Review: The Tailor of Inverness, Finborough Theatre – London

Seeing a long-running show is often the promise of great theatre and in that respect, The Tailor of Inverness does not disappoint. The play is a poignant tale of half-truths and dressed-up lies which cut the cloth of a brilliant one-man show. Matthew Zajac is formidable and drives the show with a minutia and an energy that few solo performers can muster.

In this back-and-forth between the story told by his father, Mateusz Zajac the real Tailor of Inverness, and his answer-seeking son, Zajac tells a story of errancy, shame, belonging and the heartbreak of war.

The wonderful set design created by Ali Maclaurin has as its centrepiece a wall made of a dusty patchwork of 1940s garments occupying the modest back wall of the Finborough auditorium. This is used as a projection screen of often chilling substance, offering subtitles to some Polish dialogue, and allowing us to follow Polish-born Mateusz’s progression throughout Europe and Persia on forever-changing maps as borders crumble and reform beneath our travelling gaze. The stage is atmospheric and from the beginning, the evocative space of the old tailor’s shop in Inverness draws us in.

As the play begins, Zajac tells a tale he must have heard often from his father. The tailor’s endearing tone ushers the audience into a compelling journey, jumping from the tailor’s shop on stage and back into reenactments of childhood, youth and war memories.

The quick pace and settling into character surprise us at first but the rhythm settles, and we sit fascinated by the quirks and vocal tics of the tailor’s Polish-Scottish voice. The greatest feat of the play is perhaps the balance between such finely tuned details as the music, the violin played with moving precision by Jonnie Hardy, the use of set as both prop and material reflection upon the universal nature of a tailor’s job, and the technically brilliant performance from Zajac.

He engages us with the many tales told by his father and adds the ones which he never admitted. This multi-rolling is truly a work of creativity, craft and mastery. The audience is truly carried away on a distant voyage. The many characters encountered are remembered fondly, distinct in our minds hours after the show’s end.

One possible structural issue lies in the prolific factual content of the play, which may begin to tire the most attentive spectator after the 60th minute. The heartbreaking final 20 minutes could feel more documentary than drama to minds that have tried to link stories, images and maps together quickly for an hour.

“The many characters encountered are remembered fondly, distinct in our minds hours after the show’s end.”

There is no doubt however that the Tailor of Inverness will continue to take audiences on captivating voyages of heart and the mind, inviting each to consider the pernicious ways in which shame, pain and the need to belong manage to find homes within us all.

In-Article Images: Tim Morozzo

Featured Image: Jane Hobson

For tickets, and more information on The Tailor of Inverness, click here.