The Unremarkable Death of Marilyn Monroe

The Unremarkable Death of Marilyn Monroe is a spell-binding glimpse into the concluding, poignant moments of an icon.
Entering the theatre, I wasn't sure what format of play I was about to experience. When an excited, enthusiastic and robed Monroe sprang from her stasis upon the bed, the phone rings, a recurring motif in this play; I  ashamedly admit wrongly thinking that at the outset, the play would be a tad cheesy for lack of a better word, with Marilyn actively talking to audience, however a sense of solemnity and sadness seems to peek through the cracks in Monroe's wide smile.
   Lizzie Wort portrays the star as a woman terrorised by mental and physical afflictions, her insecurities and perhaps most pivotally, the influence the media played in her life. The play is at its best in the darkest segments, where through a simple stutter, or a blank expression, or a change of lighting, the internal turmoil is clear.
The details surrounding Marilyn's marriages and childhood are described by the star, which morph her into the star we only knew through the big screen, begging the question that she herself poses, "Did we ever truly know her?"
If anything, the play makes us think, looking back on several of the photos of Marilyn Monroe, is the woman who had an affair with JFK, the woman who aparently was murdered, who supposedly committed suicide, really the woman we knew? Or are we too quick to accept the media's portrayal of a woman who so clearly wasn't what she was presented to be.
     The Unremarkable Death of Marilyn Monroe is a triumph by Dyad Productions, it is both wonderfully produced and directed as well as acted. For a lover of Monroe, this play is a must, and for those unversed in her story, this play is a very interesting glimpse into the 'real' Marilyn's final hours, and I would recommend this one-woman confessional to anyone.

Mícheál McCann - 8/02/14