The Dance of Death

During his tenure as Artistic Director of the original National Theatre, Laurence Olivier continued to command the stage with magnificent performances notably Othello, since frowned upon by the PC brigade and the 'wokerati', Tattle in 'Love for Love', Shylock, James Tyrone in 'Long Day's Journey into Night' and Captain Edgar in Strindberg's 'Dance of Death'.

One can fully understand why the role of the Captain would appeal to him as he is able to utilise all the weapons in his acting armoury and is by turns ferocious, wheedling, paranoid and pathetic as well as employing a staccato military bark that pierces the eardrums. Pauline Kael described his tour de force as audacious and daring, an opinion few would dispute.

It requires a strong actress to hold her own in his overpowering presence and the superlative Geraldine McEwan, reprising her stage performance, is utterly mesmerising and more than a match. She plays his wife Alice, based upon actress Siri von Essen with whom Strindberg had a stormy fourteen year marriage. The man between is Kurt, a sheep among wolves, who is played by the excellent Robert Lang, replacing Robert Stephens. Edgar and Alice's daughter Judith is played by Janina Faye whose sexually manipulative character provides a grim reminder that the cycle of Love-Hate is destined to continue ad infinitem.

Glen Byam Shaw directed the original production and here it has been entrusted to television director David Giles. Cinematography is by Geoffrey Unsworth who was to be behind the camera for Olivier's film of 'Three Sisters'.

Strindberg's stark, visceral and blackly humorous piece was years ahead of its time and its influence on the mutually destructive male/female relationships depicted by Ingmar Bergman is there for all to see, not to mention Edward Albee's 'Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?'.

I have been searching everywhere I can think of to try to obtain this movie. Olivier thought his performance as Edgar in this Strindberg masterpiece might have been the best piece of work he ever did, and the combination of Olivier and Strindberg ought to be electrifying. So the movie ought to be readily available. I gather the distributors are Paramount, but can find no information on how to discover anything: availability, price, location of archive copies -- it all seems to be a mystery. Terry Coleman refers to the movie in his biography of Olivier, and it shows up on records of Olivier filmography as made in 1969, with a cast list. But the film itself seems to have disappeared. Can anyone tell me where to find it? I am a Strindberg scholar, and this is a valuable record. I don't really have more to add, and have rated the film as a 10 only because this combination of talent ought to result in a masterpiece.

I worked on this production as Still Cameraman. It disappoints me to see that the only still from the film is the one I submitted and easily detected from the others, seen at the end of this strip. I would supply more if I'm asked, and given the credit TONY AUGUSTE.

Olivier awards the viewer with one of his most impressive, fiery performances ever, and playing the type of character that suited him best - a seedy, vulgar, egotistical elderly man (once a mediocre sea captain that was never able to hold the title of major) who takes enormous pleasure in destroying the lives of everyone that surrounds him, including his wife (once an also mediocre lady performer), to whom he has shared 25 five years of sheer hate and disgust. The latest victim of his fiendish intrigues is a distant cousin of hers, assigned to become head of the local Quarentene office, on the Island, somewhere in Eastern Europe, where they live, and to whom Alice - the shrewish wife - shared ( and shares ) a rather strange relationship. August Strindberg's play is captured beautifully on screen by the National Theater , with the help of strong, fiercely intense performances, by both leading lady and gentleman. The only misfire of this sadly underrated motion picture is the editing, that could be better, even though the beautiful images of the Island that are intertwined with the gloomy, dreary atmosphere of Olivier and McEwan's residence, are absolutely fascinating. Thoroughly a classic, thought-provoking, character study of both emotional and mental bankruptcy. Post - Scryptum - If you would like to see Sir Olivier do an equally repelling part, do see 'The Entertainer' as well.