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| Sneezed to meet you |
The stonking cast led by Lindsay Duncan as Judith Bliss - a fading actress, living every moment either literally or metaphorically as a scene of high drama - play every line. We meet the self-absorbed Blisses in their fabulously bohemian country house. Each - mother, father, son and daughter - has invited a flirt-interest to spend the weekend. When all eight come together, fact and fiction blur. For a play with little story it bursts with intrigue and insights.
There are several tableau moments where conversation is conducted through expressions alone. There isn't a duff performance. Olivia Colman as the cougar, Myra Arundel, is the first to let artifice slip when her bluff is called by Mr Bliss. Mrs Bliss is calling everyone's bluff and her children - Phoebe Waller-Bridge is spectacular as a honking, hormonal, Sorrell - are in on the game. Jeremy Northam is a masterwork of repressed gestures and Amy Morgan as the working class ingenue brought into the mix by Mr Bliss, is a treat.
In conclusion: My teenage companion claimed it was as funny as One Man Two Guvnors. That may be an accolade too far - nothing's funnier, though Noises Off is an easy equal- but it's better paced, better rounded, and unexpectedly profound.
References
Charles Spencer review in The Daily Telegraph
Michael Coveney review in What's on Stage
References
Charles Spencer review in The Daily Telegraph
Michael Coveney review in What's on Stage
Is this the first time you'd seen it? If so, I agree the 88-year-old script comes up fresh as a daisy, but the direction and a lot of the casting has the whiff of old toe jam. Duncan tries hard but it's evident SHE has never seen the play either and she's neither the breath control for the long and complex lines nor the 'actressy' characterisation that makes Judith both a monster, and adorable: Maria Aitken, Judi Dench, Stephanie Beacham all did it ten times better.
ReplyDeleteOlivia Colman should be phoning her agent to see if there's an escape clause in the contract because she's woefully miscast and not remotely exotic, vampish or dangerous enough as Myra.
In terms of whether it's worth the money - the £53.50 price band goes all the way back to Row R of the Stalls which is dreadful given that the circle overhangs from Row G after which you get an increasingly cut-off view of the stage until from half-way back it's effectively a cinemascope slit which cuts off the stairs and landing on which quite a lot happens. The back two rows are £43.50 (plus fees) which for 'restricted view' is criminal.
I've just added a link to a very different review of the production. It chimes with yours. I saw Hay Fever at The Savoy Theatre about ten years ago and didn't much enjoy it. Ditto, more recently The Vortex. I'd decided I wasn't a Coward fan, so was totally taken aback to enjoy this version so much. I really did. It was funny from the off, and everyone around me was laughing.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, we were Row G and every expression was clear. Given the emphasis on visuals, I did wonder aloud how much I would have missed if we were further back or further up as I'm a bit short-sighted. Your comments provide the answer. the first twelve rows of the stalls and first four of circle is probably about it.
As for Lindsay Duncan, I loved her. She came across as clever and playful; off-setting boredom by challenging expectations. I liked that. And Olivia Colman... I thought that was the joke - that she wasn't actually very predatory or slinky or dangerous, but the boy had bought the fantasy? Is it possible Howard Davies is deliberately providing a more human perspective?