After Miss Julie, Patrick Marber's adaptation of Strindberg's Miss Julie, directed by Mark Brokaw, is a strong exploration of morality and possibilities in a country with a strict caste system. Moving the action from 1888 Sweden to 1945 England doesn't seem to make much difference - climbing the economic and social ladder is impossible in the situation that exists between mistress and serf.
The acting in this production is all first-rate, with Sienna Miller giving us a combination of strength, neurotic vulnerability, and temperament. Jonny Lee Miller is powerful as the servant, and he clearly defines his inner conflicts as the play goes on, although at the very beginning he is incomprehensible in his regional accent. Marin Ireland is perfect as the chauffeur's girl who "gets it." There is a lot of excitement in this production, and the fervor of the battle between two people, each trapped, to get out, is passionate and engrossing. Brokaw inserts pauses fraught with intensity that dramatize the inner conflicts of the two characters. Allen Moyer's open rural set is just right for the emotional tennis match that takes place, and Michael Krass' costumes and Mark McCullum's lighting are just right.
I found After Miss Julie to be both a fascinating glimpse of another era and a strong theater experience with hot-blooded performances.
