b1b63598c25c15d3e0d390366ec2ba1c99865b1a23c34339be8c5c396a81?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cathyduncan\"},\"description\":\"Lecturer, Cardiff University News Journalism MA. Bristolian based in Cardiff but Swansea Til I Die.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.cardiff.ac.uk\/people\/view\/381934-duncan-cathy\",\"https:\/\/uk.linkedin.com\/in\/cathy-duncan-6b91459\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/cathyduncan\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/author\/cathyduncan\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian","og_description":"Review: Betrayal at St David&#8217;s Hall A COMPETENT\u00a0staging of Harold Pinter\u2019s classic 1978 play about adulterers, Betrayal, opened its three-performance run at St David\u2019s Hall last night. James Robert Auheb\u2019s low-budget production depicts the traitorous romances of a married couple, Emma and Robert (Gemma Leader and Matthew Curran), and their friend Jerry (Paul Tonkin). Making use of reverse chronology, Betrayal begins with a scene that occurs after the demise of Emma and Jerry\u2019s affair, and ends seven years earlier at [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/","og_site_name":"The Cardiffian","article_published_time":"2016-03-04T16:03:33+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"cathyduncan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@cathyduncan","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cathyduncan","Estimated reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/","url":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/","name":"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic - The Cardiffian","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg","datePublished":"2016-03-04T16:03:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/41c76b1e66d8cf6e57cba8550c3772b1"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/cardiffian.jomec.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Betrayal-copy.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2016\/03\/04\/betrayal-a-flawed-interpretation-of-a-stone-cold-classic\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Betrayal: A flawed but enjoyable interpretation of a stone-cold classic"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#website","url":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/","name":"The Cardiffian","description":"Just another JOMEC Sites Network site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/41c76b1e66d8cf6e57cba8550c3772b1","name":"cathyduncan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/d4d0895f6e1f7ccb86d04236a870a18b","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7cd1b1b63598c25c15d3e0d390366ec2ba1c99865b1a23c34339be8c5c396a81?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7cd1b1b63598c25c15d3e0d390366ec2ba1c99865b1a23c34339be8c5c396a81?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cathyduncan"},"description":"Lecturer, Cardiff University News Journalism MA. Bristolian based in Cardiff but Swansea Til I Die.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.cardiff.ac.uk\/people\/view\/381934-duncan-cathy","https:\/\/uk.linkedin.com\/in\/cathy-duncan-6b91459","https:\/\/x.com\/cathyduncan"],"url":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/author\/cathyduncan\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/248"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9740"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9740\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9740"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=9740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}