“Patrick Marber’s Closer” (LIFE Theatre, Bangkok, 2022) A Theatrical Review

“I love to write about nasty characters because they are fun to write about.” Says Patrick Marber in his master class at the London Film School in 2019. He is a friend of Jonathan, the Head of the Screenwriting program at the school. This Oxford grad read English literature so well that they understand British society enough to criticize it for earning a living. When talking about Closer, he told us an exciting story. “Mike Nichols wanted Julia Robert as his first choice. Jude Law’s name comes up whenever asking who should play Dan. (I don’t remember what he said about Natalie Portman.) Clive Owens was already Marber’s favorite actor.” “I always write on commission,” answered Marber when he was asked about his writing style. Marber’s style combines classic tragedy, classic comedy, and melodrama. Though Closer would appeal to many as a rom-com of a sort. His style is original and intense. We would want to cry at one time and laugh at another second. It is difficult to classify what genre to which his writing belongs. Though he says, “I am lucky never having to pitch my writing to anyone. People hire me to write because they like my writing. There were many times though that I returned them money after two or three days of receiving it because I realized I couldn’t complete the project.” He is lucky, indeed. <a href="https://radtai.medium.com/patrick-marbers-closer-life-theatre-bangkok-2022-a-theatrical-review-7fcaa2fa25ba">Learn More</a>