Two couples in the ring in a magnificent 'God of Carnage'

Yasmina Reza dominates the sitcom, whether in a fable about friendship (Art) or the lack of empathy of two unknown couples confronted by a fight between their children in this one A wild god which we met fourteen years ago at the same Goya Theatre in Barcelona in a production directed by Tamzin Townsend, from which Roman Polanski made a powerful film. A wild god It is also the work that Pere Arquillué has chosen to direct at the Goya Theatre.

The anecdote, as it happened in Art, where the reason for the dispute was a blank painting, is almost anecdotal because Reza's skill lies in the design of the characters and in a crescendo of dialogues that envelop the relationships from polite kindness to verbal unbridledness, stripping the characters and their miseries. A fast-paced rhythm that wants to approach a theatre of ideas, but only passes over it. In this case it is about two couples who meet to face the fight between their children in the schoolyard that resulted in one of them being injured in the teeth. As the mother of the injured man, Montserrat, says, something has to be put right so that it doesn't happen again. And with this the four seem to agree, despite the differences in adjectives and other things.

Arquillué's direction, based on a new translation by Pablo Macho Otero that relocates the action in the upper-class districts of Barcelona and with an elegant and minimalist stage space by Max Glaenzel, opts for humour from the start as the driving force of the play. A humour that, in addition to the author's verbal gags, also encompasses attitude and gestures and that certainly works great even if it somewhat disfigures the bitterness of the drama that hides behind the characters.

Arquillué excels in directing the actors and actresses. He has reserved for himself the role of the sexist lawyer hooked on his mobile phone, which he endows with comic skepticism and provocative nonchalance. Laura Aubert is Sushi, the mother of the aggressor and wife of the lawyer. At first elegant and balanced, her comic side explodes when it is her turn to vomit. The sensational evolution of Laura Conejero (Montserrat) is impressive, from her feigned affability to her emotional explosion, which Ivan Benet's calm and understanding Miquel elevates to maximum power when the masks fall. A wild god It has always been a success and the new proposal has everything to confirm its excellence. Don't miss it.