La Musica, Young Vic

La Musica play summary
This short, taut two-hander about a couple meeting again after a three year separation to finalise their divorce has not been staged in London for over 20 years. French director, playwright and novelist Marguerite Duras is known for experimental and poetic writing, steeped in emotion and preoccupied with human passion.
In La Musica, the former lovers meet in the same hotel where they lived in the heady early days of their relationship. As they look back on the happinesses and horrors of their marriage, the audience piece together an intense portrait of passion, betrayal and violence. 
Revival at the Young Vic: La Musica, London 2015
Director Jeff James honed his craft working as assistant director to the mighty Ivo Van Hove, and then impressed with his own brand of playful experimentalism with a sticky staging of Stink Foot at the Yard Theatre (2014). The elliptical poetry of Marguerite Duras' script poses a challenge for directors. 
When we asked James about directorial challenges in an interview last year, he said ‘sex and violence are the limitations of theatre... you need to find a way of expressing them that isn’t real’. We're intrigued to see how this innovative young director translates the passion and darkness of La Musica into performative intensity.